4-H prepares for 2022 Great Northern Fair

Montana State University Hill County Extension is gearing up for a packed schedule at this year’s Great Northern Fair, with their usual crop of animal shows, 4-H project displays and a livestock sale.

Extension Agent Colleen Pegar said July 12 they will be holding their interview day for all indoor projects at the 4-H Chuckwagon, where students will show off their projects and be judged. Projects range in subject from sewing to livestock.

Pegar said this particular event isn’t open to the public, but after interview day is over the students’ displays will be set up for the public through the whole fair.

Throughout the fair 4-H will also be holding a number of animal shows with young people presenting horses, cattle and smaller animals to be judged as well, she said.

These are the events she’s personally most excited for, as it was what she grew up doing.

“I love to see those kids build their confidence in the show ring and get those blue and purple ribbons,” she said.

Pegar said this year’s Small Animal Show saw an unusually high amount of entires compared to pervious years so that one may be particularly interesting.

“Our Small Animal Show is going to be pretty large,” she said.

She said 4-H enrollment numbers have stayed pretty steady in recent years, seemingly unaffected by the pandemic, but this year did see an increase in new families which she thinks indicates a growing interest in 4-H that might translate into larger audiences this year, but she can’t be sure.

Regardless, Pegar said, students are excited to get the show on the road, with many of them having attended a showmanship clinic earlier this month to prepare.

“They’re feeling pretty good,” she said.

However, she said, the biggest event of the fair remains the Livestock Sale, she said, and 30 steers, 28 pigs, three goats and eight lambs so far have been register to be sold.

Overall she said, that’s similar to recent years, but this year saw a few more beef and a couple fewer hogs than last year.

Pegar also said they’re sending out buyer application forms for the sale to all previous buyers in past years, and if anyone else wants one they can let the Hill County Extension Office know.

She said they can also show up on sale day and get buyer registration numbers then.

Pegar has been at the extension office as an agent for over a year, and already has one Great Northern Fair, by all accounts a very successful one, under her belt, and she said the experience within the office has helped make the organizing go very smoothly so far.

She said 4-H has handled COVID-19 very well, overall, and they still have some precautions in place, like readily available hand sanitizer, but otherwise their events this year will be pretty close to normal.

She said if anyone has questions about the events, or is interested in 4-H in general they can give the Extension office a call and they’d be happy to help.

This year’s 4-H activities actually start before the fair, with setup starting at 1 p.m. Sunday, June 10. All 4-H members leaders and parents are expected to participate in the set up, meeting at 1 p.m. in the Bigger Better Barn on the fairgrounds.

Tuesday is Interview Day at the 4-H Chuckwagon, with champions awarded at 12:30 p.m.

And multiple events run from Wednesday, July 13, to Sunday, July 17.

Wednesday in the outside arena at 9:30 a.m. will be the Horse Show with the 4-H Chuckwagon opening from 3 to 9 p.m. for exhibit viewing and concessions.

Thursday will see the Market Animal Weigh-In from 7 to 9:30 a.m., a 4-H Livestock Superintendents Meeting at 6 p.m., followed by a 4-H Livestock Exhibitors Meeting at the Bigger Better Barn at 6:30 p.m., 7 p.m. at the Bigger Better Barn will be a Beef, Goat, Sheep and Swine Exhibitors Meeting.

The Beef Show at the Bigger Better Barn will begin a 9 a.m. Friday followed by the Dog Show at 1:30 p.m., and the Small Animal Show at 3:30 p.m.

Saturday will feature the Swine Show at the Bigger Better Barn at 8 a.m., the Sheep and Goat Show at 1 p.m., and the 4-H Round Robin Competition.

The 4-H Appreciation Breakfast at the Chuckwagon, sponsored by CHS Big Sky, will be held Sunday from 8 to 9:30 a.m. and pre-sale announcements and buyer registration at the Bigger Better Barn at 12:45 p.m. with the Livestock Market Sale at 1 p.m.

Thursday through Saturday Bigger Better Barn Concessions will be open from 7 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., and the Bigger Better Barn and Beef Barn itself will be open until 9:30 p.m. The Chuckwagon will be open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Sunday, Bigger Better Barn Concessions will open at 10 a.m. and close at 3:30 p.m. the 4-H Chuckwagon will be open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.