Add-on’s close Aug. 4, Grand Champions announced Aug. 1
The 2020 California Mid-State Fair Virtual Junior Livestock Auction closed on Saturday afternoon and has to this point already raised over $1 million for the exhibitors and is rising by the minute.
The auction, which was forced virtual due to the COVID-19 pandemic, opened on July 22 and ran four days before finishing this past weekend. While sales have closed, add-on’s are still being accepted through Aug. 4.
Mid-State Fair representative Tom Keffury revealed Tuesday afternoon that the show results will feature the Grand and Reserve Champions in each division, which will be announced on Saturday, Aug. 1. Judging for the show will be held from Tuesday through Friday. The official sale results will not be available until after the add-on’s close next week.
In early July, when the announcement was made that the auction would be moving online, Mid-State Fair Special Programs Coordinator Hailey Rose Switzer noted that sales could be up this year as that has been the trend with the online auctions. It appears she was correct as the fair announced Monday that the sales hit the $1 million mark, unofficially, despite having fewer animals in 2020.
The auction opened on July 18 when exhibitors had a four-day period to submit videos of them showing their animals. Those videos were then sent to the same judges that were going to judge the in-person show, and they are deciding the champions.
Following the judging, pictures and information about each animal were placed online, and the eBay-style bidding frenzy began. Unlike any previous year, when the auction is over in a blink, those placing bids in this year’s sale had hours and even days to think about their budgets, and the results appear favorable.
