I step in the
ring. My heart is pounding right out of my chest. My pig is in front of me, in between me and
the judge. I look the man in the eye and
shake his hand and go back to showing. The
pig is moving right where I want him to go.
The funny part is my brother walks in right behind me in the ring. I just think in my head, I just want to beat
him because he already has won a title, Reserve Grand Champion. I just want to show him that’s he’s not the
only one that can win in the family.
Everyone that I am showing against has entered the ring. The judge starts to move around in the ring,
I keep my pig moving around.
Three months
earlier, on June 1st I went up to Finlay, Ohio, to pick out my pig.
This could potentially be the pig that allows me to follow in my brother’s
footsteps and win the honor of being Grand Champion. It was a Yorkshire, which
is a pig that is mostly 99% white. It’s
not my favorite type of pig but it’s what the judge liked so I had to get it. Another type of pig that is often used as a
show pig is a Hampshire; it is a pig that is black with a white belt, one of my
favorites.
During the
summer in the middle of July, it is now the time to weigh my pig, I have to see
how much heavier I need to get him so he will be at the correct weight, to be
worth a lot of money. I put him on the scale, which is a lot harder than you
would think; it’s the moment of truth. He has to be around at least 180 so I
have enough room to make sure he is between 220 and 280 pounds. He’s on the scale, and my mom reads the
numbers, it’s not looking too good. His
weight is only 175 that means I need to put at least 45 pounds on him to make
weight. In my head I know I can do it,
but at the same time I’m just freaking out. I know I can do it because we have put 60
pounds on a pig in less than 5 weeks, so I know it can happen. I have to feed him goat milk, syrup, and bread.
I know it sounds gross, but pigs love it.
They eat it so fast, to the point that puts a human male to shame.
Finally it is
one week till fair, my nerves are acting up and I just cannot wait. I am scared that my pig may be overweight. It’s The Saturday before the fair, the odds
of my pig weighing just enough that he might go overboard. He was at 272 and just a week from the fair.
It’s Friday and it’s time to move my pigs to the fair. We have to move him into the pen to stay
overnight until the big day. As Saturday approached it was finally time to
weigh him one last time. My pig is on the scale, and the woman reads me his
weight….. 275. Yes! He’s underweight. I am
so happy I was smiling from ear to ear.
I could not believe that he was underweight at just the right amount. If he would have been any heavier I would not
have been able to show. That was just too close for comfort. Monday is the next big day. Now that I know I can show my pig, it is up
to me to show the judges exactly what it can do and how it behaves. I have to
move the pig around in a pen with a bunch of other pigs to show how the pig can
be handled and what it looks like, weight wise.
It is Monday, time
for the show. Those of us participating
are required to show in classes based on the weight of the pig, so that all of
the kids get to show their pigs at least one time. I am waiting in the holding pens on the side
of the ring. I just want to get in there
to show what I can do. It is time for me
to get in the ring and show off my animal.
The pig is the first one to get in the ring between me and the judge. I looked the judge in the eyes as I walked in
the ring for the first time this year.
He looks at me and my pig to see what he looks like from all sides. That’s how judges tell what your pig’s
muscles look like, aka the different cuts of meat. When I walk by the judge in my class, it is
the first time he gets to see the pig.
After everyone enters the ring, the judge walks to the mike and starts
to talk about everyone in the ring. I
know that I did the best I could, but I just want to win. He points at me and says “this will be your
class winner today.” I was so happy but
then I knew I have to show for the division champion now.
They call me
back to the ring to show against the 3 other class winners. My brother is in there with me, but I know I
can win. I have the best pig in
there. The judge looks at all of our
pigs and then goes and grabs the mike to talk about all of our pigs. He picks the winner, and looks right at me, I
win reserve division champ. I was so happy to have gotten the opportunity to
win and actually beat my brother. This
was one of the most exciting events that has happen to me thus far.