"And I’ve only missed one Sunday cleanup. I had to go to Wellington that day," he said.
At the New Zealand Merino Shearing Championships on Saturday Mr Bell was surprised with a New Zealand Merino Shearing Society life membership.
Society president Dion Morrell said Mr Bell was "one of the main ingredients for the recipe" for putting the show on.
"It’s well overdue. At the end of the day he’s our go-to guy that keeps the show working."
Mr Bell has been a judge at the competition since the early 1970s and a crucial organiser for most of its existence.
He felt honoured, he said.
"It’s nice to be recognised by an organisation I’ve had such a long involvement in."
His relationship with the event began at a young age.
"When I was 10 it used to be held at the Memorial Hall across the road from my house. I’d wag school on a Friday and help out."
While there, some farmers suggested he had a "natural feel for wool", he said.
He began woolhandling in the school holidays and eventually took up the role full time.
He eventually became a wool classer and a master woolhandler.
A major change in the competition through the years was the introduction of digital and electric equipment, he said.
"You used to write the scores on pieces of cardboard. Now look at the technology you’ve got."
As well as his involvement in the competition, Mr Bell works for PGG Wrightson and is an Otago regional councillor.
