And We're Off in the Empire State

After a breakfast buffet at the hotel, we loaded up on the bus with our driver Auggie who definitely has a strong New York accent, but is a pleasant fella. Our first stop is just 30 minutes away but in the mean time, our Beef Director Nate Jaeger orchestrated a trivia game designed to educate our group about New York and agriculture in the state, specifically.

For example, did you know the number one agricultural industry in the state is DAIRY? Yep, New York is third in the nation in diary production behind California and Wisconsin. Pretty impressive! There is so much grass here - our farmers are amazed and it's amazingly green. Auggie thinks the grass is fescue, but seriously, he is much more likely to be able to tell you where a nice Italian restaurant is, than what kind of grass is growing.

Our first stop is in Canandaigua, at Tamberlane Farms. It is a Charolais cow calf farm and Dr. Jake Martin, a semi-retired dentist is the owner. Can't wait to meet him.

My favorite quote so far today:

As we approaching our second toll road in less than 10 minutes, Bill Lipscomb said "We ain't got nothing like this." To which I said, "That's probably what Auggie as thinking when he saw you this morning."

Gonna be a great day.