Cover Girls Compete in Cow Milking,
Calf Bottling, Saddling, and Cutting-Up Chicken,
Thursday Night

 

by: Bobby McDonald

 

 

2009-10 Cover Girl Ashley Wilburn demonstrates for everyone how to milk
a cow, before the contestants began their contest, Thursday night. "There's
just some things you never forget!" expressed Ashley.

 

One cover girl indicted that she thought she might open a "chicken joint," following Thursday night's Cover Girl competition in the Hopkins County Civic Center Arena. "Hey, I already know how to mutilate a chicken into a bunch of pieces, the rest of it would probably be a piece of cake!"

"I don't know if I'll ever eat chicken again!" bemoaned another one. "After cutting up one of these, I think I'm going to have to give it a little time!"

 

 

Cover Girl Contestant Kelley Rusmsey feeds her calf and coaxes it
to hurry, in Thursday night competition.

 

And, contestant Raven Potts "talks" to her calf, trying to convince "him" to drink faster!!!

 

 

 

 

Cover Girl contestants began Thursday night's events with bottle feeding a baby calf, seeing who could get their bottle empty the fastest. "That's definitely a contest that is the 'luck of the draw' for the contestant!" exclaimed one bystander. "It's just the one who gets the calf that is the hungriest!"

 

Cover Girl Contestant, Erica Iannone, "pulls the spiket" in Thursday
night's milking competition.

And, Contestant Arianna Leigh-Mannuel is literally "crying over spilled milk,"
as her cow kicked over the bucket, only seconds before the buzzer sounded!

 

 

 

 

Judge Penney Spearman weighs the precious "white gold" the contestants have garnered during
the milking contest!

 

 

A large crowd of spectators were on-hand to cheer the Cover Girl Contestants to victory.

 

 

From feeding the calves, Cover Girls moved on to demonstrate their milking skills, in a timed event that saw which contestant could accumulate the most milk, the old-fashioned way, by hand, in the allotted time. One contestant suffered a disappointing finish, just as the timer sounded, her cow stepped in the bucket and spilled most of her "hard-earned liquid gold!"

 

Contestant Micah Stalcup gets her saddle ready to place on the horse,
in the saddling portion of the contest.

 

And, contestant Katie Stewart was certainly happy to have her
saddling complete and finished with that portion of the contest.

 

But, contestants didn't have much time to "cry over spilled milk" because it was on to saddle and mount a horse. Contestants were challenged to properly put the saddle blanket and saddle on a horse, and mount the animal in the fastest time, with points being deducted for getting the saddle or blanket out of place on the animal.

 

 

Then, once the saddling was complete it was on to the revered "Cutting-Up the Chicken," where contestants were given a whole, dressed chicken and required to cut it into 11 "recognizable" pieces, as you would prepare it for frying. Some contestants found they had some different looking pieces and others didn't quite have as many pieces as they thought, when they got to the end of the "chopping!" Some came with "hatchets" while others simply used a butcher knife, but it was certainly a show, with only one girl getting a slight "knick" from her knife! "We all still had 10 fingers each!" commented one contestant, following the contest. "And, after that ordeal, it's a surprise!"

 

"Is that a fat, yaller chicken?"

 

Contestants had to pass the watchful eye of "The Chicken Inspector,"
Johnna West, who counted to make sure they came up with the magic
11 pieces, during Thursday night's contest.

 

 

 

 

Contestant Alex Darden didn't know there were so many pieces to a chicken. "He just
keeps getting into a bigger, gooey mess!" exclaimed Alex.

 

"I think this is the thigh!" proclaims contestant Tori Cotton.
"Or, then maybe, it's the wing. Who cares?"

 

 

And, most of us felt this guy had the right idea, to eat a corny dog and forget about eating
chicken, after we witnessed Thursday night's competition!

 

 

Thursday night's competition completed the timed-events for the Cover Girl Contestants, and they will spend Friday and Saturday at the Fall Festival serving as ambassadors, as they visit Quilt Shows, Petting Zoos, Commercial Exhibits, the World Champion Hopkins County Stew Contest, Music Shows, Hot Dog Eating Contest, Duck Race, and other attractions, collecting signatures and meeting the people of Hopkins County.

 

 

And, it was "off to the carnival" for some of the contestants, following Thursday night's
competition, while others chose to go home and rest for two full days on Friday and Saturday.

 

 

 

Then, on Saturday night at the Catfish and Country Concert, the contestants and a guest will be V.I.P. guests and the new Cover Girls 2010-11 will be named.

 

Congratulations Cover Girl Contestants
on a Great Contest!!!

_____