Greased pig, calf scramble fills peanut festival arena

Pamplona’s got bulls, Dothan’s got calves, pigs and kids.

National Peanut Festival attendees filled the festival arena Monday night to watch the festival’s annual Greased Pig and Heifer Scramble.

About 40 local students involved in school agricultural activities participated in the pig and calf scrambles. The students’ goal was to catch one of 10 animals event organizers released into a pen and drag it to a finish line.

The students who caught the animals are responsible for their upkeep and have the opportunity to enter their animal in farm shows next year.

Each particpant in the scramble had their own unique take on the best way to catch an animal.

Victoria Smith, of Columbia, was one of the winners of the greased pig scramble and offered this advice:

“Lots of dirt, plain old long sleeve shirt to get some of the grease off, you gotta grab them above their hock to get a good handle,” she said. 

The scramble began in the 1950s and was part of the festival until 1997 when the festival moved to a location that did not have adequate facilities for the event. When the National Peanut Festival Arena was completed in late 2004, organizers decided the time had come to revive the event.

Joe Carothers was instrumental in reviving the Greased Pig and Heifer Scramble. Carothers, who is serving as festival grand marshal this year, said the event is a crowd favorite and helps encourage area youth to consider careers in agriculture.

For Jeffrey Bassford of Two-Egg, Fla., the event was just good, not-so-clean fun.

“I like catching pigs and getting dirty,” he said.