VOL 26 No. 12 Armstrong Co, steer tagged grand champ BY SHEILA MILLER FARM SHOW - The grand champion Junior beef steer of the 65th Penn sylvania Farm Show was a 1255 pound crossbred, called Monkey Lap by an Arm strong County youth who showed the big black steer to • the top honors. Seventeen-year-old Blame Clowser led the heavyweight Limousin x Chiamna x Angus crossbred to win his first Farm Show grand championship. The youth and steer basked in the limelight of blazing television cameras and news reporters’ microphones seconds after Judge Doug Farrett of Urbana, Illinois delivered the traditional Grand Champ slap. Judge Parrett described the top Farm Show steer as one that combines the traits consumers and cattlemen need to look for in order to Bankert hog wins jr. market swine BY DICKANGLESTEIN FARM SHOW - Puiebred Durocs captured the two top placings in Thursday’s junior market swine com petition, in which entries were cut by one-fourth due to non-compliance with pseudorabies regulations The grand champion Duroc, which came out of the final heavyweight group to enter the small arena, was shown by Michele Bankert, R 3, Hanover It was her first major placing at the Farm Show The reserve grand champion “red,” a light heavyweight, was exhibited by nine-year-old Eric Sheiss, of Chambersburg, whose older brother, Donald, took the grand championship last year. In all, there were 143 entries judged m the dozen groups of competition. Some 46 entries, scheduled to be shown by 23 youth, were disqualified from competing because they didn’t have the necessary laboratory certification declaring the hogs free of pseudorabies. Some of these entries were turned away and not ad mitted to the Show complex Other students planning to show didn’t bring their hogs to the show. Entries from Chester make money for the whole beef industry. “A grand champion steer needs to meet certain minimum standards. “It needs to be growthy a steer that will be efficient and - save money for the cattleman “It-needs the right volume of muscling to produce the most pounds of meat ‘ And it needs the right amount of fat to reach the choice grade. In our society, corn-fed beef is a status of high quality meat Our meat industry is changing because of the amount of ground beef used and the type of meat processing available. But, a grand champion steer still needs enough fat for high quality but not too much fat that it’s inefficient ” dowser’s steer put ail these tr£fits* together in one neat package, and gave the youth the thrill of victory in a field of tough competition. County and parts of Berks County were - disqualified from entering the complex because of the lack of cer tification Other students, such as those from Carbon Qbunty, didn’t bring their entries Judge Charles Andrews Jr , of Eloomingburg, Ohio, who also judged last year’s competition, had high praise for the quality of this year’s hogs “The overall quality of all of the hogs is just super,” he told the youthful exhibitors before naming the grand champion “J[’m particularly im pressed with the quality in the bottom end of the classes The bottom end quality is at least 50 percent better than last year. They (Turn to Page A 37) In this issue SECTION A: Editorials, 10; Dairy awards, 16, Potato Banquet, 23; Guernsey champion, 26; Maple awards, 29; Holstein rosettes, 30; Beef show, 34-35. SECTION B: Top com growers, 2; Open sheep, 4; Dairy blue ribbons, 6; Grange leadership, 8; Jr. sheep, 10. SECTION C: Homestead notes, 2; Home on range, 6; Joyce Bupp, 9; Farm women meet, 10; Milk handling, 12; Master Farmers, 16; Gilt sales, 17; Farm Show opening, 19 Bred gilts, 20; Belgians, 25; Sheep awards, 27; Tobacco, 31 SECTION D: Rural crime, 2; Ask VMD, 6, Granger looks at Reagan, 7; Bradford DHIA, 10; Lebanon DHIA, 14; Dairy business, 16; Huntingdon DHIA, 17; Seed' spies, 22. Lancaster Farming, Saturday, January 17,1981 dowser’s first Farm Show victory will be his last, however. The senior at Dayton High School will be joining the students at Penn State this September, dowser said the money he gets from the sale of his champion steer will be used for his education. The son of Roger and Charlotte dowser used his livestock judging ability when selecting his steei (Turn to Page A2O) A highlight of the Farm Show dairy competition came at the very end of the show when Ginny Thornburgh, the Governor’s wife, presented special awards to each of the breed grand champion award winners. Sam Yoder, left, with is State’s first lady honors top cows FARM SHOW - When Ginny Thornburgh handed out plaques to the dairy grand champions on Tuesday afternoon, she performed a service to the show which some of the exhibitors hoped afterwards would become an annual feature of the dairy com petition. Most years, the dairy' competition just kind of With camera lights burning and television reporters itching for on-the-spot interviews, seventeen-year-old Blain Clowswer of Dayton, Armstrong County and his grand champion Farm Show steer, Monkey Lip, bask in the limelight with Pa! Secretary of Agriculture Penrose Halloweil. Presents awards to each breed cham trailed off, with judges clearmg the tables, two or three cows tied to a rail at one end of the arena looking fomlorn and lost, and most of the spectators beating out of the stands hours before the last cow left the rmg. Even the parade of .champions, and the selection of a supreme grand champion in some years seemed to fall a little flat But there was electricity in the air on Tuesday, when the Governor's wife, Mrs. Thornburgh, swept into the arena late in the afternoon judging, bringing with her a retinue that included Agriculture Secretary Penrose Hallowell, both deputy secretaries, a hand ful of state troopers and others. She paused to congratulate the owner of the grand champion Holstein, picked just moments before. Mrs Thornburgh grasped the best-of-breed cow, accepted his plaque from Mrs. Thornburgh while Agriculture Secretary Penrose Hallowell and Pennsylvania Dairy Princess Cindy Neely looked on. animal’s halter