Henderson County 4-H wins youth horse judging contest

Athens Daily Review, Texas
·2 min read

Jan. 26—Henderson County 4-H, took a narrow victory in the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo's 4-H and FFA horse judging competition Jan. 17 with a scant 3-point margin over the Texas Quarter Horse Youth Association Elite Team 1. The team accumulated a total score of 1,425 points to the TQHYA Elite 1's 1,422.

"This was an impressive win for Henderson County 4-H even with the tight margin," said Horse Show Director Lauren Lovelace-Murray. "TQHYA teams have been pretty dominate over the years and to have just three points separate the top two teams is testimony to the caliber of judges on those teams."

Henderson County 4-H, consisting of Karli Rayburn, Bella Bridges, Elley Chiesl, and Weston Proctor, grabbed the win with a first-place showing in judging horses at halter and performance, while the Texas Elite-1 team, featuring Faith Fry, David Kendrick, Gracie Potter and Gabby Shultz, grabbed first place in reasons competition. Henderson County's Rayburn claimed the overall high individual honors, with perfect placings in trail, ranch riding and reining judging and a total of 482 points. Faith Fry of TQHYA Elite 1 was the reserve high individual scoring 478 points. Fry had four classes with perfect placings.

"This was one of the deepest contests we've had in recent memory with 52 teams participating," said Lovelace-Murray. "Judging contests like this are extremely valuable, not only in teaching youth how to evaluate top animals, but in providing them with skills like critical thinking and an ability to voice viewpoints with organized thinking."

Students earn points based on a comparison of their placings against that of an expert panel of judges, as well as an ability to accurately argue the logic of their placings with reasons.

For full results go to judgingcard.com.

The 126th Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo is set to end February 4 with an estimated 1.3 million visitors coming through its gates. A total of $1.2 million will be awarded during the FWSSR PRORODEO Tournament. A record $6.125 million in sales was set during the Show's Junior Sale of Champions in 2022, including the record high of $310,000 for the Grand Champion Steer shown by 4-H member Tristan Himes of Sterling City, Texas. The 2024 Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo will happen January 12 through February 3. Go to www.fwssr.com for more.