Fair board hears from concerned parents

Things became rather heated at the Hot Springs County Fair board meeting last week as a number of families

attended, upset about some things that went on during the Hot Springs County Fair.

One of the issues was overweight animals not being allowed in the ring for the final shows.

Daniel Webber was very vocal that his son, after taking first place in his division, was told as he was leaving the ring that he could not be in the final show because his animal was overweight.

Wyoming State Fair rules do not disqualify an animal due to being overweight and Webber pointed out there is nothing in the County Fair rules regarding it, so he questioned why it was done and especially as the child was leaving the ring.

In response, the board said they will have to have a discussion and ensure their rules are in coordination with the state rules, but said they were not the ones who made the decision at the ring.

Apparently, the judge is the one who makes the decision, but those in attendance felt strongly that the decision should be the board’s. That would track right back to the board making the rules in accordance with the state fair rules and ensuring they were adhered to.

The issue began with the sheep show, when the judge said an overweight sheep didn’t need to re-enter the ring and continued with the swine and beef shows, so they were consistent throughout, not just singling out a single show.

The families would like to see the rules in October so they can better prepare for changes made to the fair rules. They do everything to adhere to the state rules, so consistency between the two entities is necessary.

The board agreed things need to be updated and suggested perhaps some of the 4-H and FFA leaders need to come to the board meetings to give their input throughout the year.

The board also pointed out there is a hard and fast rule about leaving the fair early and some families pulled their animals and left.

Those attending the meeting also asked the board to have a majority of the signs that are posted all over the grounds reminding them not to help their kids with their projects removed.

They feel the number of signs posted are unnecessary. Parents indicated they know it's their child’s project and being reminded of it every time they turn around was ridiculous.

Some kids may need a little help, say a 70-pound kid with a 1,400-pound steer, but the parents feel like they’re constantly being watched.

It was even suggested the older kids helping the younger ones should be getting some kind of recognition for helping out.

Another suggestion was the sale be broken up a little differently.

As it is now, all the pigs are sold at once as are all the beef and all the sheep. By the time they get to the last group, a lot of the buyers have left, either because they’ve already bought the animal they wanted, or they’re out of funds, leaving the last group to go very cheaply.

They would rather see the sale be one pig, one beef, one sheep and then repeat, giving all the sellers a fair chance.

The biggest issue, however, was the newly added carcass contest.

Troy Daniels spoke with a couple of area ranchers regarding the contest and was told our contest was run completely wrong.

He felt the information about the contest should have been sent out sooner, the wording in the flyer that was first presented was negative and the kids didn’t learn anything from it.

They felt there was no transparency in the contest and was only used to discredit the champion animals, especially by selling the carcass contest winners before the champions. Clear rules are needed and they want the board educated on those rules.

Dr. Steven Paisley, Wyoming State Beef Extension Specialist and associate professor at the University of Wyoming was the person conducting the ultrasounds for the carcass contest. Paisley does carcass ultrasounds for carcass contests across Wyoming, Nebraska and Colorado, generally 13-15 county fairs each year in Wyoming.

According to Paisley, there are different areas used for the various species such as weight, backfat thickness, ribeye or loineye and marbling. The final ranking for each species is a combination of quality grade and yield grade, the same equation used for the carcass contest at the Wyoming State Fair for over 20 years.

Parents of participants were also upset about what data was used during the contest, indicating “Angus” data had been used during the beef ultrasound rather than multiple species data.

However, Paisley said that data makes no difference since all of the information used is based on USDA yield and quality grades rather than a specific breed.

By the close of the meeting it was determined a committee would be formed with the intent to give the fair board more support and help not just during fair, but throughout the year. Anyone interested in being on the committee should contact the fair board.