Hog Blog

Visit the Fort Worth Stock Show, and leave the driving to bus operators (and cattle herders)

Fans of the Fort Worth Stock Show who don’t like being herded into the Will Rogers Memorial Center’s parking lots – and paying for it – have another option.

Shuttle buses are available 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. during the weekends, with departures about every half-hour from the Macy’s at Ridgmar Mall, 2008 Green Oaks Road in west Fort Worth, and about every 20 minutes from Billy Bob’s Texas, 2520 Rodeo Plaza in north Fort Worth.

Parking is free at the shuttle pickup spots. Fare to ride the bus is $1 per person each way.

The Fort Worth Transportation Authority will operate the shuttles Saturday, Sunday (Jan. 28-29) and the final Stock Show day Feb. 4.

For more information, visit www.the-t.com or call 817-215-8600.

@gdickson

Modeling gig in a hot tub leads to 40-year Stock Show career for Fort Worth woman

Cothelle Dodson's 40-year career at the Fort Worth Stock Show began in a hot tub.

In 1972, she was asked to model in a hot tub at a stock show display. Sometimes, she spent eight to 10 hours a day in the water. "My skin got a little pruny, but I recovered," Dodson, 70, quipped.

The hot tub gig lasted for four or five years, she said. But today, Dodson is better known as the announcement lady at the Amon G. Carter Jr. Exhibits Hall. Proudly displaying her soft and somewhat shaky voice, she routinely makes announcements about lost children and lost husbands. She's also quick to add to the stock show's festive mood. If the weather is bad -- as it often is in late January or early February -- she will take the mic and tell the crowd the day's forecast calls for "sunshine and a balmy 70 degrees."

"Nobody loves her work more than this lady," co-worker and friend Fay Monkres said. At the beginning of this year's show, Monkres and other co-workers presented Dodson with a shiny belt buckle commemorating her 40th year of employment at the stock show.

Dodson, a 1959 graduate of Arlington Heights High School on Fort Worth's west side, considers her announcement window on the north end of the exhibit hall (look for the Cavender's boots display) "the best people-watching window this side of the airport."

"We had a streaker dart by one time," she said. "We've just about seen it all."

@gdickson

Will Rogers Coliseum features unique Western paintings at each portal. But who put them there?

Anybody know the history of these really cool western paintings/murals at each portal of the Will Rogers Coliseum? My family and I went to the rodeo last night, and my wife noticed them. There's nothing necessarily special about them artistically, but they're just really pleasant to look at. If I'm counting correctly, there are 28 portals leading from the coliseum concourse to the seating area, and each one is bedecked with a Western painting. Today, I'm out at the the Will Rogers Memorial Center helping with the Star-Telegram's stock show coverage. If you know the history of these paintings, Tweet me @gdickson or send an email to gdickson@star-telegram.com ...

I just ran into Punch Shaw, the Star-Telegram's rodeo and stock show guru, and he says the artwork has been a feature on the coliseum portals as long as he can remember. He says the paintings may have been redone, or freshened up recently, but the presence of artwork in the coliseum seating area is nothing new.

The Will Rogers Center and adjacent Landmark Pioneer Tower were built in 1936, the year of Texas' centennial celebration, according to FWCulture.com ... It was named after humorist and writer Will Rogers.

@gdickson

Meat judging contest cancelled on report of code violations at packing plant

The Fort Worth Stock Show says the annual Intercollegiate Meat Judging Contest, to be held Saturday at the Columbia Meat Packing Co. plant in Dallas, has been cancelled. The reason: Problems at the Columbia plant. The city of Dallas recently issued a letter to the company, asserting multiple code violations. According to a CBS 11 report, the plant temporarily shut down earlier this week to deal with the problems.

Shanna Weaver, spokesman for the Stock Show, said the sponsors of the contest made their decision a few days ago.
- Scott Nishimura

Fort Worth Mayor greets students, giant upright cows at Stock Show

While a heavy rain drenched the grounds of the Fort Worth Stock Show Thursday morning, Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price remained in good spirits as she greeted local students arriving for class field trips.

"Most of them are pumped about being here," Price said. "I'd be here doing this everyday if I could."

Price also spoke to some Texas FFA members who were volunteering to guide students throughout the Stock Show. Price said she told them how important it is to volunteer at events like this and around the community, both as a way to learn an area’s history as well as providing a boost to college applications.

Price also snagged a few photos with the Stock Show's mascots, the Moos Brothers. (Price is the one in the middle.)

-Aman Batheja

Elsie joins breast cancer awareness effort

 

Elsie the cow got into the swing of Pink Ribbon Day at the Stock Show, wearing a pink blanket and boa in her corral in the Amon G. Carter Jr. Exhibits Hall.

“The Stock Show asked us to participate in Pink Ribbon Day in conjunction with their involvement with the Susan G. Komen Foundation,” said Tim Hawk, Borden’s general manager. “We said yes without a thought.”

The dairy company not only supplied strawberry milk (along with the customary white variety) for breast cancer survivors honored Tuesday at the Stock Show, but also dedicated sales of pink Borden bandanas to Komen, Hawk said.

Hoping to sell at least 5,000 of the $1 bandanas, Hawk said that Borden will match the total with a donation.

“A large number of our employees have been touched by breast cancer,” he said. “When we share with our employees all the charities we’re involved with, we always get applause when we mention Komen.”

Hawk said that Borden just celebrated its 150th year, and that Elsie has been the company’s “spokescow” since the 1939 World’s Fair in New York City.

“She travels all over the United States, but her home is in Texas,” he said.

This year, Hawk said, Elsie will travel 250,000 miles and see between 11 and 12 million people. – Terry Evans

 

Firefighter crew standing ready

 
 Firefighter Grady Young, left, Lt. Heath Turner and Firefighter Kyle Omberg work a shift at Station 80, the Will Rogers Memorial Complex, for the Fort Worth Stock Show. Photo by Terry Evans

Hogs are hobbies, shows are group efforts for Royse City residents

A surprised Lawton Berry hoisted a blue ribbon over his head and a crowd of Royse City residents roared.
Berry, 11, walked Squeaky by himself as the Poland China Spots gilt took first place in the Swine Show Breeders Class 65 Monday. But you’d have thought the 60 or so family members and friends were next to him at every step.
“We’re all here for each other,” said Texas State Trooper Jeff Berry as he rubbed down his son’s pig in a pen near the Swine Arena at the Fort Worth Stock Show.
Randy Hancock, the Royse City school district superintendent and former agriculture teacher, said that bringing about 35 hogs to the Stock Show is about more than showing what farmers in the town northeast of Dallas can do.
“It’s all about the kids,” he said.
That’s why Lawton’s family pitches in to help raise an FFA project like Squeaky, said his mom, a pharmacist named Lezlee Berry.
“It’s a family hobby,” she said. “We do it as a group.”
And as a group, Royse City FFA won the Herdsman Award, which recognizes their effort to keep their pens clean and organized. That’s something almost as great as taking a blue ribbon, Hancock said.

By Terry Evans

Cowboy poets, musicians "edutain" at Campfire Stories

Dale “Sourdough” Myres sniffed and snorted on a tiny harmonica held to his nose. To the amazement of folks sitting in the West Arena of the Fort Worth Stock Show’s Richardson-Bass Building, he produced a recognizable version of a campfire song familiar to most of them.

Myres played an Irish tune on a larger harmonica and banjo, then explained how Irish music helped introduce the banjo to America.

“But y’all aren’t here to learn history,” he said as he dove into a song called “When Texas was Free.”

Myres calls himself an “edutainer” and delights in teaching his Campfire Stories audience as he plays and sings. He and several other musicians, poets and story tellers took turns on the stage Monday.

Presented by the Texas Cowboy Poets Association, Campfire Stories runs through Thursday, with fairly continuous performances from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. for audiences that come and go.

“Sometimes there are 50 people, sometimes a few,” said Johnie Terry, one of the show’s organizers. “We play no matter how many there are.” - Terry Evans

Station 80 is part of every Stock Show

Will Rogers Memorial Complex has its own fire station.
For the entire run of the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo, Fire Station 80 is staffed by firefighters from various other stations — four per 24-hour shift — under the supervision of Lt. Heath Turner.
“We’re responsible for handling every sick and injured person and every fire inside the WRMC grounds,” Turner said.
The only exceptions are injuries that happen inside the rodeo arena in the Will Rogers Coliseum, because that’s the purview of a special team of medical professionals.
Station 80’s seasonal crews worked the Stock Show since 1944, said Lt. Tim Hardeman, the fire department’s spokesperson, adding that a typical day brings eight to 10 “customers.”
“Most of the injuries are so minor that the person refuses additional medical attention,” he said. “The call volume fluctuates.”
Indeed, Hardeman said the crew was so busy Sunday they had to call in an extra company to help handle the number of “slips, trips, falls and minor cuts.”
Medstar handles ambulance service. But the firefighters have a 1991 Spartan engine if they need it.
To handle fires – mostly limited to trash cans and the occasional car or truck – the engine carries 500 gallons of water and pumps 1,250 gallons a minute.
To handle firefighters, the station has four Murphy beds, a mobile communications center and a cozy kitchen.
– Terry Evans

New flavor sweetens the day at The Soda Shed

(Pictured from left: Kim Hanna, Brandt Elledge and Amanda Elledge)

Warmer weather Sunday brought a steady stream of customers to The Soda Shed for a thirst-quenching home-made soda.

The business began by Cheri Elledge and her husband, Larry, who created and perfected the recipes inside the kitchen of their Cleburne home.

Now in its second year at the Stock Show, sales are sound but family members working at the business said last year’s totals are going to be hard to beat because of Super Bowl crowds.

New this year, the classic flavor of cola. But also on the menu is an orange cream and a cream soda, which is oh-so-sweet but surprisingly light and refreshing.

Vanilla spice is The Soda Shed’s version of Dr. Pepper with a little more vanilla and a hint of bubblegum aftertaste.

By far, the best-seller remains root beer and root beer floats made with classic root beer flavors,  said Amanda Elledge, daughter-in-law of the owners.

But two other kinds of root beer await the thirsty—sarsaparilla, a stronger version with more spices such as wintergreen and clove; and birch beer, which has a milder flavor.

When asked about all the hype that homemade soda machines received during the holiday, Brandt Elledge there’s no comparison to his family's specially crafted secret recipes.

“You can’t beat these flavors,” he said. “My dad used to have one of those machines ... he ended up making his own syrups.”

The Soda Shed is located in the Amon Carter Exhibit Hall. 

--Susan McFarland

 

Do Llamas spit?

Yes, says Sharon Van Hooser from Poolville, who has raised Llamas for 10 years. 

"But you have to make one really mad, or get caught between them when their feeding," Van Hooser said just before competing in another llama show at the Stock Show. "They just don't spit for no reason."

Otherwise, she says, llamas are wonderful animals, both highly agreeable and utilitarian. The animals are cousins of the camel and until recently were found mostly in the Andes of South America. They are curious, gentle, trainable, and great around kids. Llamas are great pack animals, great for guarding cows or sheep against predators. (They will spit at coyotes, if need be.) Llama hair makes nice scarves, hats and gloves.

And as far as natural defense mechanisms, spitting is about as gentle as it gets, unless you get a llama really angry. Then get ready for some heavy duty expectorant.

"If they are really angry, they can pull up a lot, really fast," Van Hooser said. 

 

 

 

Stock show gallery

These photos were so cool we posted them for everyone to see.

Mike Johnson and his horse Bam Bam had a time of 11.8 seconds in the PRCA Tie-down Roping Slack in Will Rogers Coliseum. Shot at Will Rogers Memorial Center in Fort Worth, TX, Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2012. (Star-Telegram/Max Faulkner)

 Daily Stock Show coverage for Wednesday, Jan. 18

Tuf Cooper has a time of 9.6 seconds in the PRCA Tie-down Roping Slack in Will Rogers Coliseum. Shot at Will Rogers Memorial Center in Fort Worth, TX, Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2012. (Star-Telegram/Max Faulkner)  Daily Stock Show coverage for Wednesday, Jan. 18

Grand Entry kicks off Stock Show Rodeo

Riders fill the arena for the Grand Entry as the annual Stock Show Rodeo kicks off at Will Rogers Coliseum. (Star-Telegram/Rodger Mallison)

Mother-daughter duo win llama championships at Stock Show

Robin Benson gave a whoop on Thursday when her daughter Courtnee, 18, and suri llama Southern Belle collected the grand championship in llama halter class competition at the Fort Worth Stock Show.

Robin's own entry, Manette, was named reserve champion.

The Bensons raise a herd of about 70 show-quality llamas at their Sapaveco Ranches, headquartered at Florence, Texas, north of Austin.

"We haven't been showing llamas that long, compared to a lot of these people around here; about seven years," said Robin Benson. This is their fourth year to show at the Stock Show.

 The Bensons are just now seeing the flowering of their llama dreams.

"We've traveled the United States to put together our breeding herd," she said. "We're winning with our own  and babies now.

"There's a great sense of pride in that."

 

 _ Shirley Jinkins and Joyce Marshall

Super fast machines personalize official Stock Show duds

Nearly all the employees of Tioga Territory, a custom apparel company in Chanute, Kan., traveled here to sell official Stock Show jackets, t-shirts, hoodies and other mementos.

In a room behind one of seven booths, they run three embroidery machines that sometimes whir simultaneously, sewing on names, ranch brands and logos on garments. Each machine can do 1,200 stitches per minute, allowing folks to pick up the completed job within 20 to 30 minutes officials said.

"We digitize the design. We put it in the computer, the computer sends it to the embroidery machine and it puts it on the garment," said Dee Lee, a warehouse worker.  "We get a lot of custom orders. People will order hats and coats for employees. That can take two to three days."

It takes a week to set up the booths and three more days after the show to break them down, Lee said. Her area is in the Planet Agriculture building next to the stage where the Ag Magic show is produced for groups of schoolchildren.

"I've seen it close to 20 times," she said. "I've got it memorized pretty well."

Jessamy Brown and Joyce Marshall

Number one sign you've been to the stock show

The shoes give you away every time.

My shoes got a mix of dirt and cow dung after trying to catch calf ropers behind the scenes. 

At least I'm leaving with a little cowboy cred and I didn't even have to pick up a 265-pound calf.

-Diane Smith

I wanna be a cowboy _ specifically a calf roper

Calf ropers competed Wednesday during the PRCA Tie-down Roping Slack competition. Calf ropers of all ages checked out calves, warmed up their horses and sported the tools of their trade before working the arena.

(Photo by Max Faulkner)

Check out some calf roper culture basics.

Every good calf roper has a strong partner for a horse, which typically has a cool name. Calf roper Blake Huckabee of Center, Texas named his horse, "Booger."  

Calf ropers have cool western sounding names, such as Cheyenne, Stetson, Rhett, Shane or Houston. One participant on Wednesday was named Tuf (that's the Texas spelling).

Calf ropers need rope and nifty rope cans to store it. Rope cans can be utilitarian, but calf ropers have fancy ones often made of hand tooled leather. These cans also display a calf ropers personality with crosses or past wins depicted. 

All calf ropers have a pigging string, or the rope they use to tie calf hooves. They often carry this rope slung over a shoulder. Sometimes you can catch calf ropers twirling the pigging strings. (See photo below of calf roper Cory Solomon of Prairie View, Texas).

It doesn't sound like the Wild West, but calf ropers also carry baby powder. This is to help handle a rope. That is exactly what calf roper Dane Russell is doing in the following photo. 

 

-Diane Straightshootin'  Smith

Stock show heart attack on a paper plate

Members of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram's Stock Show Bureau recently polished this platter of volanco potatoes. But they are desperately craving fried okra and if they don't find it, they might end up eating a red velvet funnel cake.

 

-Fort Worth Star-Telegram Stock Show Bureau (Diane Smith, Domingo Ramirez Jr. and Max Faulkner).

Natural dog treats debut at stock show

 

Forget the bone.

Give a dog a bacon cheeseburger. How about a peanut butter canoli or a large cheesy chicken wrap?

Those are just some of the all natural dog treats prompting visitors at the 2012 Stock Show & Rodeo to pause and take a second look at the Top Dog Bakery vending booth. Vendors Sandy and Vicki Wallace of Abilene have brought the home baked dog treats to the show for the first time to the exhibits hall located at the Richardson-Bass Building.

The treats are baked by Annie’s Pooch Pops and the Wallaces sell them on the road. Treats include hot doggies made with freeze-dried American cheese and a liver treat; hamburgers made out of peanut butter and bacon and roasted vanilla chicken feet _ a crowd pleaser for Chihuahua gatherings. Steer sticks are really popular too _ made from the “manly parts” of a bull (or former bull), Sandy Wallace said. 

“Everybody really likes the happy meals,” Sandy Wallace said pointing to little boxes with treats resembling hotdogs and fries. (See photo above by Joyce Marshall.)

Among the treats not moving customers to spend were the lamb biscuits, Sandy Wallace said, adding that he thinks children showing lambs at the stock show don’t want to give their dogs any ideas. (Note: Folks might want to keep the sheep dogs away from these biscuits during the dog trials on Feb. 4.)

“The lamb biscuits go real slow at the show,” he said.

Wife Vicki said the treats have a following because dog owners want their dogs to have a healthy diet.

If your dog has a more traditional palate, and he or she insists on bone, there are three-foot-long cow femurs for sale. Be warned: carrying such a food item could draw a canine following all the way home.

-Diane Smith

 

No need for a sofa at the Stock Show cattle barn

We noticed Grace Stotts, 10, taking an afternoon break from preparing Braunvieh heifers for a show tomorrow morning. 

She huddled by the side of Ela Mae, playing a video game on her smart phone. Ela Mae didn't seem to mind it at all when Grace sat on her back for a spell.

Nearby, ranchers carefully groomed their cattle, which includes washing and blowdrying, said Grace, whose family's ranch is Stotts Farms in Lone Oak.

"I like to lay down and pet and love them," she said. "They like being petted a lot. They're kind of like big dogs."

Jessamy Brown; photo by Joyce Marshall

Cowgirl Boot Envy

You don't have to be herding cattle to pull off an authentic western look. It's Stock Show season and folks are either sporting  cowboy cowgirl boots or shopping for a pair.

There are boots for all occasions, from the exotic to western vintage to pairs that will satisfy a three-year-old's need for pink. There's purple too (memo to Horned Frogs). And burnt orange (memo to Longhorns).

Boots with flowers. Boots with hearts (see picture). Boots with guns and some with a Peace sign.

Too many options and so little closet space.

 

-Diane Smith and Joyce Marshall

 

International office helps translate Fort Worth's culture to visitors

Texas isn't really a whole 'nother country, but it may seem so to visitors from other lands.

Chay Ly Cheng got to the Stock Show's International Suite shortly after opening this morning. The folks are there to welcome visitors from other countries and introduce them to ranching, Fort Worth-style.

He put a push pin on a large map showing his hometown, Melbourne, Australia, and pointed out which of the flags hanging on the wall is from down under.

Most international visitors come from Mexico or Canada, officials said. On Monday, they hosted guests from New Zealand, Canada, Russia and a group of eight from India. Last year, the office served 435 international guests from 58 nations. It varies; in 2003 there were 875 visitors from 62 countries.

Cheng got a tour of the Stock Show grounds, watching cows being milked, learning the differences between cattle breeds and checking out folks decked out in Western wear.

His tour guide, Juan M. Hernandez, a 19-year veteran of the International Suite, explained that it is fashionable to wear boots to the rodeo and that boots, depending on the style and material, can be as expensive as $3,000 per pair.

Cheng said: "Wow, I'm sure they last a long time."

Jessamy Brown

 

 

Right: Hernandez shows Cheng an authentic longhorn

Cream puffs vs funnel cake: Stock Show's only once a year, right?

Decisions, decisions. Check out the Brahman cattle show or watch cutting classes this morning? See dairy cows getting milked or go shopping?

And for lunch, a cream puff or funnel cake?

Neither is exactly health food. Schmidt's Sausage Haus und Restaurant, a Columbus, Ohio, eatery with a booth at the Round Up Inn Food Court, offers jumbo cream puffs. They are filled with a fluffy heap of whipped cream and vanilla pudding.

Funnel cakes are, of course, fried dough. This year, one booth is selling a red velvet cake flavor.

Stock Show calories don't count, right?

Jessamy Brown

Video: Mexican vaqueras exhibit skills at the rodeo

Riding a horse doesn't seem easy to me -- much less sidesaddle and in a dress.

But that's the way it used to be, and the Fort Worth-based La Guadalupana escaramuzas team preserves the traditional Mexican riding style. The ladies run through a synchronized, precision drill that runs eight minutes donned in folklorico dresses. 

Escaramuza means skirmish in Spanish. It is said that during revolutionary times in Mexico, women rode horseback to help the men in battle and often rode fast and furiously to create dust as a diversion. The escaramuza events grew from that.

Here's La Guadalupana at the Stock Show's Cowboys of Color Rodeo on Monday.

 

-Eva-Marie Ayala

Video: Barrel racer showing off at the Cowboys of Color rodeo event

Here's Kylee Suggs who clocked in at 17.87 seconds.

 

 

-Eva-Marie Ayala

Celebrity sighting at the Cowboys of Color Rodeo

Stars from the Tyler Perry comedy "Meet the Browns" were in the house for the Cowboys of Color Rodeo.

David and Tamela Mann, who live in Cedar Hill, munched on corny dogs and nachos while cheering for barrel racing and tie-down roping.

When David Mann ventured from his seat to the concession stand, he was stopped repeatedly by fans asking to take photos with him.

The couple, married 23 years, said they are working on a new television show called "Hanging with the Manns." They recently filmed an episode with a Western theme at a Grapevine ranch in which they had to dress up a goat. Then, David Mann prepared homemade chili and Tamela Mann made an apple crisp.

Both grew up in Fort Worth -- he's a 1985 graduate of O.D. Wyatt High and she's a 1984 Polytechnic High grad -- and enjoy the rodeo.

"My favorite part is bull riding," Tamela Mann said in a brief interview in the stands. "Why? Because it excites me."

Her husband teased: "I say it's because she's married to a bull."

Jessamy Brown

A punk 'do takes over the Stock Show

By midday, I think I had seen at least three dozen colorful faux-hawks around the Stock Show grounds.

These mowhawk-like wigs are easy to spot with their bright color combinations. 

Kody Harrington, pictured far right, had to have one and soon talked Stephanie Cute, center, and Garrett Linder, left into joining the mini-fashion craze.

"My inner calling just spoke to me and said, 'Buy the mowhawk,'" Kody joked. 

Vendor A.J. Rohenkohl, who's set up just outside the Will Rogers Coliseum, said he's been selling pretty steadily with the wigs going for $10 each. The rainbow-colored ones are selling the best followed by some that are team-inspired, he said. Surprisingly -- er, or maybe not -- A.J. notes that Dallas Cowboys blue and white faux hawks aren't doing so well.

-Eva-Marie Ayala

The brief story of a Stock Show diva

One of the Stock Show celebrities each year is without a doubt, Elsie. 

The Borden Dairy mascot sees dozens of children and admirers a day in the Amon Carter Exhibit Hall. Her laid-back disposition is quite contrary to the fast-paced life she leads.

This particular Elsie -- Elsie No. 33 -- has crisscrossed the country in her "cowdillac" making appearances at fairs and festivals across the country, attending Mardi Gras in New Orleans and kicking off the Miami Dolphins' season in Florida.

An Elsie can log about 200,000 miles a year.

"She's a travelin' lady," said her handler, Tom Shaw.

This Elsie has been on the circuit for just more than four years. Before that, she was a show cow in Kansas handled by youngsters. When she's not on tour -- which isn't often -- she's resting at a ranch in Krum.

Seems, finding just the right cow to be an Elsie isn't easy.

First, she needs to be a Jersey cow. And then she needs to have the trademark horns. Shaw said most ranchers remove the horns shortly after birth because they tend to get in the way on a dairy farm. Retired show cows from the FFA or 4-H clubs tend to make the best Elsies because they are used to small hands handling them often and tend to be more relaxed. 

"They need to have just the right disposition where they can stay in a small area for long periods of time and be gentle all day to the crowds," Shaw said.

According to Borden, the original Elsie debuted at the New York World's Fair in 1939 and is one of the top 10 brand icons in the world. 

-Eva-Marie Ayala

 

Stock show vendor handing out free Bibles

 
At the exhibit hall, sellers are hawking some hot items, including boots, jewelry and Western hats. But the Singing Cowgirl Shop's booth is offering something for free.

Tucked among rows of women's clothes is a small suitcase perched on a tiny red stool, filled with stacks of Bibles -- hardback, paperback and ones with pictures.

Owner Sharla Rainer, of Lubbock, picks them up at area thrift stores and buys them wholesale for $1 apiece, a quarter for the kids' books. She finds that customers, and even folks passing by her booth, offer donations for her efforts, which helps pay for the project.

Today's pile includes some Bible study texts and a copy of the Left Behind novel.

"I'm a little low right now," she said. "I've got some more in the car."

Jessamy Brown

Triplet lambs steal show at Children's Barnyard at Fort Worth Stock Show (w/cute pic)

 Star-Telegram/Terry Evans

Opening day visitors got the first peak at three newborn lambs at the Fort Worth Stock Show on Friday.

The Barbados ewe from Glen Rose gave birth to the triplets on Tuesday, the day they arrived at the Stock Show.

Garry Darby, superintendent of the FFA Children’s Barnyard, told the Star-Telegram's Terry Evans on Friday: “We always have little ones. That’s the whole idea of this place. It’s to let them kids see babies.”

To see the new mama and her lambs, go to the Children's Barnyard, located in the Sheep Barn, which is open from 9 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. daily through Feb. 4.

--Maricar Estrella, @maricare

Fort Worth Stock Show's first day goes fast for fudge vendor

Star-Telegram/Terry Evans

Tina Skinner wasn't fazed by the relatively few folks that had strolled by the Frontier Fruit & Nut Company's Old Fashioned Fudge Bar by noon on Friday.

"It'll pick up with the rodeo tonight," she said. "It's not busy _ yet."

The veteran fudge vendor has worked many Stock Shows for the "30-something" Mansfield-based company. The festival business has been so good that the fudge is now sold only at festivals, the Texas State Fair, horse shows and of course the Fort Worth Stock Show.

"This is our shortest day of the whole StocK Show," Skinner said, reciting her 10 a.m.-8:30 p.m. Friday hours.

Peanut butter and maple walnut are the picks of the slender Skinner, but what about the customer favorite?

"You sell what you sample," she said.

_Shirley Jinkins

 

 

 

 

Get Fort Worth Stock Show info on your smartphone, on social media & the web

Star-Telegram/Max Faulkner

On Twitter

View a photo gallery of Fort Worth #StockShow preparations here: bit.ly/yGU33h #fwssr

— Star-Telegram Live (@LiveNewsST) January 13, 2012

@LiveNewsST, follow the Star-Telegram’s live Twitter feed for the latest information from our staffers at the show with hashtag #stockshow

Word is that we have a few new babies in the #FFA barnyard! Pics to come. #fwssr

— Ft. Worth Stock Show (@fwssr) January 13, 2012

@fwssr, the official account of the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo is also using #fwssr and #bucktheordinary.

On Facebook

“It’s a beautiful day here at the Stock Show.....get your Justin Boots on, throw on your Dickies jacket and come on out!”

Get daily updates, view photos and interact with folks on the Stock Show’s official page at facebook.com/fwssr

“Do you use rope halters? Follow easy steps in this FREE report to create your own knotted rope halter for your horse!”

Horse enthusiasts can get useful tips and information from the official FB page of the American Quarter Horse Association at facebook.com/aqha1

“The PSN’s Marvin Olberding caught up with Ryan Jarrett to ask him about helping out Scott Kormos at the Finals.”

Find interviews with Pro Rodeo athletes and news on events at facebook.com/ProRodeoSportsNews

On the web

For Stock Show history, ticket information and event updates, go to the official site at fwssr.com

Get fun facts and info in the Star-Telegram’s “The Hog Blog” at star-telegram.com/stockshow

On your smartphone
While the new Stock Show smartphone app doesn’t have a lot of bells and whistles, it does have a ton of information including maps and schedules. One cool feature is the “Friend Finder:” Tap on “+More” and scroll down to “Friend Finder” button. Once in, enter your name to get a pin. You can then give that pin to the folks in your posse. When they enter the pin, under “Your Friend’s Pin,” they can then scroll down in the instruction field and click on the maps link to find where you are on one of the provided Stock Show maps. To download, go to the App Store for your iPhone or Android Market for your Droid and search for “Fort Worth Stock Show” or go to fwssr.com and scan the QR code on the web site.

--Maricar Estrella, Social Media Editor

Fort Worth Stock Show schedule for Jan 13-15

The Stock Show begins today and continues through Feb. 4 at the Will Rogers Memorial Center at West Lancaster Avenue and University Drive.

817-877-2400 or www.fwssr.com

Grounds admission: $10 for adults; $5 for children 6-16; free for children 5 and under. Tickets are also good for admission to the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History, the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame, and the Cattle Raisers Museum. Senior citizens (65 and older) can get in for $5 on Fridays.

Rodeo tickets: $22 on Friday nights and weekends; $16 on weekdays. Also good for general admission to the Stock Show the same day.

Discounts are available for Star-Telegram Press Pass holders.

Advance tickets: The office is open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily; 817-877-2420.

Parking: $8 per vehicle.

Information booth: Open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily in the main concourse in the Amon G. Carter Jr. Exhibits Hall.

Today

8 a.m. AQHA Versatility Ranch Horse Class, Coliseum

Noon AQHA Ranching Heritage Challenge, Justin Arena

7:30 p.m. "Best of the West" Invitational Ranch Rodeo, Coliseum

Saturday

8 a.m. Paint Horse Halter Classes, Coliseum

9 a.m. Pigeon Show, Poultry Building

11 a.m. All Western Parade, downtown

11 a.m. The Premier Texas Longhorn Sale, West Arena

Noon AQHA Best of the Remuda Sale, Justin Arena

1 p.m. 4-H and FFA Goat Judging Contest, Swine Arena

5 p.m. Cowtown Elite Santa Gertrudis Sale, West Arena

6 p.m. Celebrity Goat Milking Contest, followed by Goat Creative Costume Contest, Cattle Arena

6 p.m. Paint and Quarter Horse Working Cow Horse Classes, Justin Arena

7:30 p.m. "Best of the West" Invitational Ranch Rodeo, Coliseum

Sunday

7:30 a.m. Southwest Intercollegiate, 4-H and FFA Dairy Cattle Judging Contest, Cattle Arena

8 a.m. Paint Horse Performance Classes, Justin Arena

9 a.m. All-American Dairy Goat Show, Swine Arena

9 a.m. Cowboy Church provided by Shepherd's Valley Cowboy Church, Auditorium

9 a.m. Pigeon Show, Poultry Building

10:30 a.m. Chris Cox Horsemanship Clinic, Coliseum

11 a.m. American Premier Boer Goat Show, Sheep Arena

12:30 p.m. "Best of the West" Invitational Ranch Rodeo Award Presentations, Coliseum

1 p.m. National Santa Gertrudis Cattle Show, Watt Arena

1 p.m. Southwestern Exposition and Livestock Show Invitational Ranch Horse Show and Sale, Coliseum

3 p.m. Ayrshire and Milking Shorthorn Dairy Cattle, Open Show, Cattle Arena

7:30 p.m. Best of Mexico Celebración, Coliseum

 --Star-Telegram staff

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Read more here: http://www.star-telegram.com/2012/01/12/3656622/stock-show-schedule-jan-13-15.html#storylink=cpy

Junior steer show set for Thursday, Friday

The steers are in for the Stock Show’s marquee competition Thursday and Friday. Youth exhibitors entered a total 2,728 steers for the competition. Of that, 1,479 actually showed up, or 54.2 percent, "which I think is incredible given the weather we’re having," Charlie Geren, superintendent for the junior steer show, said Wednesday. Of the steers, 113 were Angus, 110 Hereford, 90 Polled Hereford, 135 Shorthorn, 162 American cross, and 869 European cross, Geren said. – Scott Nishimura

Coors Light, Super Bowl boosting Stockyards Sale of Champions

The Fort Worth Syndicate, the chief group raising money to buy the champion animals being exhibited by youth at the Stock Show, is getting a boost from the Super Bowl. Coors Light is auctioning off two Super Bowl tickets at a private party Friday at Billy Bob's Texas, benefitting the Syndicate, Howard Pena, the Syndicate chairman, said.

- Scott Nishimura

Stock Show reports more than 154,000 visitors on 75-degree Saturday

A string of warm, sunny days has been gold for the Fort Worth Stock Show, which just reported on Twitter that it's only 300,000 visitors from hitting the 1 million mark in attendance -- with seven days to go.

On Saturday, the temperature hit 75 degrees at DFW Airport, just five degrees below the record for the date, and 154,400 people attended the Stock Show.

This week brings good news and bad news: Tens of thousands of visitors are headed into town for the Feb. 6 Super Bowl, but some typical Stock Show weather is also on the way.

Temperatures are forecast to dip below freezing around midday Tuesday, turning the day's rain into freezing rain or sleet, and North Texas might not see freezing again until Thursday.

The Stock Show will end Saturday, one day early, because of Sunday's Super Bowl.

 

Let's go shopping

Feeling the need to burn some cash at the Stock Show? There are plenty of opportunities to spend. Vendors offer everything from TCU cowboy boots to jalapeno everything _ jalapeno salsa, jalapeno grills, creamy jalapeno soup mix (yum). Shoppers can prep for next Christmas with a cowhide stocking or tap their culinary talents with basil-infused olive oil from Carrizo Springs. Wrap it up, I'll take it all.

_Diane Smith

Stock Show is more than livestock

Did you know one small piece of cotton could be stretched out long enough to cross a cattle barn at the Stock Show? A presenter at the Planet Agriculture exhibit explains to elementary students how cotton is stretched out to make fabric for clothing. The seeds extracted from cotton are also used in every day products. For example, the oil from the seeds is used for makeup. (Now that's agriculture I can totally appreciate.)
-Eva-Marie Ayala

How to milk a goat in four easy steps and still look cool

Okay, I'm not sure how well I managed to the last part of that, but I'm going to tell myself I did. Tonight fellow education reporter Shirley Jinkins and I represented the newspaper in the Stock Show's annual celebrity goat-milking contest. It's one of those things you agree to do because it sounds kind of fun, and then you're actually there holding a cup looking down at a live creature thinking, "Oh. My. God." We didn't win, but it was one of those educational experiences that's just "so Fort Worth," as a dear friend likes to say. So here's what I learned:

1) Size matters. Shirley and I got out in the first round. The goat only produced maybe two drops for us. I lovingly held her, and Shirley performed her best milking techniques she had practiced. But the goat's, um, equipment was just too small to collect a good amount of milk, a Stock Show crew member noted to me after the fact.

2) Stay calm. Also new to the contest this year Gary "With a T" Hayes from 97.9 The Beat. Somehow, he talked his cousin Keshia Sylvester into holding the goat for him while he milked. Only he got a little squirmy getting close to the udders, which then made the goat a little squirmy in return as seemed to be looking for an escape route.

3) Dress the part. Special contestants this year were Swedish television personalities Erik Ekstrand and Mackan Edlund (the team on the left in this picture). The two are making their way across America in a road trip that apparently includes taking on whatever crazy adventure they can find. They took on this challenge and even advanced to the second round. And while their camera crew's sweater attire gave a hit of that out-of-towner look, the duo did their best to blend in with appropriately styled cowboy boots and western wear.

4) Do whatever Deborah Ferguson does. It's hard for this North Side girl to say Trimble Tech girl beat her. But Ferguson and her husband Steve Lamb, of WBAP, had some serious skills. They were swift in getting straight to the action. Ferguson easily won her prelim round milking her goat with great speed. But the goats were drying up in the final round. It was Ferguson/Lamb versus 95.9 The Ranch's team of Justin Frazzell and Taylor Scott vyingfor the win. Ferguson and her husband seemed to be on their way for a win, when the boys from the Ranch came rushing up on the surprised couple as they carried milk to the finish line. In the end, the two teams tied.

-Eva-Marie Ayala