Latest news with #FortWorthStockShowandRodeo
Yahoo
10-02-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo's Grand Champion Steer auctioned for $375K
The Brief The Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo's Youth Auction was Saturday. Grand Champion Steer Alley Cat was auctioned for $375K. More than $10 million was spent at the Youth Auction this year. FORT WORTH, Texas - The Grand Champion Steer at this year's Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo was auctioned off for $375,000 on Saturday. The 2025 grand champion steer is a silver American Cross named Alley Cat. Vaden's Acoustics & Drywall, Inc. placed the winning $375,000 bid in the auction at Watt arena. Alley Cat's owner is 16-year-old Mattison Koepp, of La Vernia, Texas, near San Antonio. The Reserve Grand Champion Steer, shown by Bricelyn Patschke of Idalou, Texas, was auctioned off for $300,000. By the numbers More than $10 million was raised in the Stock Show's Youth Auction. That is approximately $1.8 million more than last year. What they're saying "Our amazing buyers at the Junior Sale of Champions make a tremendous investment in these incredible youth that participate in our show," said Stock Show General Manager Matt Carter. "A huge thank you to the Fort Worth community that supports these young men and women who will make sure tomorrow's livestock industry and food security is in good hands." The Source Information in this article comes from the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo and past FOX 4 coverage.
Yahoo
09-02-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Alley Cat goes for nearly $400K at Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo Jr. Sale of Champions
It didn't take long to make the Junior Steer Show Grand Champion a rich young woman. Mattison Koepp won the prize on Friday, Feb. 7. On Saturday, Feb. 8, her American Crossbreed, Alley Cat, went up for auction. Within minutes, the bidding had reached six figures at the Junior Sale of Champions at the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo. The pulse of the room rose with the tone and tenor of the auctioneer's voice with each new raised arm and shout. Soon, the numbers were dazzling 16-year-old Koepp as she led Alley Cat around the auction ring wearing a sparkling top and an awed look. When the gavel fell for the final time, Shane Vaden, owner of Vaden's Drywall, Plaster and Masonry in Fort Worth, had the top bid, dropping a cool $375,000 for Koepp's steer. Vaden, a long-time member of the Fort Worth Stock Show Syndicate, was overcome by emotion after securing the winning bid. He wiped tears from his eyes as friends, family members and well wishers clutched his hand and slapped him on the back. Beef on the hoof currently goes for around $2.05 a pound, so Vaden's price was just a little above market rate, but he was happy to pay the premium, he said, after watching Koepp win the Junior Steer Show the day before. 'I saw the excitement,' said Vaden. He then praised the effort it took Koepp to get to this point. 'You're a hard-working young lady, and you're going to be a success,' he assured her. Seated at a press conference table after the auction, Koepp appeared stunned. 'It's a dream come true,' she kept repeating. Her mom, Alicia, dad, Matt, and big brother, Mason, beamed with pride next to her. With the money she earned, Koepp, from La Vernia, plans to carry on a family tradition and attend Texas A&M University, where she wants to study agricultural management. After that, she says, she might become a steer judge and have the chance to make some other youngster's dream come true. Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo Director of Communications Matt Brockman called the Junior Sale of Champions 'the biggest Saturday morning at the stock show.' The auction began at 9 a.m., but long before that prospective buyers milled around the auction floor dressed to the nines in boots and suits, wearing faded jeans instead of dull trousers, silk wild rags in place of stuffy neckties. By 8 a.m., bottles were popping at the hospitality bar, and everyone was in a celebratory mood, poised to spend big money for a great cause, supporting the next generation of Texas ranchers. Two years ago, a record was broken when Grand Champion steer Snoop Dog commanded a whopping $440,000. While this year's bidding didn't get quite that high, Koepp was nonetheless pleased with her take, which should be more than enough to fund her studies at A&M. It wasn't all glitz and glamour, though, on Saturday. Koepp's eyes welled up with tears when asked how she felt about saying goodbye to Alley Cat. 'It's sad he can't come back with us,' she said. With so much money changing hands, it's sometimes tough to remember there's a young woman, a high school student, losing a beloved companion, an animal she's devoted her life to over the past year. As for the immediate future, Koepp said, she's heading home to La Vernia, where another steer awaits. She's planning to have that one ready for the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo later this month.
CBS News
26-01-2025
- Sport
- CBS News
FWSSR Jumping Classic Show and Rodeo Grand Prix raises funds to combat animal abuse
FORT WORTH – The Jumping Classic Show and Rodeo Grand Prix debuted at the Will Rogers Coliseum on Sunday as part of the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo. Dozens of riders showed off their skills at the inaugural event, including 12-year-old Danica Davis. "I really like the adrenaline in jumping," said Davis, who didn't horse around and maintained her focus during the event. "You have to figure out where to go and to find the right distance and stuff like making sure that your stride is the right stride for the job." Riders like Davis are not only jumping high into their future goals; they are also helping animals in need. The event benefits the Saving Hope Foundation, which was founded by Gloria Moncrief and her mother to reduce animal abuse and neglect. "About 12 years ago, we found Hope the dog, a pug mix running around on our ranch in the middle of July," Moncrief said. "She had been stabbed over a dozen times, and her mouth was taped shut by electrical tape, and she was running for her life." The non-profit even had its own obstacle on the course. "The riders will go around the course and jump as high as they can and go as fast as they can, and the winner is the person that is the fastest, but also clears the course, which means not knocking over any poles on the jump or falling off," Moncrief said. District 7 Fort Worth Councilwoman Macy Hill said the city worked together to bring the new event to life. She added that five invitational classes bring a different jumping style to the arena. "This is a preview of the World Cup that the Sports Commission in the city of Fort Worth is bringing to Will Rogers in April of 2026," Hill said. "Traditionally, the rodeo is a Western discipline, and we're able to showcase English discipline, particularly showjumping."
