4-H Champs Crowned

The 4H and FFA Beef Show featured 27 participants and entries at the 2018 PC Fair.

The Senior Advanced Beef Showmanship was won by Malta's Kailey Crowder who was crowned the event's Grand Champion and Reserve Champion in Market Beef.

"The key was making sure that my steer was set up and looked good for the judge and that he kept his head up really high," Crowder told the PCN.

Her 1,300-pound steer named Valiente stepped out of line a couple of times after the questions were asked, Leaving Crowder a little concerned.

"It was (concerning) but I redeemed myself and it worked out," Crowder said.

Crowder, a sophomore at Malta High School and seventh year 4-H participant had previously won the Beef Advanced Junior Showmanship in 2017 and 2016, so that makes three straight titles for her.

"It feels really good," Crowder said.

She starting working with Valiente as soon as the school year ended and had been every day of the summer for up to two hours a day.

Malta's Raina Mortenson was crowned the event's Reserve Champion. The Senior Beef Showmanship was sponsored by Mark and Ronna Holman of the Holman Ranch.

"I'm actually really surprised but it feels nice," Mortenson said. "My steer didn't completely freak out like he did a couple of days ago."

Mortenson went on to say that she had a different steer ready for the show until about a month ago.

"I was going to take another one that I was working with all year and then about a month ago I decided that I needed to take a better-looking steer. He was really wild, and he kind of calmed down about a month ago."

Mortenson missed a whole week of the month that she allowed herself to work Captain, the steer she showed at the fair. She mentioned that she didn't have much time to work with Captain because she works but when she could practice, she set aside a half an hour every day.

According to Mortenson, Captain ran away the night before the fair.

"This is the highest I have placed in the last two years," Mortenson said.

Mortenson finished as the 2015 Beef Advanced Junior Showmanship Grand Champion in the 2015 Beef Show.

Tova Anderson took home the Advanced Junior Grand Champion trophy sponsored by M Cross Cattle Company.

"It feels good," Anderson said after picking up her title.

2018 was her first year for showing a steer but Anderson had won Grand Champion in Horse Showmanship in 2017 and 2016.

Anderson had been working with her steer named Otis daily for around an hour a day.

She was asked a couple of questions by Judge Devin Murnin of Billings, who returned for a second consecutive year to judge the event.

"He asked me to tell him three things about my steer and to name two breeds of cattle," Anderson said. "I gave him Black Angus and Red Angus. I heard the person next to me say Charolais but I didn't want to be a copycat."

Anderson shared that her steer's name was Otis, that he weighed 320-pounds, and that she got Otis from her Grandma and Grandpa.

Malta's Pierce Mortenson's beef won the Beef Market Category and was crowned Grand Champion. The trophy was In Loving Memory of Eva Oxarart.

His bovine was giving him grief when he entered the arena for the last steer showing of the day.

"He wanted to lay down earlier and I wasn't letting him, so that's probably part of the reason," Pierce said.

Pierce shared why he thought his beef won.

"I fed him a lot and he gained 500 pounds in a couple of months and he looked good," Pierce said. "He was one of the smallest on the scale in December but he came out on top now."