Mcalister Has Success Showing Simmentals
Tenth-grader Bailey McAlister has had much success this year in showing her Simmental cattle at different shows.
McAlister has been raising Simmental cattle since age 9, when she got involved with the American Junior Simmental Association. She began showing animals at age 5.
“It’s pretty much my whole, entire life,” she said. “If I’m not at an event, I’m at a cow show or doing something with my cows.”
She remembers at age 8 going to the Ozark Empire Fair and seeing kids showing steers. She told her dad she wanted to do that. The next year her father, Shawn, got McAlister her first purebred Simmental heifer and she won the state fair open show. “It was very exciting,” she said. This year McAlister showed a bred and owned heifer, Max Oakley; an owned heifer, HPF/ AF/B&K Knockout 260B (Kay-O); and a percentage bull, Max Victory.
She went to day shows all through May and June. At the South Central Regionals in Stillwater, Okla., Max Oakley won fourth overall bred and owned. Next she attended the McDonald County Fair, where Knockout won Supreme Champion and Max Oakley won Reserve Grand Champion Simmental. Also, Max Victory won Reserve Champion Overall Bull. At nationals in Des Moines, Iowa, Max Oakley won seventh overall bred and owned.
Then McAlister went to the Ozark Empire Fair where Knockout won Reserve Grand Champion and won her division, and Max Oakley also won her division. Max Victory was named Grand Champion Percentage Simmental Bull. In the open show, Max Oakley and Knockout won their divisions again, and in the grand drive, Knockout won Grand Champion and Max Oakley won Reserve Champion. McAlister won a senior showmanship contest out of about 25 peers.
Next came the Missouri State Fair. In the FFA show, Knockout and Max Oakley won their divisions, and in the grand drive, Max Oakley won Grand Champion and Grand Champion Bred and Owned. Max Victory won Grand Champion Percentage Bull and Grand Champion Bred and Owned. In the open show, Max Oakley won her class and Knockout won her division. In
the grand drive, Knockout won the Simmental show.
In October, McAlister is taking Max Oakley to the American Royal in Kansas City.
“Hopefully I do well,” McAlister said. “It’s a big show. I’ve never shown there.”
She said of showing animals, “I have a true passion for it. I love it so much. I played sports my whole life. This is the first year I haven’t played sports. If I could do anything, I could show cows all year-round. I love going to shows. I love the atmosphere. I love the people. It’s pretty much my life.
“It really wears you out. But I’m home for two days and I’m like, ‘When are we going again?’”
As for her bond with the animals, it is unmistakable.
“I love my animals,” she said. “They are my pets — like family. I really create a bond. I get very attached. I call them my children because they pretty much are. I have to take care of them in every single way. Sometimes you find yourself talking to them.”
She said she would love to keep showing cows until she ages out of the program at 21; however, that might be difficult, because she plans on going to college at Oklahoma State University when she graduates from high school. She has already decided she wants a career that involves working with animals. She wants to be a large animal veterinarian, bovine geneticist or a bovine embryologist, she said.
“I really want to stay in the agricultural world. I’ve had pretty much my future planned out since I was 8 years old,” she said.
“Jamie and I are blessed,” her father said. “Both of our kids, I can honestly say, we are very, very proud of. We are fortunate that our kids surround themselves with people that are inherently positive, driven and seem to push our kids to want to be successful. We could not live in a better community. The support they receive is genuine, and we could not be more thankful.
“Bailey has worked tremendously hard over the last few years. She loves to do the behind-the-scenes work with her cattle such as choosing (artificial insemination) bulls, making decisions on feed rations, halter-breaking calves, fitting on show day and even marketing our genetics. She has a kind heart for young showmen as well. She enjoys working with other families when she has the time.
“I place a lot of trust in her decisions and want her involved in every aspect of our program. We had a summer that I am not sure we can replicate any time in the future. It was a great run, but right now we are looking forward to our fall calf crop and next year’s possibilities for show/sale calves. Showing cattle is a lot like sports in many ways. It is always easy to be humbled, one man’s opinion does not make or break a program, and to get better you can’t think much about the past but you do need to focus on the future!”