Show day Whether it’s a weekend prospect show or the biggest exposition of the year, show day is probably the most challenging time for livestock families. Parents are stressed to make sure all the preparations are handled leading up to the moment the kid and their animal step into the ring. The kids may be nervous about how their steers will behave in the ring, whether they can get the feet set right, if they’ll make the sale, etc. Expectations and adrenaline are on high alert! Here is how the Cozzitorto family from Lenexa, Kan., handles the stress that can come with show days. “You need to have realistic goals about the showman’s ability and your cattle’s potential,” explains Rick Cozzitorto, father of Angus exhibitor, Alexandria. “You’re not going to win every show.” Be prepared. Make sure each one #2 of your team/family members knows their show day responsibilities. Allow plenty of preparation time based on skill levels.
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The Vaught family of McLouth, Kan., includes two daughters that show cattle and sheep – Annabelle, 11, and Madison, 10. Their mom, Caryn, says she typically fills the “runner” role, keeping everyone on track as to what class the judge is on and taking photos for record books, etc. She also makes a point to prepare the girls – and their tummies – for the ring ahead of time. “In the beginning of the girls’ show careers, they would get stomachaches,” Caryn explains. “I would typically carry over-thecounter nausea medicine with me. I still make sure to carry it, along with Tylenol or Ibuprofen. I also make sure to have small
cans of Coke or Sprite on hand to help with those upset stomachs/jittery nerves. These are my cure-all medicines. “I will always take the girls up and have them watch a few classes well in advance of their own classes,” she adds. “We talk about who the judge is and what to do and not to do. This seems to really help ease their minds on how the ring is set up and who is judging.” That’s good advice for even the most experienced showmen. I never wanted to walk into the ring without having watched a class to know how/where the judge was lining the cattle up, if he pulled from top“Have a supply checklist to refer to when organizing and packing for each show,” he adds. “And most importantly, everyone wants to win, but the real reason you are there is to provide an opportunity to develop a young person as a future leader, possibly in the agriculture industry, by instilling in them the core values of worth ethic, dedication, responsibility and integrity.”
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down or bottom-up, if the ring help was good or not. It makes a huge difference! When it comes to the grown-ups, in most families there tends to be one partner who is more prone to getting stressed out than the other partner. Whether it tends to be, for example, a dad that is susceptible to freaking out at fitting time or, for example, a mom that gets a little panicky about changing into show clothes, the script for that drama probably tends to be the same at every show. If the same issues come up over and over again, then perhaps it’s something for the parents to discuss with each other (and later the whole family) during a calm time
when cooler heads prevail and a plan can be made for dealing with whatever stresses them out. Stress is contagious. It affects everyone around the stressed-out person. In fact, researchers say that teenagers are actually more susceptible to stress than adults, especially teenage girls. Adrenaline is the hormone responsible for the “fight or flight” response to stress, but another steroid hormone called cortisol is released in your body when stress is a persistent factor in your life. Cortisol can have a range of damaging effects on a person’s health and it takes a long time to leave the body.
November/December 2011 • theshowcircuit.com
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