Effort Required To Win Grand Championship

It takes a lot of effort and a tremendous amount of commitment to do the work required in order to prepare an animal for show at the fair. To win the Grand Championship validates the time required and makes the whole process incredibly sweet. After spending months preparing his animal for the fair, last year Brennan Gorder won the Grand Championship with his steer, an achievement he will never forget.

“I’ve been in 4-H for 11 years, and I entered a steer every year,” he comments. “Last year was the first time I ever won Grand Champion. I knew I had a good steer, but I didn’t know how it would compare to the other entrants.”

Each year for the past 11 years, Gorder has begun his quest to win the Grand Championship when he selects his steer in the fall. He spends the winter fattening the animal properly to get it into good shape, but the real work begins each summer when he initiates the necessary work with the animal to bring out its full potential. “I always pick my steer in November,” Gorder comments. “I feed it grain and hay all winter to fatten it up.”

He continues, “In the summer I start working with it, tying it up, washing, grooming and trimming it, and leading it around to get it used to me and to being handled. The showmanship is important as it shows how you and your steer interact. You have to make sure it is set at all times, and you don’t want an aggressive steer.”

Gorder spends two to three hours daily all summer long to prepare his animal for the fair. He looks forward to the activity and excitement that go hand-in-hand with fair each August, but he also feels a sense of relief when the fair ends. “It is a lot of work to prepare an animal for showing,” Gorder remarks. “I anticipate the fair and I look forward to it, but I’m also happy to see it end.”

He adds, “I love showing and I like the money I make from the steer.”

Gorder will show his last steer as a 4-H member at this year’s fair. He plans to attend Concordia College, Moorhead, MN, this fall, so Fair 2011 will end his 4-H involvement. “I really liked 4-H,” he concludes. “4-H has really taught me a lot and I don’t regret the 11 years I’ve spent with the organization.”