Karen Kinyon – Walking Fleece show
Karen Kinyon has completed all requirements and is now certified as an AOA alpaca fleece judge for shorn fleece, walking fleece and is an Accredited Spin-Off judge. She regularly teaches seminars in Spinning, Weaving, Felting, Dyeing, Knitting, and Crochet with alpaca and llama fiber. She promotes these locally owned and Colorado grown alpaca and llama products from her private studio and takes the show on the road to various alpaca, yarn and fiber events. She continues to care for and love 27 alpacas and llamas on her small ranch north of Wellington, Colorado.
Karen has been raising alpacas and llamas since 1988. She developed a fine fleeced hand spinner’s herd and knew early on that the fiber produced by camelids needed to be brought to the forefront of the industry. In 1997, Karen was one of 5 people in the United States asked to develop and write the guidelines for llama fleece judging for the Alpaca and Llama Show Association and has been judging alpaca and llama fleece for that organization since that time. She judges shorn fleece, walking fleece and is a Spin-Off Judge. She works with alpaca and llama breeders across the country to help develop their fleeces for show and processing. She teaches Fiber Preparation classes that include shearing, skirting, washing, carding, and combing.
Karen has served as Fleece Committee Chair for both the Rocky Mountain Llama and Alpaca Association and Alpaca and Llama Show Association. She operated the RMLA Fiber Co-op booth for 10 years, taking members’ alpaca and llama products to sell at Estes Park Wool Market, Taos Wool Festival, Interweave’s Spin-Off Autumn Retreat in Lake Tahoe, Nevada; Salt Lake City, Utah; Petosi, Missouri; and Ashford, North Carolina, showcasing the best attributes of alpaca and llama fleece.
Robin Nasemann – Halter Show
Robin Nasemann was born in Germany. He attended school in England and has a masters degree in economics from the University of Lugano, Switzerland. His family started breeding alpacas in 2003 and now has a herd of 70 alpacas in the west of Germany. Since 2006, Robin is a certified Screener for the AZVD (Alpaca Breeders Association of Germany) and has screened alpacas all over Europe and South America. For several years he was a member of the board in the biggest alpaca association in mainland Europe. In 2010, he began the AOBA judging training program which he finished as certified AOA Judge for Halter and Performance in 2013. He has judged alpaca shows in France and Canada, and gives frequent seminars about alpacas across Europe.