45 Exhibitors Compete in Routt County Fair Swine Show

Steamboat Springs —“Their favorite part of taking care of the swines is getting to ‘love on them.’”

That’s what 10-year-old Aubrey Schlatter said, and it’s a far cry from the industrial agriculture models dominating the valley’s export numbers. But while the sentiment is sweet, the logistics of the 112th Routt County Fair’s swine show were anything but simple.

The Steamboat Pilot reported Wednesday evening that packed grandstands quickly turned to standing room only. We’re not talking about a handful of locals wandering in; we’re talking about a barn reduced to whispers, with every eye locked on the pen as Brett Kaysen, the judge, assessed the work of 45 exhibitors.

Let’s look at the numbers. The showmanship event ran for over two hours. It wasn’t a quick parade. It was a rigorous evaluation of skill, patience, and animal health across three distinct age categories. Kaysen wasn’t just looking for a pig that looked good. He was looking for steady eye contact from the exhibitor and a calm, controlled presence. For the animals, the criteria were specific: skin condition, hair quality, and overall health.

Kimberly Gray kicked off the evening, displaying a swine that weighed in at exactly 295 pounds. That’s not a small animal. It’s a heavy, substantial piece of livestock that earned her grand champion for overall drive in the market swine division. Gray and her pig moved in tune, responding to commands with the precision of a well-oiled machine.

Then came the seniors. Twenty exhibitors. Three heats. Kaysen narrowed the field down to six finalists. The energy shifted. The initial drive was about procedure; the final drive was about pressure. Kiley Iacovetto took grand champion, with Alexis Jones as reserve.

The intermediate group followed, with 17 exhibitors eager to prove they’d graduated from the junior ranks. Josie Iacovetto won grand champion, Reata Paul took reserve.

And then there’s Schlatter. Third place overall in the junior heat. She brought Daisy, a gilt, and Spotty, a barrow. For the uninitiated, a gilt is a female swine that hasn’t had a litter yet. A barrow is male, raised exclusively for market. Schlatter exhibited Daisy in the showmanship ring but planned to show both later in the market event.

“It’s not just about the ribbons,” Schlatter told the Pilot. “Sometimes when they’re in the pen, they get zoomies and run really fast around in circles.”

That’s the reality of raising livestock in Routt County. It’s not a spectator sport in the traditional sense. It’s a commitment of time, space, and capital. Each of those 45 exhibitors invested hundreds, if not thousands, of hours into these animals. The 295-pound champion wasn’t just lucky; it was managed.

The event highlights a specific slice of the local economy that often gets overlooked in broader agricultural reports. This isn’t commodity corn or cattle on the hoof. This is specialized, hands-on husbandry. The demand for space in the barns is real. The standing room only crowd proves that locals still care about the traditional fairground experiences, even if the weather or other events pull them elsewhere.

The financial impact on the families is invisible in the headline, but it’s there. Feed costs, vet bills, transportation, entry fees. The time commitment is the real currency. And yet, the turnout speaks for itself. The grandstands filled. The barn got quiet. The judges worked.

Schlatter’s “zoomies” comment captures the unpredictability of the trade. You can’t automate a pig’s mood. You can’t force it to be calm. You have to earn it. That’s the value proposition of the Routt County swine show. It’s not about volume. It’s about skill. And on Wednesday night, the community showed up to watch that skill in action.