OCA BEST Stockmanship

The Stockmanship Division provides a pathway for youth to participate in the BEST program without showing an animal. It expands BEST participants’ knowledge of cattle and provides youth with an opportunity to showcase their abilities and talents outside of the show ring.  

The Stockmanship division will be comprised of beef industry-focused events and competitions that are in conjunction with BEST shows and OCA events. This division of the BEST program is open to all Ohio youth regardless of if they show cattle during the BEST show season. If an existing BEST participant would like to sign up for the Stockmanship division, they will do so under their BEST user profile at best.ohiocattle.org for no additional cost outside of existing cattle nominations. If age-eligible individuals would like to participate in the Stockmanship division but don’t have any cattle enrolled in the 2023-2024 BEST program, they should create their username and profile at best.ohiocattle.org (if they don’t have an existing account either BEST or non-BEST) and elect to participate in the Stockmanship division. Non-cattle exhibiting BEST Stockmanship participants will need to have a current $75 family OCA membership and will pay a one-time Stockmanship participation fee of $60. Individuals may sign up for the Stockmanship program at any point throughout the season.  

2023-2024 Stockmanship Contests 

• Prepared Speaking - Saturday, December 30, 2023 @ 9:00 AM
• Cattlemen's Challenge Competition (OCA's version of a skill-a-thon) - Saturday, January 6, 2024 @ 9:00 AM
• Salesmanship - Saturday, January 27, 2024 @ 9:00 AM
• Fitting Contest - Friday, February 9, 2024 @ 6:00 PM
• Judging Contest - held at the Ohio Beef Expo, Columbus - Friday, March 15, 2024

Stockmanship contests will include their own registration for each event and top-placing awards will be given at each Stockmanship event. Please note that individual and team awards for qualifying events will be presented at the contest. Overall Stockmanship awards will be presented at the OCA BEST Banquet on May 4, 2024 . The top five individuals in the following divisions will be recognized: Beginner, Junior, Novice, Intermediate and Senior. Age breaks will follow that of the BEST program’s showmanship rules. To qualify for the end of year Stockmanship awards, the participant must have completed two contests, be a current OCA member by Jan. 1, 2024 or at the time of Stockmanship sign-up, and complete their Beef Quality Assurance certification. Stockmanship participants may complete their BQA at any session offered at a BEST sanctioned show, online at BQA.org or at YQCA.org. A cumulative points scale for the Stockmanship division will be utilized for overall finishes and end of year point tabulation.               

Thank you, 2023-2024 Sponsoring Partners!

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