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- [00:01]
Weston
All right, we're live. Once again, this is empower you and it's another post game. The fact that now we'll be able to do three of the biggest Texas majors for steers is just gets me excited. We've done Fort Worth, San Antonio, and now Houston. We are doing the post game with Jack Ward. We're covering the entire steer show with Mr. Ward. I am extremely excited, kind of sick, but we're going to make it work. And I'm here with Augustus as well, and honestly couldn't ask for a better opportunity. So, Jack, if you would like to introduce yourself for everybody to get to know you a little bit and then proceed with how that led to you making the phone call or getting the phone call to go to Houston and judge a steer show.
- [00:47]
Jack Ward
You bet. Thank you to you, Weston, and also Augustus, for reaching out and. And including me in your series of podcasts here. It sounds like a very interesting series and I appreciate being a part of it. So. Yeah. My name is Jack Ward. Excuse me. And I grew up in west central Indiana. My family moved around a little bit through Indiana, but grew up in the seed stock cattle business. Had a passion for the beef cattle business very early on in life. Through 4H and FFA, I was very active in not only showing, but also in judging contests. That was a big deal in Indiana. I told people in the past, it's interesting, when I was a kid in the springtime, when what we do today is go to or our kids did, went to jackpot cattle shows. When I was a kid growing up in Indiana, every weekend we had a judgment contest. And it was just no cattle shows at the time, through the spring. At that time, they were only summer shows in fall. And so we went to judging contests. But I had a lot of support from my family. I'm the next to youngest in a family of seven. Had parents that were very, very supportive of what we did. And I, as I made my way through high school, I was able to get acquainted with Dan Hogue at Blackhawk east. And I headed off to Blackhawk for two years to compete there on the judging program and get my associate's degree. Had a very successful judging team. I individually did very well as well, but a really, really good, strong team and took a lot from Blackhawk. Just as I mentioned, I had great parents that provided a great platform. And Dan was an incredible person, not only in teaching you about livestock and introducing you to some of the most influential breeders of any species, but he also demanded a lot from you. Right? He Told us to respect the animals, to respect the places that we were at. You didn't drive on the grass, you didn't sit on gates, and if you did, it was probably not going to be a very pretty situation at the end. So just kind of continuation. I ended up getting my BS degree from Purdue University. I did not judge on the senior college level, but ended up and then headed off to the University of Kentucky to do some graduate work. And while there, I started kind of my career managing an Angus cattle farm. And that's where I met my wife, Marianne, during that time. And when we. I did move back to Indiana, her and I settled up in Northeast Indiana and we're part managing partner of Samanga's Cattle Farms there. Have two sons, Cameron and Carter. They're both grown adults, but both were very, very active in 4H and junior beef cattle breed associations. And so that's a little bit about my life, my background, and, you know, I just have a good, strong passion. I've been very fortunate to be able to, to provide a living for my family and myself through the seed stock business.
- [04:47]
Augustus
There's one story I think I heard one time about you when you were getting geared up for the American Royal Contest and you were, what was it, 12th on the team and you were on the bubble of getting to go. Tell us about the story.
- [05:04]
Jack Ward
Yeah, that, that is one that I will remember. I was on a podcast and they were asking a little bit about my history and I did tell that story. At Blackhawk, there was probably 20, 25 kids that went out for the, for the team. And as you started that your sophomore year, you prepared heavily for the National Bears show judging a lot of hog classes. Dan had a lot of passion for that contest. And at that time, I don't even remember how many years in a row Blackhawk had won that contest. But it meant a lot to Dan, it meant a lot to the program. And all of us got to travel early on. And I was actually having a pretty good fall, good start to the practices, practice workouts. But when we got to nbs, I had a terrible day. I was not good. And I remember, honestly, it was a Durock Barrack class. Waldo Durocks from Nebraska had been very competitive in the, in the car load, or I guess they call them truckloads up there. And they brought a set of four Barras, and I didn't do well on that class. And so it was a very competitive contest, very competitive team. And I came out of there not in very good shape. We had one More contest, the Mid Continent contest in Illinois and I actually did much better. But when Dan went to cut down to the 10 kids that were going to travel on the national to the bigger contest, he was cutting it down to 10. At that time, I was 12th for points and scores. When you combine workouts with the contests that we went to and, and I, I honestly thought my time at Blackhawk and the on the Jed traveling team was probably over. But he made a call to go ahead and add me to the team and I'm thankful that he did. It gave me a great opportunity and I was able to do well. I won Kansas City, I was second or third in Louisville, made the top five in Denver, and our teams were very, very competitive. So I had a great run after that. But yeah, Augustus, it was an interesting story and I'm very thankful to Dan. We talk about it quite a lot over the years and he's seen something in me that I missed on that Duroc Bear class. And it was a good story for me and I'm very, very thankful for what he did.
- [07:53]
Weston
Absolutely. Well, now that we've got to know you a little bit and got some stories in, what did it make you feel like when you got the phone call to judge the Houston steer show of 2025 and what were your expectations going in to the show?
- [08:11]
Jack Ward
Well, Weston, that's a very good question. I have had the opportunity to judge, I think all of the Texas majors on more than one occasion in Houston. I had done it, I think three times previous to this and frankly, I was surprised when I got the call last spring. There's so many really talented up and coming judges and the fact that I was still in consideration along with some of those really meant a lot to me. I was really, really honored and the expectations would be high. I wouldn't lie to you. When you get a call like that to come judge a Texas major, you would expect to see a well run show. You expect to see a tremendous amount of quality coming through that ring over the course of the week. And I was not disappointed in any way. I mean, as I mentioned during the show, the way the kids presented the animals, the quality and the depth of the class is, and just the unbelievable way that Houston puts on such a huge event. I know it's a quick turnaround for exhibitors, it's a lot of effort, but to get through nearly 2,000 steers, the way they get them in and out of there is really remarkable. So I was truly honored. And it never fails when you walk up to that show ring the first morning, there's some butterflies. Right. Still at my age and my time and I think that's important. I do believe that's an important message because I've always told myself when I don't get a little bit nervous or have a few butterflies when I walk up to judge any show at the beginning of it, then it's probably time for me to quit because I really believe it is important. You have to take it very, very seriously. And it's. It was just truly an honor to be a part of it.
- [10:23]
Augustus
So we get into the show. I'm going to start out with the Charolais breed. Talk us through, I'd say the class dynamics in that, if you remember your breed champion in reserve and maybe some close calls you had to make in between there.
- [10:41]
Jack Ward
Yeah, you know, it, it and the way that Gus said these shows in these Texas majors, big ones go now, the slick ones, especially where it's a week long event. Right. And I did, I took a look at. Okay, what am I. I know Monday is going to be a big day, a long day. There's a lot of steers to go through. And so how are the breeds set up? Because I think it's interesting in the fact that Charlize came first. My expectation was really high every time I've judged a Texas major. The Charolay division has always been in competition at the end of the show and so you would expect to see some really good cattle. And I remember the very first class coming in and the steer that I used, obviously for me probably wasn't heavy enough as we talked about to win the division, but I thought that calf set a huge pattern and standard for the course of the week. I remember the calf having a little extra length that I like, having some muscle and bone and one that was very, very sound. But you know, as you're standing there at the end of the ring and you're pulling calves to come in, there's no question. And for me, I am kind of a first impression person. And when that, that steer came in that ended up being our champion Charlet, he kind of just grabbed your attention. I mean they just, some of them have that kind of arrogance and presence to get your attention. And then as we said there it is a market steer show and to have the kind of muscle, the finish. And he was really, in my opinion, one of the highlights of the week in terms of freshness. And I made a comment, I think throughout the week that that's probably a dangerous path to go down judging these shows and honestly, within the industry because we put more age on these cattle, even going through the packing plants. But he really, he really caught my attention. He was. He looked like. He looked fresh and he was full. He was hydrated, and he really moved well. And so he was. He was kind of one that I found early and liked an awful lot. There was a little bit of a. Of a more orange or reddish tinge to Charolais that I used for reserve. That fit him very, very nicely. Honestly. Had a little more length of body, perhaps, than the one that I used. Wasn't quite as good in his flank. I thought he was a little steeper and shorter in his hip, maybe. But both of those calves were extremely sound and had a great deal of presence and quality to them. So it was a. It was a good start to the week. I got to be honest with you, when I got done with the charolais division, I was very relaxed because I knew at the end of the day or the end of the week, we had two steers that could be selected grand and reserve, and I'd have no problem doing that. So it kind of took some pressure off of you right away.
- [13:51]
Weston
And the char was by far in my top, Top three of cattle that I saw that week. I thought his. The Sullivan supply pulse picture. I saw it for the first time, and I was like, this can be a great week. But then the main on Juice come. That's one of my favorite other cabs as well. I thought that thing was insane. But if you want to give us the dynamics of the main anjou breed, Keep rolling.
- [14:20]
Jack Ward
You bet. Weston. I'd agree that one was another one of those. When he hit the ring, he had to just be taken back a little bit. His presence and he did fit that Charolais look and type with the bone. He was a calf that was really in both of those deers. I think I made a comment for me personally, could have been just a little longer, a little bigger framed type steers, but they were so incredibly sound. Both of those calves had excellent bone, and both of them were very finished and they had muscle. The mane was a little bit lighter right in weight. And probably the thing that caught my attention, he was a. He was a little coarser in his joints, right. He had just a little more swelling there. He had to get up on him to see it. But that one took an incredible picture. The stance, the posture of that one again, and the arrogance of that guy was. Was really spot on. So I, I, yeah, you're you're right because you get into Division 2 and you found another one that could be right in the heat of the, the battle at the end of the week for sure.
- [15:26]
Weston
And so then Timmy's were next and I. Both those cattle seem to me like they were related to each other quite a bit in terms of build and functionality. One was better looking and one was heavier muscled maybe. But what, what were your thoughts on that?
- [15:43]
Jack Ward
Yeah, so I, I agree. I thought, you know, obviously they had a similar color pattern. Right. And again, both of them were, were that both of them were nice and muscle calves. I did think there was just a little more presence and look to the one that won that day and I thought proportionally was a little heavier bone as well. The reserve steer at times would just be a little. When he stopped and, and, and our showman got it put put together. He looked incredible. When he got out on the walk, it kind of came apart just a little bit down his top line to his hip. And so just a little more presence. I again, I thought there was a touch more length of body in the champion steer, but those again, you, you hit it on the nose. We had a couple more that were just going to be contenders at the end of the week as well.
- [16:32]
Weston
And then so we're done with these three per se continental breeds. Now the Americans happen and the first one that comes through the gate is the Gert breed. And that one is in my top three, that red Gert. I'd saw him as a baby calf back in November and fell in love. I know exactly how he's bred. I know exactly where he came from. But that calf was insane for an American, in my opinion. What was your thoughts on him and the reserve as well? Hey, we're now in the American type breeds. What are your expectations for that as a whole as well?
- [17:13]
Jack Ward
Well, I think I'll start, you know, the expectation again at the, at. At the Texas majors. It's been, you know, obviously a transformation over the years. The Americans get very, very competitive and, and you're right, that one just fit the mold of exactly what I was looking for, the champion, you know, again, just as look, he was an incredibly nice fronted calf, right. Had some extension, good shape in terms of muscle, excellent feet and legs. And again, the bone just matched exactly. Kind of what I was putting together at the beginning and getting back to the expectations of, of what you want to see or what you feel like you're going to see in the American breeds in Texas is really amazing. And honestly, it wasn't disappointing at all. So you're right. We've talked about four divisions and there's not a one of those four that I didn't feel like that come Friday evening. We weren't going to have to take a look at. And I did. I like that dirt steer a lot. There's no doubt. And he was certainly one that I stopped and admired and took a little extra time to evaluate there on Friday evening for sure.
- [18:34]
Augustus
Certainly so and so then we get into the Simbras. I thought that division you had a couple different things you can do but talk us through the simbraws.
- [18:47]
Jack Ward
Yeah, I think that that was the one division where of that first. First part of the first or the first wave of cattle was pretty interesting. I elected to go with what was probably, you know, it was a big steer. Right. I mean, he was a big steer that I used for champion that had again, just the mass and the volume. And for him to have that kind of muscle and capacity and mass and continue to be able to move as well as he did was really, really something special. The reserve steer was more moderate. He was a little earlier or lower weight, tremendous bone. He kind of ran downhill just a little bit, maybe didn't have the balance. Even though that heavier steer had a little bit more just front end to him. I felt like the balance and the quality, the muscle shape of that champion was really exceptional.
- [19:43]
Weston
So now it's later in the night with the Bring Us show. I didn't get to watch the bringing show. I'd watched everything up to the Simbross show in person and I'd leave. But the Bringa show from what I saw on live stream was phenomenal. Quality was there. And so just talk us through the, the, the population of Bring Us.
- [20:04]
Jack Ward
I, I think you're spot on on what you said there. It was another really nice set of steers and I really liked the pair of steers that we used there. The champion was another one of those that just from a pattern and a type posture and just overall stature was what I was looking for. I loved his shape and I think you heard me say over the course of the week, I wanted him to have some rib and some density to him, but I didn't want him to be wasteful. Right. In terms of the rib and their overall capacity, I think again, these are market animals and some of that, that extra body depth and volume gets to be just a little more wasteful than it needs to be. But that steer that I used, I was talking to people about him was really, really good. I wished he had a shot more bone, honestly, as I compared him to maybe some of the calves that I picked earlier, but just dead level in his top. Beautiful shape of muscle in him, expressive in his quarter. And the reserve steer probably did have that little extra bone to him. But just from just an overall pattern standpoint, hip and hind leg was probably just not as quite as good in terms of the way it was made as what I had in the champion, in my opinion.
- [21:31]
Augustus
Then we close out the night with the ABCs and I thought there were some really good calves in there. Talk us through your front end and what you were thinking.
- [21:42]
Jack Ward
Yeah, so I would agree with you there. That was a great way to finish up. And again, it just the one thing about a long day, you've got to be able to be excited, right? You gotta be able to keep your thought and process going. And as they come into the ring, it just keeps your attention. I mean, those cattle in that ABC division were big boned and really, really stout muscled. They were just kind of this, just tremendously dense and thick. And for that kind of muscle and shape, those cattle really move well. And so I like that real well. And I thought we had a pair of them like you said. Honestly, there was four or five. There was a couple others that I liked in that division as well, but just really like the bone, the muscle, the, the dimension of the champion reserve there.
- [22:36]
Augustus
When I saw the champion, I thought, this thing looks like an AOC with a little bit of sheath and some leather up front. I mean, that calf was built so good.
- [22:46]
Jack Ward
You know that that's an interesting description and I would agree with you totally. I think it's really funny as you're standing there pulling some of those cast, because this year, I guess was the first time maybe they're. And I think they're doing this at more of the majors. They're not sifting those calves until you pull them. And so you pull them and you think to yourself, okay, what's going to make it, what's not going to make it? As they go down through there. I think that's a challenging job to get in there and sift those cattle. It's nice that they let them get into other divisions here and there, but you're right, they add a little sheath, a little bit of, of ear and neck to them, but they were just incredibly well built, for sure.
- [23:33]
Weston
Well, I'm hoping by the end of the night they fed you pretty good. I'd assume so. And you got a good meal and you got some good resting because the next day was full of, full of interesting topics. You go from Brahmin, the heaviest character of the breed, and, and then all the way to aoc. And so then the Brahmins happened the next day. And what did you think? I mean, I got to watch it on live stream. I didn't get to go watch the show in person. But lightweight seemed just super, super stout, super cool looking as well. Middleweight was, was real nice calf as well. But the heavyweights were my favorite. Your top three had all different types and kinds. What did you think and how did that go out in your mind?
- [24:18]
Jack Ward
Yeah, and I would agree with that. It kind of was an interesting start to Tuesday morning. That lightweight Brahma class was there. That was full of some nice ones. And it's really interesting in most all of the lightweight classes. I've made a comment a time or two. I like a little more length. Right. If I can get it, I won't be. I'm not going to close my eyes to some of the things. But in the lighter classes, I wanted to make sure we got into some cattle that probably had, if nothing lack of a better word, they were more progress type calves in most cases. Right. Where they were getting close to being there, but not quite. And so I wanted to have a little bit of length. A lot of those classes throughout the week had some really nice steers that were maybe just a little more compact, a little boxier. Mate, the Brahmins wouldn't have been any different. And so I found one that I liked for his length and his balance to get us kicked off. It was kind of, a, kind of a high spirited start to the show on Tuesday morning. Those calves hit there and hit that shavings and they were kind of scattered all over the place a time or two, but a good show. And I did, like you said, that was another just incredibly nice set of steers and well finished and they fit in and, and fit in our championship lineup extremely well. Good, good deal.
- [25:47]
Augustus
And so then we roll to the AOCs. And this is the first year that slick shows specifically at Houston have had the AOC division in the first wave. And so maybe Cavs got classed out or whatnot, could roll into the AOCs. I mean, talk us through the first classes with the AOCs. And specifically those two used for grand reserve were awesome calves.
- [26:18]
Jack Ward
Yeah, those were. It was an interesting kind of finish there. It was a good set of cattle and again, some variation as we got started in that division. But I would echo what you Said Augustus. This ability to let those kids come in, whether they're with a FFA group or 4H group, and split those AOCs into two, two in two different waves, and allow them to come in and maybe spend time and not have to be there over a longer period of time. I thought it was an interesting concept. I was asking Chris Gaggs about that, and I didn't know what they were going to do with them at the end. But both of them got to come in and compete for the overall. Both of them are part of the sale and the way they work through that. So I thought that was really a great decision. I think you said others have done it, but Houston made that decision. I thought it was a really good one and it broke it up a little bit. The classes were nice sized and good quality. I like that pair of steers really well. I think I made the comment that day that that one, the one that won, was a little bigger framed. And there were some things about that that I liked real well. And that day that one was full and shapely. And for his size and just overall dimension, he again, was really, really nice on his feet and legs. I think I made a comment when you brought that pair there, a couple of gray and white calves up there, I just felt like there was just quite a bit more to him. Even though the calf that was reserved ended up ultimately being reserved to him. They were in the same class. Was really an attractive steer. Maybe didn't have quite the expression, lower part of his quarter and his muscle, the overall dimension. But that was a really sound, moving pair of steers with a lot of quality to them.
- [28:14]
Augustus
Talk to us about the third place in that heavyweight class. That was another caf you talked very highly of.
- [28:21]
Jack Ward
Yeah, I'm trying to remember a little bit about them. There was a time or two when it I felt like, and now I do remember, I kind of brought those two up together. I found at the end of the day, I felt like those were the two sound ones, right. They were just a little better on their feet legs. They kept themselves square at the edge of their body and they went out and went really well. But you got to appreciate just the strength and the mass of some of those calves that are below them. And that's the interesting part of these shows. And I think anyone would tell you, you've got to make these kind of decisions very quickly, and you got to be comfortable with the decisions that you make. And so try not to overthink some things when you're out there. Good and I just felt like those two steers, I remember making the comment that they sorted themselves up at the end just because they were just a little sounder freer moving cattle that kept their feet. Kept their feet and still had muscle, right? Still had muscle.
- [29:25]
Weston
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- [29:31]
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- [29:49]
Weston
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- [30:04]
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- [30:13]
Weston
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- [30:22]
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- [31:02]
Weston
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- [31:20]
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- [31:32]
Weston
Ranches.Com so now we're at a point where we're done with wave one. You get a day off, right? That's got to be relieving because those are two extremely long days. But then start a wave two. You got the Angus breed and they're no slouches. Your champion was, was, was all there. I was a huge fan of him and even the reserve matched him fairly well in terms of building. Look. What did you think? What was the population of Angus? How did they appear? How to go?
- [32:04]
Jack Ward
Yeah, and I do Believe that over time there, that those slick sheer shows. I really enjoyed the change in the British cattle. Right. I mean, I remember when I first started judging them, people were a little tough on them, they were a little harder to read. But the breeders, as you would expect, you challenge him a little bit, make those things better, put a little more shape in them. They're really smooth looking cattle. And that champion steer was very nice. I mean, he was another one of those. When he hit the ring there and I made the pole, I just kind of turned my head and followed him and just see what he looked like, you know, moving from behind, because I'm a big fan of looking that way. And that calf was really nice. He fit in so well. You know, he looked like a bat steer. Had the shape and yet nothing wasteful. Very sound and a very pleasing calf to the eye. And like you said, the reserve fit in nicely. Not quite as heavy boned and just out in his features as the champion. But a really nice set of Angus steers. And that young lady's cap, that one was a very nice steer for sure.
- [33:14]
Weston
And then kind of changes up things. But the lemmies are next. What'd you think of the lemmings? I mean, they seem to appear like they were super stout, structured calves that resembled each other fairly well. Yeah. What do you think?
- [33:28]
Jack Ward
Yeah, you know, that's a. I. I remember sitting there before the first class came in. I turned to Chris. You could see the majority of the steers in that first class and really throughout that were red. I mean, there wasn't a lot of black ones in the group, which is interesting to me because they, they, you know, from a seed stock standpoint, they changed them to a lot of black colored cattle in the limousine breed. So I found that to be interesting. The champion reserve were close and that was a. I think I made a comment before I picked that champion. My champion came out of the middle class and the reserve was heavy and the middleweight was just a. He kind of reminded me, honestly of what I seen in that main steer way back that came out of that middle class. Just perfectly good looking from the side and dead level top and had some shape and muscle. He wasn't as long bodied, wasn't as heavy as that heavyweight, but proportionally he had a little more bone. And I felt like there was one of the cases that when you handled the steers, to me he was a little fresher to the touch than that heavyweight. The heavyweight steer was one of those that had been fed and presented really, really well. He was a good looking calf. That was very sound. I thought he had just a little more condition on him than probably needed. And his body didn't quite match his bone. Right. He was a massive body calf. And I felt like he probably needed to have just a touch more bone for the amount of mass that he had. But two very sound calves, and I could debate and justify either one of them to be your champion. I elected to go with a lighter calf that I felt like compositionally was a little better and had tremendous presence to him.
- [35:17]
Weston
Awesome. I'm gonna let Augustus take over on the Herefords because that's just. That's y'all's thing.
- [35:24]
Jack Ward
Yeah, yeah, that's okay. That's okay. Yeah, that's her.
- [35:27]
Augustus
Ford boys outnumber you here, Weston.
- [35:31]
Weston
Yeah, unfortunately.
- [35:33]
Augustus
All right, we start us off with the. The horns, Jack, right before lunch break.
- [35:40]
Jack Ward
Yeah, that was a really good set of Hereford steers. And it's a matter of fact, it's interesting. I actually had a. Had a text message from a good friend that run the feeds cattle in California that was kind of watching a little bit off and on. And he was bragging about the Hereford steers. That Champion Hereford was an interesting beast. That. Because they actually, again, they. My champion reserve Hereford came out of the same class. And it was. I asked a little bit on weights when I was going down through those, and I was interested in those two. And they were big calves, which I felt good about. They were over 14 or they were declared over 14. Whatever, whatever they weighed. The champion, though, when you got the two of them up there, even though their build was a lot alike, there was just way more stuff in the champion than what we had in the reserve in terms of muscling. He is one of those calves, I'll be honest with you. He looked. I thought he looked really good on breed day. He looked really even better on Friday night when we. When we made the selection for champion. But he was long and extremely thick. Big bone, stop featured, handled well and really moved well. And then that reserve was. The reserve to me was pretty interesting. He was a beautiful steer to look at. When he hit the ring, I pulled him immediately. Great look, I thought to myself when he walked by. I wonder how much muscle he's got in him. And honestly, when he got right up on that steer, he had a great big top in him, a good hip. His pin set was wide. He wasn't maybe quite as expressive in his muscle as one I used in Champion, but that was a really nice pair of steers. For sure.
- [37:29]
Augustus
And then you get your lunch break and come into the polls and start off with the lightweights and had a bit of a rodeo in the middleweights and solid, solid heavyweight class.
- [37:40]
Jack Ward
Yeah, that was a, that was true. I felt terrible for that young man. That was a nice tier. The, you know, and they kept him in the ring and, and I did make. Make him a class winner. And then he kind of got a little tougher to handle and they, And I thought it was a good decision because the steer was obviously not going to settle down and it's really probably not fair to the other exhibitors as it gets everything else riled up. So I appreciated their decision. It's not an easy one to do that, but we had a really nice pair of heavyweights and I think it actually came down to almost exactly the same kind of decision for me as what we had in the horn or in the Hereford show. We had a champion that just had more to him in muscle and rib and volume. And I, again, I thought that pair steers, the pair of them fit together really well in the breed show. But again, they came back and looked, my opinion, they almost looked stronger on Friday night than they even did during the breed division. So I, I like them real well.
- [38:46]
Augustus
I just want to say I did see that young man a couple of days ago, and he's. He healed up and doing good.
- [38:52]
Jack Ward
Well, that's good. Yeah, that's good. He was a tough guy, I'll tell you. That's what you would expect right in these shows. He got up and of course he, he'd broke his glasses and, and, and he was not in grip, you know, it was not good. And Skagg said he finally had to kind of talk him out of, you're not going back in there with that steer, you know, and he was wanting to get, get in there and grab a hold of him again, but I'm glad they, he, he made a good decision. But, yeah, it was a nice cap for sure. Nice cat.
- [39:23]
Weston
So we're done with Herefords, and now we got the shorties. What did you think of the shorties? What was your expectations for the shorties? Because honestly here lately, I think the shorties have grown tremendously in terms of quality. I think there's so many nice ones out there nowadays and there's high sellers as well in, in online sales. So what would you think?
- [39:47]
Jack Ward
You know, that's interesting you said that, because I would say the same thing. You know, there's been times when I really like some of the shorthorn Steers when I judge down there. And. But maybe the depth of the breed. But the depth this year was incredibly nice. And I would tell you that we, we had a very similar situation for champion reserve there than what. Than what we. It was what we had in the limousine division. I ended up going with the middle steer to win because I thought he was just a little nicer, balanced kind of a calf. There was probably just a little more pure volume and density to the heavy, so you could have justified either one of those. And I elected again to go with one with. With a bit more presence that still had the right kind of muscle shape and finish. Very acceptable from that standpoint. So interesting story after just a break in here a little bit on Friday afternoon when I was done, I was just kind of walking around, going to go look through the trade show to kind of pass some time before we did the prejudging. And the young lady with that reserve shorthorn steer was walking down the aisle and she stopped me and thanked me and she said, well, I sure hope that you're picking a couple of shorthorns tonight. So she was giving the plug for her steers, the shorthorns. So, yeah, Heck, yeah.
- [41:09]
Weston
Well, that's. I never heard something like that. That's funny. So now you got the Red Angus. But one thing that I'd like to tack on is the Red Angus or quality of red Angus in 2025 here in slick shows of Texas are insane. I've been excited to look at Red Angus and I see the breed champion at San Antonio and the breed champion at Houston. And I think to myself, I might need to get into the Red Angus business and start selling Red Angus show steers. They look awesome. What did you think, Jack?
- [41:44]
Jack Ward
You know, I would agree totally, and I'll. I'll kind of reiterate what I said a little bit earlier. All you have to do in this business, livestock business, really, it's probably anything that we do in life is challenge the breeders just a little bit. Right, right. And to your comment, maybe you didn't care for them as much, but. But all you have to do is tell these guys, these breeders that they need to pick it up a little bit and they'll get her done. Right. And that's probably what you're seeing here. That Red Angus steer, again, it was. Again, I'll. I'll reiterate, it's a little bit like what we've seen in the shorthorns. I used the middleweight steer just because, again, I just thought he was incredibly good. Looking and loved his shape and again had enough meat, animal shape and look and finish to him to go ahead and use. We had a little heavier, bigger, further, long calf for reserve, but just the overall balance and quality of that champion. He was just kind of what we'd been doing all week, and I thought he did look really, really nice, for sure.
- [42:49]
Augustus
They finish up the day with the black crosses and I mean, tremendous amount of numbers in those classes and some very heavy calves towards the, in the upper classes. Talk us through your thought process and how you handled getting through those.
- [43:07]
Jack Ward
Yeah, it was a, you know, a long. That, again, that, that day is a long day, but that was a, again, one of those things that just keeps your adrenaline going and keeps you focused on the show and knowing that you have to be because the grand champion steer could be walking in at any second. Right. And he did for me in that particular division. Those cattle were really nice. And again, you touched on it. We had some really good steers that were heavy and, and strong. And the steer that I ultimately landed on, he was one of those that had just enough of an attitude. Right. Obviously you could see that he was a little bit high strung, but that young man did a wonderful job. And that little bit of attitude created a look and a posture that's kind of hard to match. He just kind of always had his ears up and his neck was set up nice. And yet you got in on that calf and he had a tremendous shape. He handled really, really fresh and nice over his rib. And because of that presence, he got out. You know, a lot of times when they are a little high strung, they'll kind of get a little wobbly. He'd move in either one way or the other, kind of get off, off center somewhat. And this guy didn't. I mean, he was spot on. His legs were set pretty perfectly nice at the edge of his body and just a quality calf. And, and you know, you could. When you've seen him that night, you're, you're going to ask yourself, okay, will he have enough just body? He weighed really good. I liked his weight. I think he was over 14 again. And, and you wonder whether he's going to have just enough that plank. And. But for me, as I said, they don't have to be totally wasteful. I like that trim look and that shapely look and, and I thought that calf did really, really well. So that was a, that was a really nice way to end the day. And when you leave you, you know that you've added another one that's going to be competitive on Friday night for.
- [45:22]
Augustus
Sure, and so end off Thursday. I'm sure you're tired. It was a long day and get into the red crosses on Friday morning and boy, they brought the heat to you right out the gate. Talk us through those.
- [45:39]
Jack Ward
Yeah. So, you know, we, we kind of. We did talk about that and how things went. That that leadoff calf was on that first class, was just impeccably well built, beautiful structure and type, and again, just set a. A really nice standard, and we built from there. And the steer that won, that red and white calf that won that division again, was just a really good meat animal calf. I thought that steer, frankly, from the side, I really love that guy. When he moved, he kept his. His top line dead level. He had a beautiful long, level hip in him. He was finished up very, very nicely and a lot of quality. Yeah, I, I made a comment about him. You got him behind him. He could have. He got a little bit outside his skeleton, just a touch from behind, and then when he stopped, his hind leg kind of rolled around a little bit. But that was an incredibly good way to start with a steer that was just perfectly finished. Looked like a fat steer and just tremendous density and volume. Real nice cat. Not red division.
- [46:51]
Augustus
You talk about density and volume. Those were. I actually had the privilege to see that calf when I was going out buying calves for myself. I saw that cabinet. He was already spoken for, unfortunately, at the breeder's place, and I thought, man, that is a good calf. I sure wish I had him. And sure enough, the family who had him did an excellent job feeding him and had him looking 12 o'clock when they hit the ring. So you get into the AOCs, and instead of having three classes, they have six classes of the AOCs. So talk us through the. The smaller weight ranges between those and kind of how you handled that in your thought process.
- [47:35]
Jack Ward
Yeah, so that, that was another one of those cases where, because you did have that many, many classes, we had a really, again, a good way to get started in terms of a calf with shape and kind. I would have called him again, for me, a little more of a progress calf. Right. But I loved his kind and his type. And because there was six classes, there was, you know, kind of build us up there. We kind of made our way through it, and then we hit that one class. I think it was the next to the last class in that division where we had a really nice group of steers and a number of them up there at the top end that were very competitive. And my champion of reserve came out of that same class, and they were really nice deers. And I think I made the comment, the champion in that division, standing still, that is my kind of steer. I will make no bones about that. That guy was an incredibly good steer. Unfortunately, he didn't move the best for me, and I didn't. I made a comment about him in class that I didn't see an angle that was wrong. I didn't see any swelling in his joints and nothing that would indicate that you should have had some trouble. But he did. He just labored a little bit off his hind legs. When you're talking about this kind of competition, it probably hurt him a little bit at the end, But I love that steer just standing still. That calf had tremendous shape, tremendous look. He looked like a fat steer and yet had show ring presence about him. And the right kind of bone and everything matched up pretty well. But that was a good steer. There was three calves in that class that I took some time on. You know, the second steer was reserved then in that division, then we had a calf that was third. That from his shoulder back, I liked really, really well. He was a little more masculine, just a little deeper necked, and so his balance was a touch off from the side, so there was a little bit of give and take in those. But I just felt like I couldn't deny that calf because of his just tremendous posture and. And look.
- [50:00]
Augustus
So you. You're done sorting calves for the day. You said you went and walked around the concourse, got a bite to eat. Talk us through. What is. What are you thinking leading up to the prejudging? Are you just working up your speech, thinking what you got to say, or you freaking out about, okay, which calf am I going to use? I have to go pick. Pick the best one. There's so many of those breeds that were just spectacular and are in contention.
- [50:32]
Jack Ward
So it's interesting. I'll start with the speech part of it, because I think this is kind of interesting. Probably different than a lot of them. I know I. I have no idea what I'm going to say in the final speech until I turn the microphone on. Right. And it just. There's always something that kind of hits you through the course, in this case, through the course of the week, that probably stimulates the final speech. That's for me. It's always kind of been off the cuff a little bit for me. And, you know, in this particular case, seeing that set of committee members that are buyers or putting together the Buyers. And seeing that livestock committee at the back of the ring clapping as each champion in reserve from each division comes in, that's an amazing. And so that's what stimulated me for my thought process. And probably at times I get a little long winded because the fact that I don't have anything. My wife says, like you said, you kind of ramble a little bit sometimes, but that's what I do there. It was interesting. You said we enjoyed lunch and then we did have to. I walked around the concourse. I actually went down and went through the ag mechanics stuff. That is just. Was amazing to me the skill level of those students. It was really something to see. We have to have a meeting up in the second floor to get prepared for heading to the champion to the rodeo. It's kind of interesting. I know you guys probably know about it, but when you get into that arena, you can hear things extremely well until you actually go through the gate and you're on the dirt. And then I can't understand a word the announcer's saying. And so most everything is kind of done by nods or movement. And when they tell you it's time to pick the champion. So we. It's funny. I'll tell this story just because he's. He's one of my dearest friends and certainly a colleague here in the office. They call it the. The Shane Bedwell rule that now you have to go. When you judge Houston, you have to go get in this meeting so that you know how the process is going to go right down to the second when you got to name the champion. Because the year, the last time Shane judged it, I don't know if you guys remember, but he actually picked the grand champion and he wasn't supposed to yet. So they had to bring them all back in or kind of circle them back in. I don't know exactly how it went, but they had to circle him back up and bring him back in. So he did it when they was really supposed to. So he denies it. He said he did everything just right, which is really. I'm sure he did. But we call it the Shane Bedwell rule when we all have to go up and meet with the folks and make sure that we do everything exactly as planned. But I. To talk about the steers, I do run them through my head. I won't lie to you. There are things I've made a comment already about the fact that I'm kind of a first impression person. And so I run a few of those things to my head when I'M When I'm walking around enjoying the time, I actually went outside. Well, when I seen you, Augustus, I took your advice and went. Got some cherry cobbler to enjoy there before the drive. So I did do that. But I just try to stay relaxed and not get too worried and just kind of run some things to my head. And there was some steers. And because I am a first impression guy, there's a lot of times sometimes I think to myself, I know what it's going to be. But I think, as I mentioned to the crowd that night, I could have made a reasonable case for a number of those steers in that lineup to be selected as your grand and reserve. So I needed to take a good look at them for sure.
- [54:47]
Weston
Well, now that you're done with the show, if you could go back, and now that we are, is there anything that you're glad that we got to recap on or how do you feel about the whole show in its entirety now that we're done with it?
- [55:03]
Jack Ward
Well, it was the quality of the Cavalier, excellent as you expect. I think they said we were just shy 2,000 steers, so that's. That's remarkable. Right. And we talked about the ability for that staff to get them moved in and out. Augustus, or you asked me about the final speech a little bit. And just the people that come and help and volunteer to put this thing on, it's absolutely first class. They pick you up, they move you around, they treat you well, and it's an experience. I took it in a little bit. I'm not gonna lie to you. I'm in my 60s now, right. And so I've looked back on some of these things and I took it in this year. I mean, I just was kind of at all. Like I told you, when I walked up the first day, I had butterflies. Right. And then when we head over to that rodeo, just walk or going down that street, seeing the size and the look of that. That facility and standing there before you go in on that stadium floor and just seeing the crowd and the people, the enthusiasm that they share and have for this event is incredible. And as I challenge them, just keep it up. It's good. It's what we need to do. I know you can always poke holes in things that go on at shows and events, but overall, we just have to continue to give support and opportunity for youth to have this kind of ability. Right. I mean, growing become, as I may mention, become good, productive adults where you're not a burden to anybody. That's what we really need to do, no matter what you do. And so it's important. And I took it in. I loved it. I was honored. I had a blast doing it, as I may mention a few times. And so it was just a real treat for me.
- [57:06]
Weston
Yes, sir. Well, I guess to wrap it up we'll have a Bible verse. We always do that at the end of an episode, and Augustus usually does that. But I think it's good that we get to reflect on the good Lord because we wouldn't be able to do any of this if it wasn't for him.
- [57:24]
Augustus
Absolutely. This episode's verse is Proverbs 16:3. It says, Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans.
- [57:35]
Weston
I think that works real well with this post game. So well.
- [57:40]
Jack Ward
Thank you gentlemen. I enjoyed it.
- [57:42]
Weston
Yeah, we appreciate you coming on. This is empowering you with Mr. Jack Ward.
- [57:52]
Sponsor
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- [58:01]
Augustus
But also go take a look at our new website, empowerupod.com where you'll find our team's story, sponsor updates and much more. Once again, we just want to thank you all for tuning in and please follow us on Spotify or Apple Podcast and leave a five star rating. If you like what you hear, have a blessed day.