Text Box: National Land & Range Judging Contest Oklahoma City, Oklahoma NEWS RELEASE Sponsored by the Oklahoma Association of Conservation Districts, Greater Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce, Oklahoma State University, Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Oklahoma Conservation Commission, Oklahoma Farmers Union, Oklahoma Farm Bureau, State Conservation Associations and Agriculture Groups across the nation.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  5/7/04

2004 Land Judging Contest Winners Honored

First Place Results Noted

Oklahoma City — Over 150 teams of teenage FFA and 4-H members competed in the 53rd annual National Land and Range Judging Contest, held May 4-6, according to contest cochairman Royce Casey, of Kiowa, Okla. Casey is president of the Oklahoma Association of Conservation Districts, the contest's principal sponsor. "We had teams from over 36 states competing this year," Casey said.

Casey notes the idea of a land judging contest was invented by three Oklahoma conservationists in 1942. They decided which soil qualities could be judged and developed score cards to test skills.  The idea caught on and Oklahoma City has been hosting the national contest since 1952.

The 4-H and FFA participating teams qualified for the national event by placing among the top five teams at contests held in their home states.  Casey said the teams match skills in judging the adaptability of land for various purposes including farming, range management, and homesite construction. An adult category is provided to allow coaches, team alternates and others interested in soil to compete.

"The contestants take turns examining the soil in pits and trenches dug especially for the contest," Casey said. He noted that the skills the teens test at the contest involve principles that can be valuable in career fields like environmental and agricultural management, natural resource conservation, home building and construction.

The actual contest site remains a secret until contest day, so no one has an unfair advantage. Contestants and coaches gather on contest morning to find out the official contest location.  They then travel to the site, with a police escort, in a caravan of over 100 cars spanning several miles. This year's Land and Range Judging Contest was held May 6 at the USDA Agricultural Research Service Experiment Station at Fort Reno, near El Reno, Okla.

 The event ended Friday night with an awards banquet in the Great Hall of the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum when the day's freshly-tabulated results were announced. National championship trophies were awarded to team and individual winners in each category of competition including land judging, range judging, and homesite evaluation. Each category included FFA, 4-H and adult divisions.

OACD President Royce Casey presented the Land Judging and Homesite Evaluation awards. Dr. Merwyn M. Kothman, national president of the Society for range Management joined Casey for presentation of the Range Judging awards.

In Land Judging, FFA competition, the Madison Central, Richmond, Ky., chapter won in the team category and the first place individual winner was Keenan Wiley from Richmond, Ky. In the 4-H competition the Barbour County, Philippi, W.V., chapter, was the winning team, and Bridgett Piotter from Denver, Ind., was the individual winner. The adult category winner was Bruce Hunnicutt.

In the Range Judging Contest, the Gans, Okla., chapter won the FFA team competition, and Cameron Kirkland from Cleburne, Texas, took the first place individual FFA award. The Kendall County, Texas, chapter, won the 4-H team category, and Grant Giles from Boerne, Texas, placed first in the individual category. Terry Baize from Hamilton, Texas, won in the adult category.

In Homesite Evaluation, the Columbia City, Ind., chapter won the FFA team competition, and Gia Drew from Columbia City, Ind., took the first place individual FFA award. The Barbour County, W.V., chapter won the 4-H team category, and Lyndsae Reckner from Palmetto, Fl., placed first in the individual category. Glen Jones from Denver, Ind., won the adult competition.

Each year, an individual is selected as official Contest Honoree in recognition of outstanding support or contribution to the event. This year Raymond Cockrum received the 2004 National Land and Range Judging Contest Honoree Award. Cockrum has worked behind the scenes at the contest for many years, helping to tabulate the scores on contest day before the results are rushed to the Land and Range Judging Contest awards banquet. Cockrum served on the state advisory staff of the Oklahoma Department of Career and Technology Education as central district supervisor and as state FFA Alumni Advisor until he retired in 1996.

Casey credits the OACD Auxiliary, conservation district employees association and Oklahoma conservation districts for helping make the contest a success.

"I would like to thank all the conservation districts, businesses and associations who sponsored this educational contest," Casey said.  "It takes a tremendous amount of time, effort and money to put on an annual event like this."

"A special thanks goes to the USDA Agricultural Research Service Experiment Station at Fort Reno for hosting the contest site." Casey said, "Thanks also to the Noble Foundation for sponsoring the printed program and the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum for hosting the awards banquet."

Casey said the Auxiliary of the National Association of Conservation Districts sponsored the Social Hour and Dance this year, hosted by the OACD Auxiliary. Members of the Oklahoma Association of Conservation Districts Employees assist with the very vital contest tabulating, which takes place in the few hours between the end of the contest and the beginning of the awards banquet.

In addition to the Oklahoma Association of Conservation Districts, contest cosponsors include the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce, Oklahoma State University, Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Oklahoma Conservation Commission, Oklahoma Department of Career and Technology Education, Oklahoma Farmers Union, Oklahoma Farm Bureau and numerous other businesses and organizations.

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