Brodmans 1st and 2nd in Showman of Showmen

By BRIAN HEMMINGER

City editor

For Molly Brodman, the third time was the charm for the Showman of Showmen competition Saturday at the Wyandot County Fair.

After finishing runner-up in 2021, Brodman, representing Carey Boys 4-H, won the 2022 Showman of Showmen competition.

Showman of Showman pits 11 Wyandot County Fair showmanship winners from different species, including dairy feeder, dairy steer, beef feeder, beef cattle, dairy cattle, goats, horses, rabbits, sheep, swine and poultry, against each other. The 11 contestants rotate through stations representing all the different species, which are judges individually by species-specific judges.

Brodman represented the goat department in the competition this year after representing dairy steer in 2021. She said she learned some valuable lessons from her previous competitions.

“I worked really hard on the chickens and the rabbits because I noticed that’s what got me last year and I didn’t know as much about them,” she said. “I did a lot of research and studied and it paid off.”

Brodman took a whopping 19 projects to the Wyandot County Fair this year, including  beef cattle, dairy steer, dairy feeder, goats, lambs and hogs. 

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She said her well-roundedness with animals played a major part in her victory.

“It feels kinda good,” she said.

Another Brodman, Riley Brodman, of Carey FFA, was named runner-up. Riley Brodman represented the dairy feeder department and this also was her third year in the Showman of Showmen competition.

Unlike Molly Brodman, Riley has only ever taken cattle to the fair.

“I went around from barn to barn asking friends to help me out, give me pointers and I think that was a big help,” Riley Brodman said on what helped her prepare for the competition.

Experience also played a big part in her success.

“I learned that being confident is definitely a big goal in (the competition),” she said. “The more you do it, the better experience you get and just having the experience helped me out.”

While she was confident in her performance, one animal was a bit more difficult for Riley Brodman than the others.

“I had to show the pig last, so I think it was getting a little tired by that point,” she said.

The event was run by area FFA advisers, primarily Anna Creswell, of Upper Sandusky FFA, who helped keep the audience entertained on the microphone when contestants weren’t taking a break from showing animals to introduce themselves to the crowd.

While the final results were being tabulated, one judge in particular shared how impressive this year’s field of contestants was.

“This was the best group of showmen I’ve ever seen at a fair,” the judge said.

Other participants in the Showman of Showmen competition this year included, Koltyn Weatherholtz, dairy steer; Lexi Watkins, of Carey FFA and Challengers 4-H, beef feeder; Cory Derr, of Carey FFA and Challengers 4-H, beef cattle; Malainy Boes, of Kirby Bells 4-H, dairy cattle; Julia Studer, of Stable Stompers 4-H, horses; Kyla Orians, rabbits; Avery Stump, of Mohawk FFA, sheep; Liam Shellhouse, of Kids got Spirit 4-H, swine; and Madison Byrum, of River Round-up 4-H, poultry.