A family, a fair

It’s county fair time, which means it’s the best week of the year for 4-H participants, who finally have the chance to showcase the fruit of their work over the past year.

For sisters Veronica and Ally Lents, daughters of Kevin and Mallory Lents, county fair is a time for fun and spending time with friends and family.

As a member of Union County Horse and Riders club, Veronica, 12, is competing in barrel, pole and flag racing.

“For my horse, I work with her twice a week just training her to have a slower gallop,” she said. “I’m used to doing really fast speed events and these are really slower. I’ve been trying to work with her to be good about that.”

Veronica is also showing a red Angus heifer in her cow-calf pair as a member of Highland Highlights 4-H club.

“For my show cattle I’ve been trying to get their hair groomed and trying to get them nice and fat, because that’s what the judges like,” she said.

Ally, 11, is showing one of her uncle Jason’s ewes in the breeding class and wether in the market class of the sheep and goat show today. To prep their animals for show, their mornings during summer break have been less than typical compared to their other classmates as they wake at 6:30 a.m. daily to start their chores such as feeding and grooming.

“After that I start walking them at 7 o’clock. Sometimes I sleep in and they get walked later,” Ally said with a chuckle.

Ally said bathing her sheep is a struggle at times.

“The ewe does not like it. It goes crazy,” she said.

However, Ally and her sheep enjoy the mile and a half walks they take daily.

“Their ears flop and it just kind of seems like they’re happy,” she said.

As for Veronica, by the time she makes it outside, her father has her cow-calf pair anchored and ready for grooming. She washes them daily.

“Every other day I soap them, too, but sometimes I just rinse them with water and comb them. It helps their hair grow,” she said.

Veronica, who has been participating in 4-H for three years, said her first year was stressful because she didn’t know what she was doing, but that has changed.

“Now I am so used to it,” she said.

Now, she is not only grooming animals, but teaching a younger cousin, Tyler Travis, the son of Adam and Kelsey Travis.

Veronica said she needed help showing her cow-calf pair and chose 11-year-old Tyler to do so.

“I’ve been teaching him how to do it and he’s been doing so good,” she said. “Maybe someday he’ll be showing cattle, too, on his own.”

Veronica anticipates competing against Tyler in the future, but she said his brother, Lane, is the one to beat.

“He’s got a really good horse for showing,” she said.

As a member of a family heavily embedded in the livestock and horse culture, the Lents sisters said 4-H is highly competitive among the cousins, but they rivalry is a friendly one. The best part of the fair is seeing their friends.

“Most of them are all of our cousins,” said Ally.

For more information about the Union County Fair, visit unioncountyfairgrounds.com.