MAKING THE GRADE: FFA, 4-H members from across the state gather to evaluate cattle

Skyler Hammons |, Tahlequah Daily Press, Okla.
·3 min read

Sep. 13—LOCUST GROVE — More than 1,000 FFA and 4-H members from across Oklahoma came to show off their skills at a commercial cattle-grading competition at the Sycamore Springs Arena.

While this was the first year for the event to bring in as many contestants as it did, it was not the first time the competition has been held.

David Love, general manager at Sycamore Springs Arena, said the cattle-grading contest used to take place at the Cherokee County rodeo grounds. Since the arena in Tahlequah has been torn down, Love said, those at Sycamore Springs Arena decided to allow for the event to take place there, free of charge.

The event hosted around 1,100 kids participating in grading 15 head of cattle, which were provided by Gary and Reese Davis with Tahlequah Livestock Market. The organizers of the contest were originally thinking they were going to have about 400 to 500 competitors, since that's what they have had in the past.

"Our kids are our future, and if we don't help the kids, then we're not going to have a future in the ag business and the rodeo business and all that, so if we can help with that, it's a great thing," Love said.

Robby Branscum, an ag teacher at Stillwater, said he brought more students than ever before to the competition. Branscum said he did not have as many students with ag backgrounds as some of the other schools at the competition, which helped them appreciate how cattle are being raised.

"There's a lot of my students who didn't know a steer from a heifer a month ago, and now they're able to evaluate these things," Branscum said.

Dawson said the contest was a good starter for the season, especially for those who have never participated in cattle grading. Dawson said that in cattle grading, the person judging is looking to create a future prediction of each animal.

Darrell Hood, Keys Public Schools ag teacher, said the district has helped host the event for the past several years. Hood said the competition, which has students perform equations and judge the cattle by their weight, appearance, etc., could help lead some students to a career that requires skills obtained from cattle grading.

"It's a good general practice. You can make a living [with it]. We have cattle buyers who go to sale barns every day, and they do this in their head and out together sets of cattle, according to these formulas. It's a good learning opportunity for them, and they could end up in a career for some of these kids," Hood said.

Brad Carey, an ag teacher at Webbers Falls, said he hopes his students get a real-world experience from the competition that they can apply when they go to places like the sale barn.

"I think it's one of the greatest contests kids can do because they [don't] just need to go to the sale barn. They can go out to the pasture and grade these cattle," said Cody Dawson, Stigler Public Schools ag teacher. "We can jump off the bus and go to any pasture, and it's as real world as it gets."