2026 Grand Champion Steer White Castle, exhibited by Caimen Cody of Hood County, pictured with FWSSR President & General Manager Matt Carter and Chairman Phillip Williamson | Image by Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo/Facebook
A 13-year-old exhibitor’s grand champion steer fetched a record $550,000 at the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo’s Junior Sale of Champions on February 7, surpassing the previous high mark and highlighting the event’s support for youth agriculture.
White Castle, a 1,459-pound European crossbred steer shown by Caiman Cody of Tolar in Hood County, drew the winning bid from Azle-based Trico Electric. The commercial contractor, founded 40 years ago by Gary Menzies, outbid competitors including Hillwood, represented by Ross Perot Jr., and the Fort Worth insurance brokerage Higginbotham.
“Yesterday morning, I woke up and said I’m going to go ahead and do it,” Menzies said in an interview, according to Fort Worth Report.
His prior top spend at the auction was $58,000.The sale eclipsed the 2023 record of $440,000 paid by Higginbotham for that year’s grand champion. Last year’s top steer went for $375,000.
Caiman, left nearly speechless by the amount, told reporters: “Just unreal. I can’t even explain it.”
The Codys, who raise and show cattle for a living, plan to expand their 100-head operation with the funds. Caiman’s father, Bret, is a fourth-generation cattleman. The family draws steer names from their fondness for cheeses and burgers.
“You always have it in the back of your mind, but it really is hard to reach,” Caiman’s mother, Kasey, said of the windfall, per FWR. “We’re so blessed to have the opportunity to come here. We’re so overwhelmed and grateful for all the blessings we have.”
Caiman aims to pursue higher education and promote farming.
“I’d love to go to college one day, and I want to educate more kids about agriculture,” he told reporters.
The family marked the occasion with a stop at an ice cream shop.
“That’s how we celebrate,” Bret said, per FWR.
Menzies, a longtime member of the Fort Worth Stock Show Syndicate — the largest nonprofit group raising funds for the auction of its 300 champion animals — emphasized the youth focus.
“It’s a great cause,” he said. “You’ve got to support the kids. You’ve got to turn it back.”
The reserve grand champion steer, Cheeto, exhibited by 16-year-old Cash Goretska of Abilene, sold for a record-matching $300,000 to Hillwood.
The Goretskas also raise cattle professionally.
“It was a blur of numbers,” Cash told reporters. “I heard $200,000, and it started working up and up, and it sold. It was wild.”
His father, Tracy, added, per FWR: “There’s nothing compared to this auction. Unbelievable.”
Other top sales included the grand champion barrow at $123,000 to Fort Worth’s Standard Meat Co., a frequent buyer of premier pigs; the reserve barrow at $70,000 to Kimberlin Ranch; the grand champion lamb at $90,000 to the Ladies on the Lamb nonprofit and Andrews Distributing, who teamed up last year for the reserve lamb; the reserve lamb at $35,000 to Ladies on the Lamb; the grand champion goat at $50,000 to LKCM Headwater Investments and Luther King Capital Management; and the reserve goat at $30,000 to Big City Crushed Concrete.
The auction, unique for directing all proceeds to the young exhibitors, raised $10.2 million. The 45-year-old Syndicate started the day $4 million shy of $100 million in historical spending and crossed that threshold by the close.