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 Staff photo/Katie Yantis: A truck dumps dirt along the Miami and Erie Canal towpath where it crosses Ohio 66. The project will make it easier for those using the towpath to cross Ohio 66.
By KATIE YANTIS
Staff Writer
ST. MARYS — Hiker, bikers and walkers in the region will notice a
difference in a few sections of the Miami and Erie Canal towpath trail
starting this week.
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A teary goodbye |
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Thursday, 31 July 2008 |
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 Staff photo/William Laney
Candace Muir tries to hold back her tears following the Market Steer Show at the Auglaize County Fair Wednesday night.
By KAREN CAMPBELL
Staff Writer
WAPAKONETA — As the tears flowed after her steer’s “Destiny” was reached, Candace Muir said the win meant everything to her.
Named Reserve Grand Champion of the Market Steer Show on Wednesday night, the more than 1,340-pound white steer was the culmination of years the 18-year-old from Waynesfield had spent showing at the Auglaize County Fair.
But not only was Destiny one of the judge’s two top picks out of a field of more than 50 steers, but he was also Muir’s favorite.
“He’s just perfect,” Candace said as she stood in the show ring long after the crowd had cleared the bleachers.
Not only was he a white, short-horn like she had always wanted, but after years of showing heifers at the fair, showing a steer had long been a dream for Candace.
“I wanted this for so long,” Candace said.
Despite her celebration and tears of joy, Candace already was worrying about having to say goodbye to a steer who had become more than the ultimate 4-H project for the fair.
“Usually we’re leaving for the state fair,” Candace said. “I’ve never had to see them get on the trailer.”
Thinking about how she’ll ever replace the steer, Candace said she already has her eye on his full brother for next year and hopefully she’ll have the same luck with him.
Krystle Turner, 19, of Waynesfield, said saying goodbye is one of the hardest parts of taking livestock projects at the fair.
She said as she showed her steer, Charlie, in the Show Barn ring Wednesday night he started crying and she found herself crying, too.
“You get attached to them after working with them for a year,” Krystle said. “It’s hard to let go. It’s like saying goodbye to a pet dog. It doesn’t get any easier the older you get or the more projects you take. It may get harder.”
Krystle aims for a thick, finished steer with more covering over certain parts of the cow. The covering adds up to more flavor on the plate, the 11-year steer showman said.
To get what she hopes is the ideal steer, Krystle said she feeds him, but not too much, for the 10 months or so she spends raising him. Daily, they walk together and she washes him.
She starts working on his hair then, to make it easily groomable by show time.
The day of the show, Krystle started early in the morning feeding her steer and then spent the day washing and grooming him. She said the pair was on their feet so long that Charlie shut his eyes and started to fall asleep in the ring.
“Don’t give up,” Krystle advised younger showmen. “I thought I started with a calf that was not very good and then we clipped him today and I wondered what happened. He looked so good.”
Judge Tom Turner, coach of the Ohio State University’s judging team, told showmen at the end of the show that he understands it can be hard to prepare steer for a show a certain day. Some animals may need more time, some may have done better with less.
“In the real world, you sell when the steer are ready,” Turner said. “You don’t have to target a specific day.”
He said of the 53 entries in the Market Steer Show, he was looking for correct structure, a three-dimensional skeleton, muscle mass and even coverage. But most importantly he was looking at the youth showing the animals to see if they were learning as much as they could, not just about animals, but life skills.
Tyler Heintz, 9, showed his first steer, Red, this year at the Auglaize County Fair.
The Waynesfield boy decided to try the project because it was something his father was involved with.
He said there were days it was definitely hard, when he was breaking it into a halter by hooking it up to a donkey or walking it for 45 minutes a day, even when temperatures were the coldest during the winter.
Bridget Oen, 12, of St. Marys, grew up on a dairy farm and decided last year that she wanted to take one of her feeder calves the next year as a steer.
Her first year taking the market project, Bridget said saying goodbye to Champ will be hard.
She said immediately prior to taking the ring, she watches the couple of classes prior to figure out what the judge is looking for and to attempt to cater to that if she can.
Cole Turner, 16, of Waynesfield, said getting ready for the show is an all day process, but its worth the work.
Not only is he learning about caring for animals, teamwork and responsibility, but the money he’s earned selling steers the past eight year was used to purchase his first car with money left over to put into a college fund, too.
“When you pick out a calf, you’re always taking a chance, you never know what you’re getting,” Cole said. “Hopefully, it will all work out.”
He said it takes patience to take a livestock project. There will be years when certain steers will do well and others when they won’t.
“If you don’t do good your first year, keep trying,” said Cole, who admits it gets harder to make time for projects as he gets older and school, work and sports take up more time.
“It’s nice to see all your hard work pay off,” he said.
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 05 August 2008 )
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