Get to know 12-year old, Ryder Day of Meadow, Texas – the exhibitor of the Grand Champion Junior Market Steer at the Fort Worth Stock Show in our interview below! Day was selected Grand Champion Junior Market Steer with his Hereford steer. This is the first time a Hereford was picked as Grand Champion since 1982. His steer went on to bring $300,000 to GKB Cattle in the Sale of Champions which is a historic high at the Fort Worth Sale of Champions. Ryder is the son of Rusty and Katie Day and he has a younger brother, Riggin, who also got to show at Forth Worth, making the sale with his European Cross.
What does it mean to you and your family to win the 2020 Fort Worth Junior Market Steer Show?
– It has been incredible. My family has shown cattle since the 1940s, and I’ve been going to steer shows since before I was even born. I was 14th place in class 11 Exotic last year, four places out of making the sale. So I know how big this was, it felt so good. And the fact that we raised Cupid Shuffle made it even more special, we got to love him his whole life.
Who is your biggest role model and why?
– My dad, Rusty Day, because he has helped me through life and supported everything I’ve ever wanted to do. Whether it was football, ranch horse competitions or showing steers. He is here with us every day to help feed, wash, clips, and fit my steers all the way up to Fort Worth and this one took even more work considering we raised him. (Dad AI’s the cows, calves, tags, moves, milks, halter breaks, and more…) I want to be just like him one day.
Photo shared from the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo: Emily Hilton
What is your show day ritual?
– Wake up early, get dressed, go to the barn & get the calves up to exercise, wash, dry, feed, let them rest before we start fitting, then show. While they are resting we might have time to go get breakfast and I always get a lucky chocolate donut.
What does showing with your family mean to you?
– More than words can describe. And it means a lot more since we raise show cattle for a living. It’s cool to look back at pictures of my parents, grandparents, and great grandparents with their show calves. The way cattle have changed over the years, and the techniques to get them ready for a show. It’s a legacy for sure, one that I am so proud to be a part of.
What are your future goals?
– My next show goal is to try to win the SandHills Hereford Show in Odessa, Texas. That show means a lot to my family. Here on the ranch, I want to continue to grown the cow herd my brother Riggin and I have started, and hopefully add to the ranch with land of my own. I hope I can keep our show cattle operation and commercial herd going for my lifetime and continue my family’s ranching lifestyle for my own family.
Who would you like to thank for helping you achieve this great accomplishment?
– All my family, everyone who came to Fort Worth to watch and everyone rooting from home. My grandparents Jody & DeAnn Yates and Ricky & Cindy Day, they raised Herefords & other breeds long before I came along and taught me to love livestock. Brock May for all his help getting Cupid ready before we left home and fitting him at Fort Worth, and Holly Poad for putting the smoke on his top. And to all my friends for being so awesome and happy for me, I’m lucky to have you all in my life!