Catch-A-Calf Program

1. Participants must be currently enrolled in 4-H or FFA and must be a resident in Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, or Wyoming. Participants must have adequate facilities to raise and handle a market steer. County Extension agents and/or FFA Advisors must certify that these standards are met.
2. Contestants must be fourteen (14) years but must be under nineteen (19) years of age as of January 1, 2022. It is strongly recommended that a member not enter this contest if they plan to be away from home during the time of raising the calf.
3. Any 4-H/FFA member or participant who has previously completed the NWSS Catch-A-Calf Contest is not eligible to enter again.
4. Applicants entering this contest do so at their own risk and acknowledge that they could be injured by their participation. The Western Stock Show Association will not be responsible for any injuries connected with this contest. In addition, the Western Stock Show Association will not be responsible for any harm caused by the calf during the ownership period of the participant.
5. Online applications and mandatory forms must be submitted by December 15, 2021. Forms must be emailed to Amy Kelley at akelley@statefair.org. Qualified participants will then be assigned an in-rodeo performance time they must participate in.
6. 40 youth who participate and successfully catch a calf in an in-rodeo performance will be selected for the 2022-2023 program.
7. Successful participants will be given more information immediately following the in-rodeo performance on how the rest of the year is to proceed.
8. Steers are sourced from 1 herd and very in breed from year to year. They are randomly assigned to each participant, and participants must pick up the steer from a designated location in May 2022.
9. The Western Stock Show Association reserves the right to take the calf away from any member who does not abide by these rules, including letter-writing and record-keeping, or does not properly feed the calf or does not take full responsibility for the calf. If any calf is taken away, returned, or forfeited, no allowances will be made for any expenses incurred.
10. Catch-A-Calves will be exhibited in the special classes provided. Awards will be based upon the beef production job done by the exhibitor, the evaluation, and showmanship. Sale price may be determined for all competing calves by official market grade and yield index or at a price arranged by The Western Stock Show Association. Catch-A-Calves will not be eligible to show in the Junior Market Beef Show.
11. The calf must be exhibited and sold at the 2023 National Western Stock Show, where special prizes will be offered. All prize money will belong to the member. When the calf is sold, the check for payment (minus 10% donation plus charges for Beef Board, Brand Inspection, and freight) will be sent after a final thank-you note has been sent to the sponsor with a copy to the National Western Stock Show office.
12. An agreed-upon donation of 10% of the final gross selling price of the steer will be deducted by The Western Stock Show Association at the time of sale and will be treated as a donation to the National Western Stock Show. This will be placed in a revolving fund to ensure the continuation of the Catch-A-Calf program. It is agreed and understood by the 4-H /FFA member that ownership of the calf shall be a joint project with The Western Stock Show Association.

Record Book: View Here
Record Book Instructions: Once you pull up the link, go to File > Make a Copy > Rename your file to LastName_CACRecordBook. From there you should be able to edit the spreadsheets. Remember, GoogleDocs auto saves every edit you make. If you would like to export the file to Excel: File > Download As > Microsoft Excel (.xlsx).

Handbook: View Here

Questions

Livestock & Record Books:
Amy Kelley
PO Box 517
Fort Morgan, CO 80701
Phone: 970-542-3545
Email: Amy.Kelley@colostate.edu

National Western Stock Show:
Clancy Anderson
4655 Humboldt Street
Denver, CO 80216
Phone: 303-299-5559
Email: canderson@nationalwestern.com 

Being a Catch-A-Calf Sponsor is one of the most unique opportunities for those interested in supporting youth in agriculture.

Overview:

With over 50 current sponsors, the support of this program is unimaginable. Sponsors range anywhere from corporate businesses to families, couples, and former Catch-A-Calf participants.

What to Expect:

Although sponsor's main commitment is their monetary donation, most sponsors take it much farther than that. Participants are matched with their sponsors by in the late spring and are encouraged to get in touch right away. Participants receive their steers the first week in May and then it’s off to the races with their new adventure!

Each month, participants write & send a letter to their sponsor telling them the insights on their project and life happenings. Most sponsors interact with their participants much beyond the letters; frequent phone calls and emails, making visits to see the calves and watching the participant show at their county and state shows.

The following January, participants make their way back to the National Western Stock Show in Denver. Over the opening weekend of Stock Show, participants turn in their completed record books, give a 2-minute industry-related speech, complete an interview with a panel of judges, and show their steers in showmanship and live evaluation. On the morning of the show, sponsors are invited into the barns for refreshments while they watch participants prep their calves. Everyone then heads into the historical Stadium Arena for the Catch-A-Calf show and awards ceremony, followed by long goodbyes and load-outs.

Additional Info:

Catch-A-Calf sponsorship donations are tax-deductible.We also have a handful of sponsors who don’t necessarily want to correspond with a participant every month, but who still want to be a monetary sponsor. Those funds go towards buying the participants show supplies to help get their projects started, helps make up the difference in our steer purchase prices, and fund other fun aspects and add-ons of the program.

 All of our Catch-A-Calves come from the same herd. Although they come from different ranches each year, the NWSS Staff finds a set of calves in the springtime that are approximately 600-700 lbs. and all from the same herd. In the past, we have gotten calves from Wagonhammer Ranches, Wagonhound Ranches, Peak View Ranch, Morgan Ranches, Krebs Ranch, Silver Spur, and others.

We would love to speak with anyone who is potentially interested in becoming a Catch-A-Calf sponsor. For sponsorship values or other questions, please contact Clancy with the NWSS Livestock Office at canderson@nationalwestern.com.

Ben Duke III, Chairman
Jo Adams
Tom Fey
Scott Johnson
Molly Keil
Amy Kelley
Carolyn Neeley
Mike Pugh
Tim Roberts
Pat Shaw
Bill Waneka