Sundre & Bergen 4-H Beef Show & Sale

Man oh man this has been a busy but great week! I have made it home from 4-H on Parade and caught my breath! Now I can keep updating my blog... finally! So back last Tuesday, May 24th we had our hometown 4-H beef show and sale with the club I am in, Sundre Multi, and our neighbouring club Bergen Multi! Our senior conformation judge was Rod Morrison, the junior conformation judge was Jared Hunter, and the showmanship, grooming, and trainging judge was A.J. Smith.

And the big winners are...

Interclub Grand Champion Steer: Jill Jackson

Interclub Reserve Champion Steer: Cache McLerie

Interclub Supreme Champion Female: Kayla Jones

Interclub Reserve Supreme Champion Female: Tessa Nybo

Our steer sale went very well with 21 steers selling for an average of $2.32/lb.



Interclub Pen of Five (left the winners Bergen Multi, right Sundre Multi) - Kohler and I are second from the right!



My Interclub Reserve Supreme Champion Two Year Old homegrown Shorthorn x Saler "Denali" and her March 30th heifer calf "Annabelle".

I had an awesome day with my 4-H friends and cattle! Congratulations to each and every member for exhibiting their beef projects! Thank you to the leaders, families, and everyone else that has assisted us 4-H members in getting to where we are today!

Judging Showmanship at Eckville & District 4-H Female Show

Today the mighty winds blew me up to the Eckville and District 4-H Female Show held in the Dickson Arena! It was another excellent show with exceptionally dedicated 4-H members, many of which had not only yearling heifer projects, but also 2 year old and/or 3 year old cow/calf pairs. I was once again thoroughly impressed with the high caliber of livestock and showman that entered the ring today! I got to share the ring with the conformation judge and my friend, Lindsey Douglas, the winner of the 2010 Agribition Judging Competition! As I had mentioned in my last blog post, it is so awesome that the committees of these shows are choosing current and recent past 4-H members to judge! It is a great honour to be asked to judge no matter what your age or experience, but it is especially rewarding when you are just an up and coming "newbie"! I look forward to having the opportunity to judge again in the near future!


 Yesterday I missed the Canada's Richest Youth Steer and Heifer Show, due to my judging commitment, however I heard that it was a very successful show! If only I could be in two (or maybe three - because I could also have been working May Queen!) places at once! That sure would make life a lot simpler... being able to be everywhere at once! I guess that's when you have to prioritize and look at your values - something farmers and ranchers have to do everyday!

The next couple weeks are going to be jam packed! May needs to slow down a little - I don't think there are enough hours in the day to get everything done... but I also can't wait for the upcoming events this month!

Judging Showmanship at Crossfield/Madden Achievement Day

Well it seems a wonderful cold has momentarily hindered my ability to speak without sounding like a croaking frog... however me and my croaky voice still made it to the Crossfield/Madden Achievement Day today held in Haven's Arena just outside of the metropolis of Madden, Alberta! I was asked to be their showmanship judge for the day, and what a great day it was! I got to work alongside Aaron Grant once again, as he was their conformation judge. All of the members did an exceptional job and displayed some top quality cattle! I would also like to commend the leaders, parents, and volunteers for organizing an easy to follow, fast moving show. I really enjoy judging showmanship because it's all about what you can do yourself and how much effort you've put into making yourself and your animal shine - regardless of your animal's conformation!



Tomorrow I am off to Dickson to judge showmanship once again! I am very honoured that these clubs have looked back into the 4-H program to find their judge - it really means a lot to me to have been asked to judge another club's members... when I am still a member myself! We all need to get our start somewhere, and I am thankful that these clubs have given me the opportunity to start what I hope will be a lifetime of giving back to the 4-H program, which has given so much to me!

Announcing for the Olds & Eagle 4-H Beef Achievement Day

Today I had the privilege of being the announcer for the Olds & Eagle 4-H Beef Achievement Day! I had a great time working alongside the conformation judge, Aaron Grant, showmanship/grooming & training judge, Jared Hunter, and ringman Brad McDermid. Thankfully, I also had Robyn Neufeld up in the announcer's stand to help me get everyone's names pronounced correctly and keep things running smoothly! I saw many familiar as well as new faces at the show today and had a few chances throughout the day to have a great chat with many different people.

Aaron Grant, former coach of the Texas A & M and Michigan State collegiate judging teams, and myself chatting about judging during a break in the classes.

I would like to congratulate all of the Olds and Eagle 4-H Beef members on a job well done today! Each of you did a fabulous job whether it was by exhibiting the champion animal, being an exceptional showman, helping out a fellow member, or doing your part to keep your club's stalling area in tip top shape - everyone was a winner today in my books! Two members I would like to make special mention of are Jason Roemmele and Wylie Ness. These two Eagle 4-H members both had full 4-H Project Herds. For those of you who are unfamiliar with 4-H, a 4-H Project Herd is when a member has a yearling heifer project, a 2 year old cow/calf project that started out as a yearling heifer project the year before, as well as a 3 year old cow/calf project that also started out as the member's yearling heifer project, progressed to be a 2 year old with calf and finally is now a 3 year old with calf. This may sound simple but actually having the fortune of both your animals being bred and having healthy calves is not something that happens every year. The amount of time and effort these hard working members must put into their project herd is something few 4-H members will ever get to experience. Last year I myself had a project herd and I can tell you it is certainly no easy task! You must train, feed, and clip not one but  five animals... I also had a steer project, so that makes six animals to take care of. Once you are at the show you seem to be in and out of the show ring constantly! At some of the larger, fast paced shows I had to line all of my cattle up ringside and go into class with one, come out and pass my animal to another person, switch show numbers, grab the next animal and go back in! By the end of the day the judge often just laughs when you walk into the ring because you have been in literally almost every class! When you show your entire herd together you must organize enough people to lead your animals while you act as the showstick handler and set up your herd to your liking. Although it was a lot of work I immensely enjoyed showing my 4-H herd last year - it was a huge accomplishment for me! Unfortunately today Wylie was not able to show his herd because his 2 year old cow decided that show day would be the perfect day to calve! She caused quite a commotion this morning when everyone realized Wylie's cow had two little calf hooves sticking out, ready to come out into the world! I guess Mother Nature doesn't really care if it's show day or not... if a calf is ready to make it's entrance into the world, there's no stopping it! The cow was taken to the auction mart where she could deliver her baby in peace, and word came a couple hours later that she had gave birth to a healthy bull calf!

All in all it was an excellent day and I would like to thank both the Olds and Eagle 4-H Beef Clubs for asking me to announce their show today!!