Kayce Van Horn, a Cal Poly student who graduated from Santa Maria High School last year, shows her heifer, Pepper. Van Horn says she has learned a lot of valuable skills as a member of FFA and that “everybody should show an animal at some point."
Kayce Van Horn, a Cal Poly student who graduated from Santa Maria High School last year, shows her heifer, Pepper. Van Horn says she has learned a lot of valuable skills as a member of FFA and that “everybody should show an animal at some point." Credit: Jack Dindia / Noozhawk photo

With loud farm-animal utterances in the air, youth livestock exhibitors showed a variety of cows, pigs, sheep and goats at the Santa Barbara County Fair.

This year’s event at the Santa Maria Fairpark was split into two parts for the first time to coincide with the Fourth of July weekend and the 250th anniversary of the United States. The second weekend of the event, on now through Sunday, features livestock exhibits from different local youth groups such as 4-H, FFA and Grange. 

Not only does the fair include exhibits, but also competitions judged on showmanship, including pigs, dairy goats and cows. The prestigious Champion Drive is set for 5 p.m. Friday, when the top members of 4-H and FFA will compete for the title of Supreme Champion.

FFA member Kayce Van Horn, a Cal Poly student who graduated from Santa Maria High School last year, said it was her second year showing off her heifer, Pepper.

“Most of my life I’ve worked with goats, but then last year I switched over to show a sheep and a heifer. My cousin raised heifers, so they’ve always kind of wanted me to show cattle,” Van Horn said.

Apart from learning how to properly take care of animals, Van Horn said the most valuable aspect of FFA involves the life skills that members gain. At Cal Poly, she’s majoring in agricultural sciences, and she said the work ethic she learned from FFA helps her complete ambitious projects. Moving forward, she hopes to continue working with livestock as a career.

“I’m majoring in agriculture science to become an agriculture teacher, so I’ll be back here in a couple years, helping out other students with their projects and gaining those skills,” Van Horn said.

Cadence Luke, a member of Cinco Campanas 4-H, with her goat, Hank Hill, says she plans to stay involved with 4-H for the next three years.
Cadence Luke, a member of Cinco Campanas 4-H, with her goat, Hank Hill, says she plans to stay involved with 4-H for the next three years. Credit: Jack Dindia / Noozhawk photo

Another FFA member, Francisco Velasquez III, showed off his pig, Zeus, at the livestock exhibit auction. Despite saying that the day had been “a little stressful” because of showing in the ring, he was “pretty happy” for winning fourth overall for best advanced showman.

Velasquez spoke on how his achievement is a sign of his personal improvement in raising livestock.

“It shows how much I really improved on my skills for showing my animals, and how much people I really surprised over the years, too,” Velasquez said. “I wasn’t really as good as a showman before … which was eight years ago when I started. And now I see how much I’ve improved, and it honestly makes me so happy.”

The Santa Barbara County Fair includes youth livestock competitions from groups such as FFA, 4-H and Grange.
The Santa Barbara County Fair includes youth livestock competitions from groups such as FFA, 4-H and Grange. Credit: Jack Dindia / Noozhawk photo

After being involved in FFA for more than four years, Velasquez plans to attend Allan Hancock College while continuing to be a part of FFA. In the past, he’s worked with turkeys, but this year has seen a major decrease in turkey livestock because of an avian influenza outbreak.

Cadence Luke, a member of Cinco Campanas 4-H, raised her market goat, Hank Hill. Initially, Luke did two years of 4-H when she was ages 8 and 9. Now, she has returned and plans to stay involved for the next three years.

Sophie Lafrance, a Valley Christian Academy student involved in Cinco Campanas 4-H, raises a variety of animals, including lambs, rabbits and chickens.
Sophie Lafrance, a Valley Christian Academy student involved in Cinco Campanas 4-H, raises a variety of animals, including lambs, rabbits and chickens. Credit: Jack Dindia / Noozhawk photo

“It’s been really, really fun. It gets me out of the house a lot, and gets me exercise along with learning more things about animals,” Luke said.

Sophie Lafrance, a Valley Christian Academy student also involved in Cinco Campanas 4-H, raised her market lamb, Mochi. It’s her fifth year in 4-H. She also raises rabbits and chickens. She talked about the enriching experience of raising livestock.

“It just helps us learn more about life, and especially livestock, too, and how things happen agriculturally,” Lafrance said.

Young fairgoers take a spin in the bumper cars at the Santa Barbara County Fair.
Young fairgoers take a spin in the bumper cars at the Santa Barbara County Fair. Credit: Jack Dindia / Noozhawk photo

In addition to the livestock exhibits, fair attendees were able to enjoy typical carnival happenings, such as carousels, games and thrilling rides, along with fair food such as large corn dogs or funnel cake.

The fair, which is themed “Stars, Stripes and American Nights,” will be open through Sunday. The gates will be open from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and from noon to 10 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. General admission tickets have been priced at $12, compared with $17 last year.

Additional information, ticket sales and event schedules are available on the Santa Maria Fairpark website.

— Noozhawk staff writer Jack Dindia can be reached at jdindia@noozhawk.com.