Competitors look to state fair
As county fairs across the Cowboy State come to a close the first week of August, many youth showmen look forward to heating up competition at the Wyoming State Fair (WSF). Starting Aug. 8, WSF will offer youth livestock shows, rodeos, live music, the carnival and so much more at the State Fairgrounds in Douglas.
Carbon County Fair
Peyton Munroe is gearing up to show five horses, four pigs, a market heifer, a market steer and her Australian Shepherd at the Carbon County Fair starting Aug. 1. The 16-year-old began her livestock showing career during peewee hog showmanship nine years ago and started showing competitively in the first grade.
“I really am looking forward to showing off my hard work from this summer and showing all of my animals,” she shares. Her inspiration comes from friends who have mentored her throughout her showing career.
A competitive showman, Munroe and her Duroc gilt, Tyra, were the Grand Champion Breeding Hog at the Carbon County Fair last summer. She and Tyra went on to win the Reserve Grand Champion Duroc Breeding Gilt title at Aksarben in Grand Island, Neb. last year.
Munroe has also been showing at the National Western Stock Show in Denver for the last two years. Heading to WSF after county fair, she looks forward to spending time with her livestock friends that have become family.
“I’m really excited to show my Hereford and my pigs at state fair,” she adds.
After state fair, Munroe will be a sophomore at the Encampment school. Along with participating in FFA she competes in basketball, volleyball and track during the school year, but says she would rather be showing.
“Showing has taught me that win or lose, we have to keep trying,” says Munroe. Other lessons she has learned include animal health and care, responsibility and humility.
“Involvement in agriculture is in my blood from growing up on the ranch,” she says. Animal science remains her career interest, especially livestock chiropractic work.
Uinta County Fair
A couple counties to the west, Aspen Fraughton has been working hard to prepare her steer, Squiggy, for the Uinta County Fair in Evanston.
“I’ve loved attending fair for as long as I can remember,” says the 17-year-old showman. “My favorite parts are watching my steers learn at fair, meeting new friends and making new memories.”
“I like to sit in the barn with my steer and think of memories and successes from previous years,” she says. Fraughton and her steer at the 2019 Uinta County Fair made the final drive in the market beef show, a memory she fondly looks back on.
Squiggy, her show steer for this year, is the product of a breeding decision Fraughton and her dad made.
She says on the decision, “I thought the bull looked really good, had tons of hair and I liked how much white he had.”
Fraughton has been showing for nine years, since she was eight years old. Raised on a cattle ranch, she began showing cattle from her family’s herd to build funds for college.
“I’m most proud of my work ethic and the responsibility I’ve learned to carry from showing,” she says. She notes her dad was a strong believer in making sure she learned how to take care of her animal and how to do things the right way.
Time management was also a lesson she learned, having to balance homework and extracurricular activities while working with her steer. Fraughton plans to go to law school and work towards a career in family law.
Averi Hales is the editor for the Wyoming Livestock Roundup. Send comments on this article to roundup@wylr.net.
