As one of the breeders who was part of the syndicate that purchased the first interest in Maui Jim in the Denver sale, I can give my reasons for buying in at that time. Simply, he was the best young bull, with the exact pedigree I was looking for, that had come available in a couple of years and the buy-in was reasonably inexpensive - $2500 for 50 units of semen plus the ability to buy certs at cost - and a discount on future semen purchases.
I didn't use the semen early on, like some of the syndicate breeders did, because about the time I was going to use some of it the "facts" concerning IE were coming out and I knew it was possible for Maui Jim to have gotten the IE gene through either his sire or his dam. So I've waited until the test for IE was perfected and Maui Jim was tested as IE free before using any of the semen.
With the cloud over him at the time, I wasn't too surprised that Maui Jim brought less for the possession interest sold at the Denver sale the next year and, although he's since been tested as IE free (and DL free), with the current economic conditions, it doesn't surprise me that interest brought less when resold in the dispersion sale.
When you look at Maui Jim's performance pedigree report, the initial numbers of his progeny look good - below avg BW and above average WW. I've also heard several good reports regarding the quality of his calves.
I was also impressed with what Mr. Rodgers had to say about him in his footnotes in the sale catalog. I'm looking forward to using that semen.
George
