Not your ordinary Valentine

February 16, 2011

I’ve been everywhere, man.
I’ve been everywhere, man.
Crossed the deserts bare, man.
I’ve breathed the mountain air, man.
Of travel I’ve had my share, man.
I’ve been everywhere.

Now, when I say our Black Ink team’s been everywhere, man, I mean it! Our small team of nine has covered almost as much ground as Johnny Cash, and according to the song, that’s a lot! We’re able to reach even more ranch country with a great set on interns who report for us from their college homes. We’re pleased to introduce our newest addition, Kristen Odom.

Kristen is a senior studying ag communications at Texas Tech University. She was raised around the feedlot business in the Panhandle town of Wellington,Texas. You might recognize her name from her regular byline in CALF News and other industry publications,where the young lady already has a fine start to a writing career in the beef business.  Please welcome our newest guest blogger, Kristen!

The excitement and anticipation of Valentine’s weekend is always similar to Christmas in my book. No, it isn’t because of one special guy – this year there were 206. Now, I’m sure you are thinking, “206, that’s a lot of chocolate and roses!” Let me explain.

Each year, on the second Saturday of February, I make my way down the 10 miles of ranch roads, through cattle guards, past Angus cattle grazing in the pastures to the Bradley 3 Ranch for their annual bull sale. For me, the sale is an opportunity to see outstanding bulls, catch up with old friends and visit about the latest happenings in the cattle industry. For actual producers, however, it is so much more.

Minnie Lou Bradley said that when she and her husband started the ranch in 1956, she knew it wouldn’t be the biggest ranch, but she wanted it to be the best.  As the 2009 CAB Seedstock Commitment to Excellence award winner she and her daughter, Mary Lou Bradley Henderson and husband, James, have set the bar high.

“At Bradley 3 Ranch we have always said our cattle must work for us, not us work for them.” With high expectations of their cattle, they work with the end in mind. “Our ultimate goal is to have the bulls range ready, sound footed and prepared to go to work for our customers.”

Cheramie Viator with the Silver Spur Ranch coordinates genetics for the operation in Wyoming, New Mexico and Colorado. Their goal is to produce low to moderate maintenance cattle that can be profitable in each segment of the beef industry.

She explained that the reason they continue to buy Bradley bulls is because of the longevity of the B3R program and the attention they pay to Silver Spur’s target.

“James has spent a lot of time with me going through our cow herd and asking questions about what our goals were,” Viator explained. “He helped to not only match from a phenotypic standpoint but also from a genotypic standpoint as well to hit the endpoint or the goals that we wanted.”

The Bradleys provide data in over 20 areas but, in an effort to simplify the information, they use GeneSTAR to rank the bulls. With this tool, they identify specifically for calving ease, growth, efficiency, and carcass value. And as Viator said, they’ll sit down with any rancher to help dig through the data to select for individual needs.

When I stand up and say “I do” someday, my rancher won’t have to mess with dinner reservations, candy and flowers on Valentine’s Day. All I will need is a Saturday at the Bradleys and a few B3R bulls in the trailer on the way home.

-Kristen

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