Suzanne Stewart
Staff Writer
Following in his dad’s footsteps, Lane Wilfong, 11, of Warm Springs, Virginia, has become quite the sheep showman. The son of Ben and Kayala Wilfong, Lane has been showing sheep for six or seven years.
This past November, Lane showed at the North American International Livestock Exposition in Louisville, Kentucky, where he won National Champion Bred and Owned Futurity, Eastern Regional Champion Futurity and National Reserve Champion Overall Futurity.
“On those awards, the Dorset Association has a competition for all the kids in the country that if they raise a sheep, they enter it and show it all summer long and get points at every show,” Ben explained. “At the end of the year, the top five placing points are tallied up and then that’s what determines the placing.”
Lane showed a sheep raised from his flock and another sheep that he purchased from a breeder in Ohio.
It was a busy summer for the young farmer, but he said he enjoyed learning how to show sheep and carry on the family tradition.
“My brother did it and so did Dad,” he said. “It’s fun to do in the summer.”
Lane’s father, Ben, is the National Vice President of the board, and the Wilfong family – which also includes Lane’s younger brother, Colton, and younger sister, Kinsley – show sheep, as well. Older brother Jaryd showed when he was younger but no longer joins the family on the road.
“We travel across the country,” Ben said. “There’s a national show for all juniors in the summer and it moves around the country. This year it was in East Lansing, Michigan, at Michigan State University. I think there were thirty-four hundred sheep, and more than seven hundred kids competed up there.
“[Lane] did really well there,” he continued. “He was fifth overall in his showmanship division and had several top five winners in actual showing.”
“He has to do it by himself,” Ben said. “I’m not allowed to help him in the show ring.”
The Wilfongs also have beef cattle, but they stick to showing sheep. Ben recalls winning his first trophy in 1987 when he was four.
“It’s just been in my blood,” he said. “I got away from it for a few years when the cattle business really took off. Once the kids got old enough, they showed interest in it, and it was just the perfect fit for the family.”
Along with showing on the national level, Lane is also a 4-H member and shows sheep locally. Although he has access to cattle and could move on to showing beef when he gets older, Lane said sheep are easier to work with and teach.
“I’ll probably stick to sheep,” he said.
