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Brad Baker showed the Supreme Champion Steer at the AJCA Round-Up held July 27-29, 2007 in Montgomery. (For show results and individual class photos, visit www.bamabeef.org and click on the ‘Junior Cattlemen’ link.)

AJCA Round-Up Promises
to Become Annual Highlight

By Reid Blossom

2007 marked the first year for what promises to become one of the highlights of the year on the calendar of junior cattlemen in Alabama. The Alabama Junior Cattlemen’s Association (AJCA) Round-Up drew over 150 young people from 33 counties around Alabama to compete in a series of events as well as a steer and heifer show.

Because the volunteer leaders of the Alabama Cattlemen’s Association (ACA) have stressed the need to involve youth who do not show cattle, the AJCA Round-Up

included events such as speech, photography and cattle judging contests aimed directly at involving all eligible youth in the state. This aim was rewarded with a multitude of young people who have never competed in the traditional contests at the Junior Beef Expo traveling to Montgomery and participating in the AJCA Round-Up. This incorporation of new and different young people from within the state’s beef cattle industry into an ACA sponsored youth event looks to be the lasting reputation of the AJCA Round-Up.

In the cattle show portion of the event, 117 young people exhibited 262 calves. The show featured several variances from the traditional youth show format including classification of steers into breed categories, exhibiting of steers by actual weight,

exhibiting of commercial heifers by weight and naming a Supreme Champion and Top 5 Overall in the steer and heifer show.

The AJCA Board of Directors thanks all of the sponsors who helped fund the event as well as the host of ACA members who contributed their time to make this a volunteer-led, volunteer-run event. A suggestion box made available during the event produced an array of excellent ideas to be used in planning next year’s AJCA Round-Up. Next year’s AJCA Round-Up is planned for July 25-27, 2008 in Montgomery. The AJCA Round-Up takes the place on the junior cattlemen’s calendar of the APBBC Preview Show. Alabama Farmers Cooperative was and is a major sponsor of both of these junior cattlemen events.

Reid Blossom is Youth Programs Coordinator with Alabama Cattlemen’s Association.

Josh Walton showed the Supreme Champion Heifer at the AJCA Round-Up held July 27-29, 2007 in Montgomery.