4-H Beef Steer Grand Champion goes to Fryeburg girl

      Loud applause erupted when Judge Randy Daniel tapped Hattie Gushee Kimball’s Angus cross to signal she had won this year’s 4-H beef Steer Championship at Fryeburg Fair.
      The Fryeburg 15-year-old Fryeburg Academy freshman won the 69th annual event that saw 42 steers competing. The steer will be on display throughout the week at the 4-H barn along with the Grand Champion market lamb.
      Gemma Young, last year’s Beef Steer Grand Champion, was judged Reserve Champion with her Maine Anjou cross. The 13-year-old is from South Paris. Highly Commended went to Morgan Clauss, 10, of Lancaster NH while Commended was won by Benjamin Pride, 12, of Limington.
      “This is perhaps the best group of steers I’ve seen at Fryeburg Fair,” said Livestock Superintendent George Weston. “These kids have done super job fitting and showing these animals. The level of competition keeps getting stronger every year.”
      This is Hattie’s third time as a Grand Champion. She won the market lamb show in 2002 and again in 2003. She has consistently been in the top five at Fryeburg since she began showing in 2001.
      She has shown her steer all over the state this year and was grand champion at Windsor

and Northern Maine fairs. She finished third at Union Fair, fourth at the Maine Beef Expo in April and had a strong finish at the Eastern State Exposition in Springfield, Mass.
      “I knew I had a good steer this year, but there a lot of top animals at Fryeburg and you never know,” Hattie said.
      In the 4-H market lamb competition, Judge Brian Faris of Wendell, NC chose Marley Smith of Windsor this year’s Grand Champion from among 18 competing. The 16-year-old showed a Hampshire lamb.
      Gemma Young, 13, saw her heavy weight cross judged the Reserve Champion while Anna Lorette, 12, of Norridgewock was named Highly Commended. Cody Coutts, 13, of Chelsea had the Commended lamb.
      All animals were sold at the annual auctionheld Friday morning. The sale attracts buyers from throughout New England. Fryeburg has the oldest continuous show and sale in New England, which began when Randolph Stacey won the first competition with his champion steer in 1938.
     The Friday sale begins with the market lamb auction at 11 a.m. in the Livestock Show Arena followed by the beef steer sale. Both sales are open to anyone and all processing arrangements may be made at the auction.
Hattie Gushee Kimball and her Grand Champion steer pose with Judge Randy Daniel of Colbert GA and her cousin, Raymond Gushee Frost. At right, Marley Smith of Windsor is shown with her champion Hampshire lamb.

 

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