07/12/2026
Very good read!!
Every county fair season, it's the same conversation: "Don't tell anyone who the judge is." "Keep it a secret." "If people find out who the judge is, they'll have an advantage."
Sometimes I think we treat county fair judges like they're in the witness protection program.
The assumption is that if someone knows the judge, the show is already decided.
I've seen people call judges. I've seen people text judges. I've seen people try to influence judges before a show.
Did it help them?
Most of the time, it had the exact opposite effect.
A judge with any integrity doesn't want any part of that. The last thing a good judge wants is for anyone to think they were influenced by a phone call or a friendship.
If you feel like you need to convince the judge before the first class ever walks into the ring, maybe the problem isn't the judge.
Maybe it's the calf.
The best ones don't need a sales pitch. They walk into the ring and do the talking all by themselves.
Now, is there an advantage to knowing who the judge is ahead of time? Absolutely. Just not for the reason most people think.
Knowing the judge helps you prepare.
Every judge has a style. Some like cattle with more frame. Some like more power. Some value balance above everything else. Some won't compromise structural correctness for any amount of muscle.
If our family knows who's judging, we might adjust our string. We might leave one at home and bring another that better fits that judge's eye.
That's not cheating. That's good showmanship.
Every experienced exhibitor does it. They don't try to change the judge's opinion. They figure out which calf gives them the best chance under that particular judge. There's a big difference.
I'm not naive. I'm fully aware politics happen.
I've watched a judge lose every bit of credibility by placing a good one behind a bad one. Everyone standing around the ring knew exactly what happened.
Politics exist.
At county fairs. At state fairs. In business. In sports. At work. In just about every part of life.
Get over it.
You can spend your time complaining about it, or you can spend your time getting better.
I can also promise you this.
If you're constantly complaining about judges, politics, and how everything is rigged, word has probably already spread about how miserable you are.
That doesn't help your reputation. It hurts it.
People remember the families who congratulate the winners, shake hands, and go back to work.
They also remember the ones who spend the rest of the day explaining why they should have won.
Keeping the judge's name a secret isn't going to change any of that.
Hiring someone with integrity will.
What bothers me most about this whole mentality isn't the gossip.
It's what it teaches our kids.
Before the first class ever walks into the ring, adults are already handing them an excuse: "Well... they know the judge."
Instead of asking, "What can we do to make our calf better?" we're teaching them to believe success comes from who you know instead of what you've done.
I don't want my kids believing that.
I want them believing that hard work matters. That good livestock matters. That sportsmanship matters. That when they get beat, they shake the winner's hand, congratulate them, load up, go home, and figure out how to bring a better one next time.
Because that's how life works.
Not just at the county fair.
Everywhere.
So if you trust someone enough to hire them to judge your fair, trust them to judge it.
If you don't trust their integrity, they probably shouldn't be in the ring in the first place.
Let's stop treating judges like they're carrying classified information.
Let's stop assuming every winner won because of a friendship.
Let's stop handing our kids excuses before they've even entered the ring.
Because one day, they'll leave the show ring.
Life won't stop being unfair.
Politics won't disappear.
People will still know people.
The only thing they'll be able to control is how prepared they are.
I'd rather teach them that lesson now.
