Chatfield FFA team heading to nationals
By Heather Thorstensen
hthorstensen@agrinews.com
Date Modified: 05/13/2010 8:56 AM
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CHATFIELD, Minn.— For the first time in at least 11 years, a Chatfield team has earned a spot in a national FFA contest.
Jenna Blumer, 16 of Fountain, Lexie Eberley, 16 of Chatfield, and Heather and Breanna Grebin, both 16 of Rochester, took first place in horse evaluation April 26 at the Minnesota FFA State Convention.
They won by one point over the second place team, Morris FFA.
The career development event had 181 contestants, mostly in teams of four. Team members evaluated horses individually and the top three scores were counted toward the team's total.
Contestants ranked six classes: Four halter classes and two performance classes. They also presented oral reasons to explain their rankings on a class of two-year-old Quarter Horse fillies, one of the halter classes. The competition included Quarter Horses, Morgans and Arabians.
The Grebin sisters scored in the top five individually. Breanna placed second and Heather placed fourth.
Chatfield FFA qualified for the state contest by doing well at a regional competition in the fall.
The team said their experiences of judging horses for at least four years through 4-H and FFA helped them be successful. Breanna added that judging consistently well was key to the team's high rank at the state convention.
The team likes the competition because it teaches them what to look for in a quality horse and how to present their own horses in shows.
"It's nice to see the judge's point of view," said Blumer.
Their first-place finish earned them a chance to represent Minnesota during theNational FFA Convention, which will be Oct. 20-23 in Indianapolis.
Chatfield's FFA chapter was re-established 11 years ago. This is its first team to qualify for nationals since then, explained Stacy Fritz, the chapter's advisor.
"It's an honor to be the first team to go," Heather said.
They mostly practiced on their own, Fritz said, and they practiced on a regular basis.
"The students have to go above and beyond" to get to this level, she said.
They received plaques April 27 during the state convention.
Randy Paulson, Chatfield High School principal, congratulated the students April 28 when they returned to school.
"I think it's really fantastic," he said. "It's quite the honor."