4-H Shows Draw Indiana Fair Crowd

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Posted 9:04AM on Friday, August 30, 2002

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - Aaron Norwood dragged a comb across the back of a white, soapy cow in one of the narrow alleys that winds around animal barns on the Indiana State Fairgrounds. Sweat dripped from Norwood's brow as he scrubbed glue, oil, baby powder and paint from the animal's hide and hoofs, all primping to make the animal ``flashy and showy looking'' before competition. Preparing a cow before a livestock show as a beautician would style a model before a pageant might seem unusual. But in the big-money business of the 4-H livestock show, where prize purses are large and the competition is heated, every little bit of shine and polish helps. ``I've never seen anyone flip out and not want to show,'' Norwood, 17, of Knightstown, said before showing his animal at the fair earlier this month. ``But I've seen a lot of people get nervous.'' On today's cattle market, a 1,250-pound steer would sell for about $800. But at state fairs across the country, animals are auctioned for amounts farmers who raise them for a living can only dream about. New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner and two others paid $37,000 for the Grand Champion Steer at the Illinois State Fair this year, setting a new fair record. In Indiana, a pen of rabbits once sold for $15,000, and a plate of cheese from prize-winning dairy cows took $9,500 in 1999. Excessive? Well, maybe. New rules at the state fair in Kentucky now limit 4-H exhibitors to one animal for each category, increasing a club member's chance to compete and win. First in rural settings and now in the city, kids as young as 8 have raised animals for decades to show at county and state fairs. As the youth club celebrates its 100th year, parents and children in 4-H dream of getting to the high-dollar ``Sale of Champions.'' Fair talk centers on big money and whether underhanded dealings play a role in choosing the winners. Animals are disqualified for various reasons every year. And though it is often dismissed as rumor, favoritism is an ever-present possibility. ``Obviously some of these kids feel that they've been wronged. But you can go to your local Little League ball park and think that your kid's team is getting bad calls because the umpire is a neighbor to one of the kids,'' said Andy Klotz, a spokesman for the Indiana State Fair. Entering an animal in the competition means adhering to extensive rules. The breed must be documented, the animal tested for drugs and a print taken of its nose. Cows, horses, chickens - everything is examined for tampering. And there is no limit to the money a family can spend to prepare an animal for competition. Robert Mautz came to the fair with his three grandchildren to show cows and a lamb. He said he knew of families who have paid $40,000 for a calf normally valued at $500 just for the chance to win. ``That's the stuff that's kind of ruining 4-H,'' Mautz said from the cattle barn, kicking his boots onto the bars of a nearby fence. ``If people start paying high prices just to win at all costs, that's not really what it's all about.''