Local youth win big at Weld County Fair Jr. Livestock Sale with another record

The 105th Weld County Fair wrapped up on Monday with another record-breaking Junior Livestock Sale.

The sale took place Monday, July 31 at Island Grove Regional Park and Event Center with 330 buyers and more than 600 attendees anxious to see what bids would be placed for animals in seven different categories.

And once again, the Weld County community showed its support for local youth with a total of $1,784,000 in sales.

The amount includes the sale of animals as well as individual contributions from supporters, called “add-ons.”

This year’s sale surpassed the record set by the 2022 sale, which brought in a total of $1,564,000.

Some of the businesses and organizations that participate in the sale each year include Gutterson Ranch, Titan Machinery, Double J Meat Packing, Farmers Bank of Ault, C&H Excavation, Bank of Colorado, Nutrien, Mountain Vet Supply Inc., Atlas Energy Services and 4 Rivers Equipment.

“These youth have put numerous hours of commitment into preparing themselves and their animals for this sale,” Weld County Commissioner Mike Freeman said. “We are very proud of these youth and we appreciate the steadfast support of their families and community members.”

In the market beef sale, PDC Energy, Inc. purchased the grand champion, owned by Shae Stone, for $70,000, while Fortress Development Solutions purchased the reserve grand champion, owned by Justin Pfannebecker, for $32,000.

Chevron purchased the market swine grand champion for $40,000 from owner Hayley Walker. Civitas Resources placed the winning bid at $14,000 for Kaydense Funk’s reserve grand champion.

Owner Cade Simpson received a $25,000 winning bid for his grand champion market lamb, while Tayah Winden’s reserve grand champion market lamb went for $11,000 to PDC Energy, Inc.

It was a banner day for Shae Stone, as the youngster’s market goat grand champion earned a winning bid of $32,500 from Bayswater Exploration & Production. Dylan Stone’s reserve grand champion brought in a winning bid of $18,000 from Civitas Resources.

In the turkey sale, Chevron took home the grand champion, owned by Jamie Bond, for $3,000. The reserve grand champion, also owned by Jamie Bond, went for $2,000.

Brianna Patefield, who won grand champion for her pen of three meat rabbits, earned a winning bid of $5,000 from Chevron. PDC Energy, Inc. took home the reserve grand champions, owned by Aidan Datteri, with a winning bid of $3,000.

In the chicken sale, Traycen Wegele’s grand champion pen of three birds went for $7,000 to McDonald Toyota, and Kaylie Logsdon’s reserve grand champion chickens sold for $3,520 to Civitas Resources.

Purchasers had three options when it came to how they wanted their winning animal to be handled.

Buyers could choose the “custom harvest” option, which allowed them to retain the animal for their own use and designate which harvest facility they wanted the animal processed at.

The buyback option allowed the purchaser to resell the animal to a commercial packer of their choice.

The third, and one of the most popular options, is donating the animal to the Weld Food Bank. The livestock is then harvested, and the meat is given to local families in need.

“We have had a growing partnership with the Junior Livestock Sale,” said Kaycee Lytle, board member of the food bank. “In 2022, 15 hogs were donated to the food bank which created around 2,000 pounds in meat. We are hoping to double that number this year.”

Each year, the Junior Livestock Sale is organized and run by a committee of volunteer members. This year’s committee included Landon Cogburn, board liaison; Fred Kayer, president; Michael Hays, vice president; Jennifer Johnson, secretary; and Carrie Huen, treasurer.

The fair is planned and presented by a board appointed by the Weld County commissioners, the Weld County Fair coordinator and fair staff, with Colorado State University Extension agents serving as educational advisors.

The Weld County Fair is a member of the Colorado Association of Fairs and Shows, Rocky Mountain Association of Fairs and the International Association of Fairs and Expositions.

To learn more, go to www.weldcountyfair.com.

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