OC Fair’s cattle drive will rustle up a bit of history
It’s been seven years since their last appearance at the OC Fair, but on Saturday morning the livestock of this year’s Cattle Drive will be ready to prove that it’s never too late for a comeback.
“We wanted to bring back a special program to celebrate the 125th anniversary,” said Doug Lofstrom, Cattle Drive coordinator and former CEO of the OC Fair & Event Center.
Lofstrom will saddle up on horseback alongside approximately 70 riders for the parade who hail from rodeo companies throughout the state.
The troop will guide around 200 head of cattle on a 2 1/2 mile journey through the roads of Costa Mesa. Starting near Orange Coast College on Adams Avenue at Pinecreek Drive, the herd will move west on Adams, cross Harbor Boulevard, turn south on Mesa Verde Drive East and make its way back to Harbor, then head south to Fair Drive and back east to Gate 2 of the OC Fair.
To keep the cattle in line during the street expedition, the riders will have some special companions alongside them — a team of seven dogs.
Three dogs from Hayward, Calif., and four dogs from Modesto were recruited for the mission. The canines, all raised on ranches, are trained to herd any livestock who stray from the parade route.
The Cattle Drive debuted at the OC Fair in 1994, with 250 head of cattle and over 125 riders.
“It was a very abbreviated cattle drive, going from the high school to the fairgrounds,” Lofstrom said. “It was Costa Mesa High School, I believe. Some of the riders we have for this year’s Cattle Drive were actually involved in that one.”
The OC Fair also held the drive in 2007 and 2008. Lofstrom rode in both.
“They’re all special,” Lofstrom said. “One that was very unique, though, was the year we took the steer to Huntington Beach and went under the pier [prior to] the U.S. Open of Surfing.”
That 2007 when around 40 riders and nine dogs led the cattle along the sand on a Thursday and followed up the next morning with the Cattle Drive to the fair.
OCC played host to the stars of this year’s big bovine show, housing them on gated grounds by the softball field from Thursday to Saturday morning.
The livestock received much attention upon their arrival Thursday, with a cowboy crew presenting cattle herding demonstrations to the school’s students, faculty and staff that afternoon.
According to OCC Foundation’s Executive Director Doug Bennett, the cows have been easy to accommodate with some food and one other request:
“Just water,” Bennett said. “When we partnered with the OC Fair on this event and they said they needed a place to stage them, we were happy to help.”
The Cattle Drive will begin at 10:30 a.m. and will last approximately 45 minutes to one hour.