4-83. Special Edition: A trip on The LineUp (w/ Josh Brockman)

This week's episode, is a share over from The LineUp podcast, produced by showpig.com, where Josh recently was a guest on the show discussing a lot of things about his life in and around the pig business, and his faith. We decided to air it here on The One Truth as well for a special edition.

Be sure and go Like & Follow the podcast, our Facebook page, and join The One Truth Podcast Community Group on Facebook!

Transcript

SPEAKER_03 0:18

Welcome back again to the One Truth Podcast here this week in 4-83. This is your host, Josh Brockman. Uh tuning in again, or I'm not tuning in, hopefully you're tuning in, but sitting down again uh for the One Truth Podcast. So this week we've got a little different uh episode for you. This is actually a uh uh carryover from the lineup podcast that's produced by showpig.com. I was uh I was uh able to sit down with those guys and and be a part of that podcast, and so um ask them if it was alright if we could go ahead and and blend that on over. So uh if you if you've heard this one on there, then uh then maybe you could hear it again. But this will be uh that that episode that I was able to set down on the lineup podcast, and uh so the big part of this will be a lot of the the story of the pig farm here and and and uh a lot of my story there, and and as we get into it, we uh obviously get in, as you'll see on the kind of different cover photo this week of uh what all overflows from uh from our faith and uh here at the farm. So we uh we enjoyed or I enjoyed getting to sit down and do that with those guys and uh and I'm happy to go ahead and and uh blend it over and kick it out here on the One Truth as well. So this week's episode uh titled uh A Trip from the Lineup. And uh that's what we'll uh what we'll be blending over here in just a second to today. So as always, thank you guys for tuning in and listening in here as we continue to season four. The plan is next week to be back uh with me and Reed and back into our study of Luke. But as uh again we take off to this special edition this week on 4-83. We appreciate you guys uh tuning in as always. And uh without any further ado, we'll go ahead and kick it over to the lineup.

SPEAKER_02 2:08

So, yeah, welcome to episode two, next contestant, saved by grace, cruel intentions, major league, all originated from Montgomery, Texas. We would like to welcome the man whose beard may be more famous than his boar pigs, Josh Brockman here to the lineup podcast, uh, hosted by showpig.com, and uh saw two supplement science. Obviously, a big partner on that, got great products, check those out. Um, we're really, really excited to have Josh on here, kind of move some things around, shove some things up. JD and I talked back and forth, and obviously Josh has uh been probably has more experience with podcasts than both Jay and JD and I do together. Um, kind of running his own there, and I would assume we'll talk about that a little bit. But uh excited to have Josh on here and uh man, really, really excited uh to get uh his perspective on uh some show pig industry stuff. Um and probably uh what I'm most excited for, JD, is this extended bidding at the bottom side of uh of kind of our sheet here and kind of been a highlight uh in some of these uh podcasts that we've done?

SPEAKER_00 3:16

Yeah, it's exciting. It's gonna be really good. Um, excited uh to talk with Josh about all facets of life, show pigs and beyond. I think it's gonna be really good for us. I'm gonna enjoy it personally. I think it'll be really good uh for our listeners as well. I guess before uh before we jump into that, just a quick note from the Wint Group, Land and Ag Division. Did you know that the Went Group Land and Ag Division offers the equipment exchange auctions, a consignment auction for tractors, trailers, farm equipment, and more. Learn more today at thewentgroup.com. So again, guys, uh welcome. And it's gonna be a good one. Um, like we talked a little bit about in the last one. Uh, this is a thing that is new. Obviously, this is just the second episode that we're gonna put out. So if you've got ideas for the podcast, stuff you love, stuff you hate, uh, please feel free to reach out to us if you've got questions, topic ideas, guest ideas. You can send all that to podcast at the wintgroup.com. So uh without any any further uh ado on that, um, Josh Brockman from Montgomery, Texas, we're excited to have you. Thanks for joining us. I know this time of year is as busy as any. Uh sitting down and just finding the time to give us an hour, however long this takes, uh, really means a lot to us. Uh, we appreciate you doing that. I know how hard it is to give up time this this time of year. So thank you for that. Um, if you want to get started, man, just just tell us a little bit about you, your family, your background, just uh a little brief intro to who is Josh Brockman.

SPEAKER_03 4:39

Yeah, definitely. No, thank uh thank you guys for having uh having me on. Uh certainly since you guys sent that text back, I don't even know how long ago it's been uh uh something to look forward to. But yeah, so Josh Brockman, uh, if you don't know me, uh I live here in Montgomery, Texas. Uh own and operate Brockman Farms alongside my wife, Carrie, and and our family here and and the whole crew here. Um been doing that uh since 2015. So uh just uh just uh I guess on 11 years here, just past 10 years here, this last time um is when we kind of started the pig farm. But I grew up uh grew up in North Texas or Northeast Texas, uh little town called Blue Ridge, Green Farm, my dad and them still farm there and uh and they row crop uh corn and and run wheat and run a few cattle and and um and that I guess would have been the the fourth generation if I'd have hung on and and uh did that. But uh anyways, got out of went out of there, went through college, uh judged there in college, and then out of college, taught AG in the top of the panhandle in Spearman, America, uh from 2010 to 2015, and uh really enjoyed my time there. And then in 2015 moved to Montgomery. Uh, did a few things along the way here and there, but uh started the pig farm then, went full time about a year later just doing that uh here at Bruckman Farms and um started with I don't know, seven to ten sows, something like that. I think that first summer, first fall, whatever uh it was, we had I had about 10 litters, maybe seven litters somewhere in there. And um yeah, that was uh yeah, that was the summer of uh summer of 15. And then I guess to fast forward to today, we've got 125, which is down from about 200 um over the times. The sow's usually run five to fifteen boars, and uh it is uh yeah, it's been a it's been a fast train, it's been a fun ride, um, and uh and still is as we kind of look now. I guess we'll have uh have just under 100 litters this time, uh, which is actually the fewest we've had in the last three or four or five years uh for the summertime. Um, but uh kind of was the goal to to shrink down 200 was was uh over the top, and so we're kind of down to the numbers. So, anyways, quick overview. That's kind of my my life in a very short nutshell there.

SPEAKER_00 7:03

So yeah, yeah, for sure. Appreciate appreciate you sharing that with us to get started. Uh I forgot about you you teaching ag starting out. That's kind of what I did too. Do you miss it ever?

SPEAKER_03 7:16

Uh I did for a little while. I don't anymore. Um I'll tell you, I don't know how long this is supposed to take, but uh interesting, interesting story. Um, so when I moved down here, so I was at Spearman for five, four, whatever I said, five years, 2010 to 2015. Um in those five years, like we had um when I when I started there, we had um they'd showed like five barrels, I think, at majors the spring before. And so that that was that was obviously a big push for me out of college that I wanted to do that. But but I I really enjoyed the team stuff too. Like we did parliamentary and and uh public speakers and obviously did livestock judging and and some of that. And anyways, in those five years, we had a lot of uh uh I took lots of parliamentary teams to the state contest, never could get that one done. Um, but uh we won the state livestock contest in 2014 uh with a team of all girls. I'd love to say it was all because of me, but they were really smart and made me look a lot smarter than I was. Um and then uh public speaking and that. So like right out of it, I um I I I uh I did miss it. I enjoyed the I got to still do the pig part, but like the speaking part and the teams and that, I I really enjoyed that. And and it was a change. When I the the funny part of the story is so uh I felt like we had uh had a good run there. And when I moved down here, I interviewed at uh, I don't know, four or five, six different schools. And I walked out of most of them. It was just different um from that part of the state to this part of the state. And I kind of walked out of most of those interviews thinking that I probably wouldn't take the job if it was offered to me. Um, but I never had to worry about that because none of them were offered to me. So um came down here and and anyways, so didn't get a teaching job and uh worked for a few different guys there and worked for biozyme there for about a year, and then and then that that uh that ended up and and went full time at the farm. So yeah, a long way of answering. I did miss it for a while. I don't think about it a lot anymore, actually.

SPEAKER_00 9:13

So Josh, you talked uh a little bit there about you know downsizing from you know 200, um, maybe in the past having about a hundred litters this time. Obviously, some of that's maybe due to just just workload and management, but uh do you see there there being an industry need in any way to kind of try to tighten that up? Is it pushed by any of that? Are you just thinking uh mostly just for you guys at the farm, it makes life better and easier?

SPEAKER_03 9:40

Right. Now, you know, I I would never presume to answer for anybody else or or this, that, and the other. I I think it's kind of like uh so at the beginning, you know, we had like I said, we we started with that first summer having seven to ten south and letters, and then it just it gradually grew and and and I've always been of the the mindset that I don't want to ever I'm trying to think of the right way to word this, but I never want to to have pigs that are born, that are there, that are in the nursery in the chipboard coming through, that I I don't necessarily have a home for. And and so what I mean by that is as I've always tried to be on the bottom side of of my supply and demand. So that like the farm grew and then it just exploded when the boars kind of started coming along, and um, and when um uh things just kind of kept growing and and it just I don't know, when I look up and I look around and it's like, oh, we've got 200 souths, and we're this and it was fine and it worked well. Um, and so a lot of it for us is is just we were we were way overflowed on facility space, we were way overflowed on on manpower and time. And so yeah, I would say that the the first reason of the downsize was just manageability from our end. But I think also like from an industry standpoint, uh, it's changed, it's changing. You know, when we were first first rolling, like man, I I could not make enough $750 to thousand dollar pigs uh or $1,500 pigs, whatever. But I also that was my that was my high end too. Like I man, if you'd have told me I was gonna sell a baby pig for you know above $15,000, I would have like laughed at you. So so that was uh you know, that that was kind of our deal. And then, you know, this the industry shifting from that, it seems like to me, at least from our standpoint, like those high-end ones are very easy to sell. And then the honestly, the the the 300 to 750 sometimes are are easier to sell, but that that middle tier keeps becoming um smaller. Uh that that middle range is is shrinking for whatever reason. I don't and maybe nobody else sees this, maybe it's just us. But so with that, we we've tried to tighten down and and and really focus on having shrinking shrinking things down to having the the the exact sales that we need uh to make those that we feel like have a chance to be very, very elite and high-end. And um, yeah, just the the market of the middle's been been interesting to me of of uh of what they can what they can do. People are looking for the deal that they can get for under a thousand bucks, or they're looking for the one that I don't care what he costs, you know, if he's four or five thousand bucks. And then then there's the middle, which is interesting too, because how often are the ones that win or that that go on and feed are those that are kind of in that middle, middle market. So I don't know. Uh with us, it's it's the the main primary has been just manageability. Um and we've kind of picked up the online store and and diversified a little bit um on our time from that standpoint versus just being single revenue of raising show pigs only. Um so it's kind of push and shove. And I mean, anybody that has sales that's listening to this knows it's a pile of work and a bunch of work, and it's all the time and it's constant. And so uh yeah, the the other thing I would add to that is is um running 125 in the same space that I ran 200 is a lot more fun. Things break a lot less and and and some of that. So yeah, really manageability, but yeah, I would say the industry's driving it a little bit too.

SPEAKER_00 13:24

Yeah, I see both those things at my place. I mean, the the middle ground, like you say, is because oftentimes we're the winners that are actually found, but I agree. I think they're the toughest ones to move right now. I mean, the people that are bought in fully are gonna try to buy that top 10%. And then there's, you know, the people that still need just a pig that they can feed that they can trust will get there and be sound and full grown and those things. But those ones in the middle, they're I agree. It's it's it's getting a little different, a little tougher to move that kind sometimes. And that's probably the kind kind you ought to feed.

SPEAKER_03 13:56

Yeah, exactly. No, and I I mean I've you know, it's not a hypothetical on here. This last time it was interesting. So we have our main full farm sale, just one uh at this time of the year that's in uh the third week of September, just right before Dallas and Tulsa and all that. But um this last time I had this this larger group of of uh pigs kind of left that I didn't really have have places to go with and people weren't really coming by to um to get them bought and to do that. And so I um anyways, I decided we'd picture them, uh as many of them as we could, and we would just do a buy now uh type scenario there when um when we had that farm sale, and uh we always have some online portions to it uh as well. And so, anyways, uh I was debating during that week of just uh hauling some of those off. Um, but and I did haul some of them off. We got kind of down to the ones that I thought would work. And anyways, of the ones that would work, I um I uh of the ones that uh that actually I th you know thought would work, we sorted off and we put them on uh on uh SC actually just as buy now deals and and one of those um a lot of those ended up working, but anyways, one of them didn't even have him pictured this, that, and the other. He brought 700 bucks, I think, in that reverse auction and ended up being the Grand Bear at LSU this last time. And so he would you know kind of fall in that mid-tier market that really nobody kind of uh just kept passing over and and nowhere to go with, and and uh then ended up working out and went on one of the toughest pictures in the south. So it was kind of fun. But uh it's interesting.

SPEAKER_00 15:33

I love that and that those stories continue to happen. Um, just for a little bit, all the people uh around that say they can't afford to buy these, they can't afford to play with the big boys, they can't afford to do this anymore. You know, when people want to use that as their their reason to maybe not chase it anymore and say, well, the one that won LSU cost 700 bucks. Just get on the road and go find you one, you know. It's it it can be done. Um obviously lots of them bring lots of money and can win and are really, really elite, but um, it can still be done.

SPEAKER_03 16:02

No, it's it's funny, like uh of that set of pigs, so that there was that pig and then his brother that I think brought a thousand or something, anyways, right in there that that made the sale at San Antonio. And then uh even there was another pig that um uh another guy raised and sold there uh at our sale that brought 300 bucks that won his class at San Antonio. Like, I mean, it it's there, it's happening. You just kind of gotta lock in and and just really like it's always been.

SPEAKER_00 16:26

But yeah, for sure. So uh obviously at your deal, uh the boards have been been such a big thing, and it's interesting uh really just what boards from your place have been able to do for the industry and and shape where we're at. Um obviously you sell some of those, you keep some of those. Um, what does that process, that sorting process look like maybe for you guys of how you keep them, when you sell them, how you sell them? Um, you know, just just uh explain that uh a little bit. I think it's it's interesting the way that you guys do that.

SPEAKER_03 16:58

Yeah, so uh, you know, as far as the the board thing, you know, when when we started uh there at the beginning, I guess one of the first board we had here was was step one and motivation that uh we'd bought. Lackey and I bought step one together and then uh motivation and and purpose driven was another one actually that we'd bought from Swin Hawkins and partnered on with them. And and um, anyways, out of that, the first board that we that I guess that we kept was building speed. And I always have always made it a point to uh I only keep bores um that that I think we need. Like they don't just hang around because um any other reason other than that we want to reach house to them, or you know, it's it's evolved and and grown from that into semen selling business and that. But there's always been the uh my my first instinct always at the beginning was uh if I'm keeping them uh when we kind of started holding on to boards, like building speed and some of those first ones, if I was keeping them, I was keeping them under the intention that if nobody used them, nobody bought semen on them, nobody whatever, that then I'd you know I wanted to make it make sense. And the few boards we bought, I bought in the same same light. Like if if I've got them, it's for me to use, for us to use here. And if nobody else uses them, that that's not a factor in our us getting them bought, and that's still not a factor when we buy boards. If we buy them, it's it's to to use here. But and the same with the ones that we kept, uh that we've always kept, like it's it's for us to use here or to fulfill our needs, you know. Like I say, as the boar stud grew, um, there became a need for more semen to go out. So then we would hold on to them, obviously, to keep and the overflow to fulfill our customer needs from a from a semen selling standpoint. But that's always been the fact. Um, I've never just kept one to to keep one. There was always a piece or a sal. And and I would say the the more that's grown, the driving factor behind keeping uh boars has been sales and sal families. And I should probably say guilt and cell families because uh fun fact of I should have written this statistic down, but most of the boars, I would say most, like 85% or more, people probably don't realize this, but uh that we've kept over the last 11 years have been out of guilt litters. Um I I would actually say it's maybe 90% or more have been out of guilt litters. Um, you know, Krull's mom made quite a few, um, next mom made quite a few. Um, but a lot of the times those bores have come out of those South First Litters. And I think that kind of speaks to uh the the progression we try to make on the guilt side. And I know we're talking about boars still, but we'll talk about that too. Um and so we've always tried to hold on to them not only on phenotypic value alone, and not only on phenotypic value at 50 pounds, uh, but on genetic value of what sows are behind them, what what grandmothers are behind them. And um, you know, our our business model's been neat and been really hands-on from the very beginning as far as helping families and and that and the other. So I've I've had the opportunity to watch most of our pigs grow on feed, and a lot of those instances have have control on the feed bucket. So um it's interesting when you when you go to the show, or even the sale anymore, but when you when you go to the show, you see a pig come out and you see how incredible they look, and everything's fine-tuned, maxed out, and and piece by piece. And and then you go back and you say, Well, what is that pig? What's his dad? What's his mom? Well, you know, what does he look like? And that that's great. And you and you have a vision in your mind of this boar and this sal made this pig that I just saw come out in the ring. Um, but as I can say, but about you guys and myself and many others, um we don't just put them out on a self-feeder and and let them grow anymore. We we do everything we can, dot every eye and cross every T from a feed bucket standpoint and a managing standpoint to make them the best that we can. It's our job as feeders, right? So where you really learn what those pigs look like is through the feeding period. And so for me, a lot of those decisions, it's not only that final product that I see in the ring, but like where could this one have gone south? And where's his limits on muscle or on width or on hind leg or on body shape and flesh and cover, and what did it take to get him to look or her to look like they do when they hit the show ring? And so doing that, I I learned a lot through the years and still am about what different Sal's capabilities are and what different boars' capabilities are. And so all of that really factors uh in my mind when I'm looking at a baby boar or a baby male pig, if I'm deciding to cut him or castrate him or keep him intact, is is where's the limits? What do I think his genetic possibilities is, and where do I know uh you know things can go east and west or go south that I'm gonna have to watch. And and sometimes you know, you can take two that are side by side, phenotypically the same, and those are the decisions that say, I'm gonna cut this one because I know this track's gonna be too far. Far off to the right too often, or so on and so forth. So uh that that goes into a lot. And then, you know, just to get uh get to the rest of your question, um, you know, we keep boars here, uh, we grow them here. We sell very few of them, little, though we do sell some. Uh, you know, we sold nightmares last time, uh about a year ago, here two weeks from now, uh, for 180,000 and have sold, sold others to the uh throughout the years at different live sales and such are online um that uh that are intact. Danners have best behavior. They bought in our online sale this last um this last time, last December. But as a general rule, boards that we keep, we hold on to when they're little, uh grow them up, see what they look like big. Again, you kind of get to see that same positives and negatives of watching them grow and what they can and can't do. And I think with that, we can best use them, best tell other people how to use them. And then um, you know, we usually carry them through that first season. And what we've done for the last five or so years is we'll we'll use them, we'll sell semen on them there for their first main breeding season. And then at the spring, uh we'll offer uh a lot of them, if not all of them, up for sale. Um, and um, you know, premium blend is is it's not not any news that that that they've uh they've come since 2020 was the first time they came down in May. And since then, they've came every spring. Um, since then, and and and look at the mature boars and and even look at little ones while they're here. If there are some out like the January or the winter groups, and and uh look at that. Umriers have have come and bought some. You know, Southern Gold's been been really good here lately of uh of looking at that in the spring. So it's kind of become a uh ideal if people know when we get to the end of that spring breeding season, uh mature boars are probably gonna become available. And um it's it's worked really, really well for us to kind of do that. And and it also puts pressure back on me to know that um that uh I've got to look to the next set and and see what's there. And and really that that whole model, I would like to say that like I was smart and thought this would work. But the um the first time that that that happened was um in 2020. Uh I I remember like it was yesterday, Jacob Blair texts me and and and really, I mean, I knew who they were. Um, but we we hadn't ever done business much really, and and just kind of were were familiar with one another, but not uh not much more than that. And he texted me right after Burgers Bear had one saying in tone that was a cruel intentions, and he asked if I would if I would sell cruel. And um I had a text back and I said, No, like uh, you know, that that's kind of the the first really big hit. And when things started to turn here, I said, I just uh he's gonna die here. I don't want to sell him. I said, but I've got a son that I think y'all would be interested in. And so um I said, let's get through this, you know, that was in February. I said let's get through this breeding season. And then um, you know, that you know, when we get we get done breeding cells and all that, if y'all like to come check them out, um, you know, I think there's there's something down here that y'all would y'all be interested in. So uh Carrie was really nervous about that. And um I said, Look, uh at this point we were in the heat of breeding cells, and um I said, when we get through, if we breed all the sows that are planned on breeding into this boar, um i if he's gonna work, we're gonna have a son. And so uh us pricing him and taking the risk of selling him and not having that said if he's if he's gonna work, then he's gonna make another one. And so they came down on their kind of southern trip there in May and and uh come out and and we'd already kind of talked about uh that boar. And um anyways, kind of showed the boars, uh kick some things back and forth, and and uh they wanted to, they were interested a few of them, priced them, come to an agreement, and and out of that, that first trip um was uh Next Intention, which was the boar that I told them about, and then Believe in Me, uh, which was an additional one. And if you ask those guys, it's kind of fun to hear them talk about that trip when those two boars came out back to back. But and then they they bought a young boar, young cruel son that time named uh Enough Said. But anyways, and then uh fast forward through the summer, and and pigs are being born, and and these pigs look pretty good. And and there's a uh a young boar uh or a young litter there that's born, and and I go through the fairing house and and Carrie says, This one's pretty special. And uh go in there and I look and I never I never go in the fairing houses. I never I never literally pay any attention to pigs on the sow. But um anyways, I walk in there, I see this pig, and he stands up and I'm like, man, yeah. Anyways, I looked at her, I said, Well, there he is, if he doesn't die. And so I didn't go back in there, didn't pay much attention to him after that, and got to the nursery and through the chipboard, and long story short, that ended up being my intention. And then uh things have gone a long way from there. But anyways, long version of answering your question, but uh that's kind of how we've landed to the to the current business model, anyways. That's kind of how it started.

SPEAKER_00 27:05

Yeah, I uh I love it, honestly. I think it's cool. I think that's why your boards, part of the reason your boards generate so good for people is because you take a lot of the the upfront risk on those and you grow them out and you use them. And when the when the public a lot of times are getting their hands on them and starting to use them, I mean, they know they're gonna work. Um you know, talking about um just just your rise and and some of those things, one thing we've we've tried to ask everyone about that we're or when we've been playing this, one thing we want to ask everyone about is maybe some of the mentors or influences kind of in their life and their breeding journey that maybe uh helped them get started, guys you looked up to, maybe some of the heroes uh in the industry uh in your eyes, somebody that maybe helped you, if if you'd like to speak on that maybe just a little bit.

SPEAKER_03 27:53

Yeah, no, I'll always uh I'll always say, you know, when I was uh in college at that Blynn and Brenham uh there, uh a judge there and all that, but um, I started working for Daniel Sly there when I was uh, I guess maybe towards the end of my freshman year, and and I ended up working for him all all through all through college. So for the next basically for three and a half years, um, I sat there and and um worked for him. And it was a lot, it was a lot of fun for one, but it it I learned a lot. And and so I I I would throw him out there and I'll I'll bring him in the same same light as Mike Clay because Dan did a lot of uh a lot of things like Mike did and and a lot of his sows came from Mike and uh as as he was kind of getting getting off the ground and kind of revamping and rolling there. And and uh I'll remember I remember one time we were just uh I don't know, we were maybe making breeding decisions for the next season or or something like that. And and we were just sitting there talking about it, and he said, I just I don't know why it's that hard for everybody. He said, It's not that difficult. He said, just do what the people are winning do. Like just if it's people that are winning, you're using these, just do that and like try that. All else fails, just just do that. And and and so some people might take that and say, Well, there's a lot of people that win that do it a lot of different ways. And that's not let me give you a little context, that's not really what our conversation in that when he said that was, but basically Mike was uh I mean Mike was on top of the world there for a while, and um basically we would just kind of do what he was doing, all the salves were pretty much from him, and we would use the boards that were pretty much at his house, and he had, you know, Space Monkey was right in there rolling and that. And so he uh he did a lot of things pretty much like Mike did, and and not to say that every decision he made or we made was was exactly that. You can kind of make your own out of whatever, but I think too often in this deal everybody tries to outsmart the wheel, and I'll use my my own self like we have a handful of purebred sows, and I pretty much just call somebody that I think they respect and successful and say, like, hey, what are y'all what are y'all using? That's what's been working and and I just kind of know I try to not reinvent the wheel, but I'll never forget that. And and um the other thing that I thought was interesting that that Dan did was um we'd go around and look at pigs at different places or at Mike's or and um and you'd come across a really good litter, and there'd be uh you know, uh the upper end boys and girls and whatever. And and Daniel would always um he'd always go find the the little knot, two or three of them mates. And he'd say, Well, you know, what do you want for these two two skinny gilts? You know, they were three, four, five hundred bucks, whatever, and he would buy them out of those good litters. And I can remember we went to uh a Kerville pig sale once, and uh Mike had brought like eight little skinny ready gilts down there, and and they were and we bought every one of them for like 400 bucks a piece and and watched what those sales went on to do. But anyways, when we started here in 2015, I mean I didn't have any, I was broke, didn't have any money. So when I would um I would do the same when I come across litters that uh that I thought were incredibly good, I would just try to buy the the skinny mate sisters. And um, I mean, you know, we we built uh we built this place on five to seven hundred and fifty dollar guilt, to be real honest. You know, sometimes they'd work, sometimes they wouldn't, but but the other thing I learned in that from Dan and Mike both was uh, and and this has been a lot of our breeding philosophy here. I face I place very little emphasis, I guess I wouldn't say value, but emphasis on phenotype of guilts as far as what the uh you know, I I don't look at a guilt and say, okay, she's big chested, round bodied, a little flat behind, um, needs to be a little neater neck. Let me find the board that'll do all that. She needs a little more back shape. Let me let me let me try to figure that out. Um what what I do and what what I watch those guys do was they would keep all of the the mate sisters to boars, bears that one. Uh again, the same kind of deal. The high the really good litters. And in that uh in that retention of those guilts, they would breed the the most uh prolific one, the best looking one, and the worst looking one. Um all pretty much the same. And then you could kind of learn your you know what they generate. What I've found in in my 11 years of of kind of making that an emphasis was um sometimes the best looking one generates the best, and she's you know, sometimes the worst looking one generates the best, and sometimes the one in the middle. But what uh what I kind of learned is is is if I would take the whole of the the mate brothers of what they looked like as a whole, not individually, but as a whole, and kind of made it an average, more or less, and then I would breed all of those sisters based on what their brothers look like. And they would generate usually like what the mate brothers look like. And so um with that, we've we've had a lot over the years, a lot of very, for lack of a better word, sorry looking sows that lay down and generate pigs that look nothing like them, but look exactly like I expected them to look based on what their mate brothers look like. And so uh I would attribute to both those guys, uh Mike Clay and Dan Sly, that uh that um that that taught me a lot. You know, Mike and in the day he had those monkey breast sales, and and they weren't the most most uh most beautiful looking things ever. Um and Mike kept them all and saw something that that nobody else did apparently, and like those cells generated so incredibly good and and built somewhat of an empire there for a minute. And uh I've always just kind of taken that uh that same philosophy. And uh yeah, so that that would probably be where I would draw that. I I could go on down the list, Joe Bonnie Lacomp, there's Golby Christie, the the guys that I've learned a lot from over the years uh on feeding and that. Um yeah, I mean, I I I could I could go aways on that, but those would kind of be the main ones. That's awesome.

SPEAKER_02 34:03

With uh all your all your operations, and you know, you talked about diversifying and and things like that. Um, how do you juggle everything that you've got going on? You know, you're you're selling pigs online, you're filling orders, uh, you've got obviously boards there at the house. Um, and then you know, on top of that, what is everybody's responsibilities? Uh, you know, who who takes care of the projects at the house, um, when you're gone, uh, when Carrie's gone, like who how how do you guys juggle all that as a team, as a village, as a as a crew, uh, just to kind of pull back the page on that a little bit?

SPEAKER_03 34:39

First, first thing, I I I couldn't do any of it without Carrie. Um she uh she makes the makes the world go around for me in lots of uh lots of different ways around here as as far as as keeping things uh managed. I mean everybody everybody would would personally know that like she she makes the fairing house happen uh better than anybody that I could I could give credit to. But but really beyond that, she um she she keeps everything moving forward and and kind of keeps me at the right pace uh as far as managing that. There's never a time, and and I know I drive her crazy half the time, but if um she'll be in the middle of something in her office and and I'll say, I need you to come, you know, look at uh at this pig and see if I'm seeing things, you know, if you agree or if uh we should do this or that. And and we're probably unique in the in the fact of that, like very seldom do um do decisions happen around here pigwise, um, as far as baby pigs, especially on um, you know, if a pig's going to this sale or that, I'll I'll kind of have an idea and sort through and and get my bearings about me, um, uh and then say, hey, come kind of see if you're seeing the same things that I'm seeing. And and sometimes she is, sometimes she's not. And and and so that that part's fun. Uh the online store and that that's come up, um, that was really her hobby uh that she wanted to kind of do as a hobby, just something like fun to be off to the side. And um in in a year and a half, it's exploded into this whole other sector of of Brockman Farms, or well, I guess what we call now the Brockman Collective. But um, and so she manages all of that. Uh, I don't do any of it uh on the on the on the storefront side of and and some of the marketing stuff. Um you know, uh we've got three full-time employees here. Uh Rachel kind of manages the the fairing houses and the nursery and just general herd health. Um not not many people know Rachel or see Rachel. She kind of just stays to the farm. Um she she likes show pigs, but but actually she she really just likes pigs in general. Uh she when we hired her, she's from right just south of here, but when we hired her, she was working on a commercial farm in uh South Carolina, maybe. And uh she just really likes pigs and is very good at her job. So she handles that. She does all the online store orders day in and day out. And then we've got Trevor and Mason that are both full-time. That uh Trevor just got hired there, just graduated, and uh he kind of handles the they both kind of handle the the getting pigs clipped out of the nursery, sale prep and ready and wet broke and that kind of deal. Um, and then uh yeah, I just kind of I kind of sit and point and and go and and do fill in where I'm needed. Sometimes I take orders, sometimes I do this. But a lot of the times I'm sitting in this chair that I'm sitting in right now um and working on on breeding decisions or or where we're at from a marketing standpoint. I I've taken a lot of those duties somehow. Um uh Carrie used to do all of our marketing. We've very seldom hired anybody out to do any of our marketing stuff. We've always we've always kind of stood by the fact of like if we can do it here, then uh then we're not gonna hire somebody else to do it. And uh sometimes that's been awesome because we can work on our own timeline. And then sometimes it uh it overwhelms us when we've got to kind of farm some stuff out. But um, yeah, so the a long version of or short version to say is like everybody somewhat does everything, like any farm. And um, but yeah, if if uh I always tell Kiri if she's ever if she ever quits, then I'm I'm quitting too, because I'm not I'm not the from the fair and house, everybody would laugh and think it was just that, but from all of it, um yeah, it's not just uh I'm not doing it, not doing it the other way.

SPEAKER_02 38:32

So uh one more question on that sec section too, and then we'll probably run into a little bit of a break. Uh so what are you working on now? What's new? What's coming? You guys always kind of got something pushed into the forefront. Uh, you know, obviously we talked about your different entities and stuff like that. And the podcast is relatively new, I would say. Uh and I mean anything coming after that or gonna kick anything out or do something a little different or off the wall just from that regard.

SPEAKER_03 39:01

Yeah, so you know, we just um like I said, the uh the Brogwan online store that that we sell um supplements on is a it's 18 months old, I guess, maybe two years. I'm trying to think of when we exactly started. But um so so that's uh kind of trying to hone that in. It's really exploded, like I said, into a uh from what started out as a hobby into a whole nother sector of the business. So so revamping storage space and allocating time to that um has been uh been kind of a priority. Um yeah, like you kind of talked about, we've we've just started the showpick central podcast that that drops every other week. And and honestly, from from uh that that's just a uh uh just another way that we wanted to kind of get out some information. There's there's um you know what it may grow into uh from uh from that standpoint still kind of to be determined. Right now we're really just kind of having fun with it and and putting some things out. Uh, we've started a monthly newsletter, and so we're we're trying to just continue to to grow the social media side of stuff uh and um and go from there. I don't really know exactly what uh what the Lord has in plan and what it'll uh eventually look like. It's still kind of just unfolding, but we've we've downsized the farm for lots of reasons that we've talked about on here, but kind of it keeps shifting more and racing in that way. So uh nothing necessarily that's not already out and about, that's uh in the works. I mean, we do the we do the showpic camps too. Um you know, we just got through with one here a couple of weeks ago, and we'll have another one in November. Uh that uh eventually one day we'll we'll probably vamp up and maybe do some traveling stuff across the country. We've always had people ask us to do that, and so um down the roadways, that that will probably grow into uh a little bigger piece than than what it is currently. Uh, we've just kind of been been doing that twice a year and letting it go. So uh yeah, other than that though, still just making show picks, raising show picks, selling them and uh boars, and we'll always have a few boars here. And I don't know how you can have a hundred sales and not have a boar two around, but um, yeah, that's kind of where we're at.

SPEAKER_02 41:10

Yeah, no, it's uh pretty cool just how uh you know you always talk about as a person or as a an entity you want to diversify, and you guys have done just such a job of that, in my opinion. Uh I think it's been kind of cool to watch, and and uh you never know what's gonna come out next. So, yeah, we'll take uh just a brief intermission. Um, we want to remind our listeners to sure to check out the power female sale uh coming up on August 9th and September 16th this year on showpick.com. Two elite female sales that are backed by proven sellers. Once again, thank you uh for Sawtooth Supplement Science. We appreciate your support of the lineup.

SPEAKER_01 41:54

Sawtooth Supplement Science is proud to be a presenting sponsor of the Lineup Podcast. At Sawtooth, our goal is simple: take the guesswork out of feeding with science-backed products designed to deliver results. Whether you have questions about a product or need help building a feeding program, our team is here to help. Visit SawtoothSupplements.com, send us a message, or reach out by text. Sawtooth Supplement Science. Science in every scoop.

SPEAKER_00 42:20

So as we get into a little bit of the next section here, uh, this is something honestly I've put a lot of a lot of thought into it as we uh you know just talked about uh approaching a conversation with Josh here. And I'm excited to uh just go over the topic of faith a little bit. And obviously, uh if you're familiar with the Brockman brand, if you know Josh and Carrie, um they're really good at just spreading their message about their faith with other people. And uh as a as a Christian guy, as someone that's trying to uh live that life a little better every day, um, what they've done and the way that they've um just put out their faith and been so open about it is something that um you know I really look up to and inspired by, honestly. Um so I'm excited to have that conversation with Josh uh a little bit uh here today. So uh just uh as kind of a starting question here, uh Josh, um as you as you kind of broke into being more open uh about your faith and and sharing that, um, do you feel like your friend circle kind of opened up and grew quickly, or was there kind of an immediate depopulation of the people you were closest with or close with rather, maybe when you started uh really opening up about your faith? Or how did how did that walk uh look for you?

SPEAKER_03 43:36

Yeah, no, I would say um uh so so I I I'll just I'll put a little history into the front side of this just to answer the question. You know I I grew up in the church, uh, grew up uh at a Baptist church, and um if you would have asked me most of my life of uh what my faith was or what I looked like, or if I was a Christian, I would have answered yes. And and um Anybody that knows knows me even a little bit knows um that uh that the first thirty-ish years of my life weren't uh weren't the best just as far as a lot of the decisions I've made. And some people would roll some of that off, but um, I just wasn't very good human to be real honest. And um anyways, towards the the latter half of 2019, first part of 2020, uh for for no reason that I can tell you is is man, my sin just uh I was convicted. Uh it things that I do and had done for years that um just didn't bother me uh began to just weigh on me and eat at me. And so uh obviously, you know, we've talked about a lot on the podcast here when we started. So you know, we'd had a platform for four years by then, and and so um starting in 2015, so this is this is later part of 2019, and um man, I would just find myself like sitting in the truck bawling over my sin, knowing that uh that something wasn't right. And and so I went and visited with pastor here by the at the church that we were attending at the time and and kind of just unloaded and leveled with him of of the things that have been going on in my life and and what it was like, and and uh I didn't necessarily then if I would have answered it, I would have said that um I would have said that uh this was me like making these decisions and coming to know. But the more I looked back on it and thought, I was like, why did uh why did this happen? Like I wasn't I mean, I would go back to the same same thoughts or the same profane language or the same this, that, and the other, and think, why does this not not feel the same? Why does it bother me? Why am I sitting here thinking about it all the time? And uh so looking back now, I can see that it says the Lord was regenerating me and and really convicting me of my sin and and uh and the Holy Spirit was was doing that just as the Bible says. So then I have this uh this new interest in studying the scripture and studying the word and studying uh God's word and seeing what what he has to say, and and what I'm realizing is that uh that Jesus commands in in the gospels, um, that that those who love him keep his commandments and keep not perfectly but keep what conform and and observe and and not just uh with their lips, but uh with the way that they live. And so uh I'm seeing all of these ways that uh that I'm living opposite and antithetical to that, and trying to change them as I go, and I'm seeing uh I'm feeling this conviction of it, but I'm also feeling the grace and mercy of uh forgiveness, and finally this this burden one at one point is lifted, and I realize what it means truly to be a sinner and what it means truly to be saved by a savior um by grace and mercy. And uh so there's this big weights lifted. Then I I kind of go back and so now we're in you know January and February. And so I'll I'll give an example of February at San Antonio 2020. So we're we're going along, and um we have uh have the champion reserve hamp there in the first round, and uh Berger's sister had the champion hamp just when we got to help get ready that was out of cruel, and then uh uh gross, Brennan Gross had the reserve hamp with a Hymer that we'd had, and um we have one two of the hamps that Air Pigs is pretty good, and uh I think we might have a chance to get something done. And I one of those nights I can remember getting into the beer a little bit, and uh, what am I doing? Not in the moment, but the next morning I wake up and I'm just like in tears. And it's actually might have been after the grand drive, the more that I think about this. So uh that those two bears went on to be the grand reserve uh at San Antonio. And and so yeah, the party commenced and we we kind of do that. And the next morning on Friday morning, uh I wake up and I'm just I'm in I'm in tears of like, why, why did I do that? And and normally I'd have just woke up thinking, why does my head hurt? You know, why did I do that? Because my head hurts. But now I'm waking up like, why, why? And so I mean, I I say that to say it's bumpy, but but there's there's there's that progression. And so that continued to go on uh through 2020. And I've got this, and so I'm living this way, all right. I'm um I'm waking up and I'm wanting to do right, and then I'm falling down, and then I'm uh I'm convicted about it. I'm not uh I'm not like I used to be, where it just didn't bother me. And so so that that goes and that still goes on to an extent, but um, so that that continues on, you know, we wrap around it and fast forward to 2021. We get to San Antonio. We had uh that was that was the year of the freeze. And so if you think about 2020, the world's been shut down, which was a very peaceful time for us. Um, I I know it's unfortunate for many during the COVID deal, and and not to make light of that, but um anyways, we we come around to 2021 the next year at San Antonio, and and I can remember, and I've told this story before, but um, so now I'm a year a year into what I would consider being a Bible-believing, Christ-following Christian, and uh a lot of things have changed um for me from for in that that year. Just day-to-day life and the Lord continuing to work, and like my my interest and hobbies began to surround Christ and and his word, and man, I find all these resources and podcasts on the internet, and and I'm learning a lot, and my my life continues to just be reshaped day by day by the Lord. And so we get to 2021 San Anton, and um there was a big freeze, I guess, and so we came from Angelo to San Antonio, and and uh they pushed the show back and they ended up showing the second round all on Thursday. And um, so we show through that day, and and uh we actually raised the champion division one, and I don't think we had anything division two, and then uh we went division three, and then we went division four and the other crosses, and then those go on to be the champion reserve cross, uh, and then those go on to be the grand reserve of the show, San Antonio 21, both pairs that we'd raised. But but I can remember going into that that week and it was just different. Um I just didn't it's not that I didn't care, but it just didn't matter as much as it always had before. Um, and it was because I'm seeing this clear lens of like what life is actually about and what reality is and what it means to follow Christ and what what who Jesus the man is and like all of these floating things that I've never even really considered um are at the forefront of my mind. So all the temporal things that had pretty much consumed me have then kind of just pushed off to the side. So we're going to San Antonio that year, and I remember like I wanted to win like anybody does, but it just it didn't it didn't mean the same and it didn't matter the same. And and uh so we ended up having the grand reserve, we come out, it's nine o'clock, we find some little hole in the wall, Mexican food joint that uh that was still open because the show ran long, and and we sat there, and I think I I think I had uh I think I had two beers sitting there that night. But it it was just it was such a difference because in that moment the the struggle or the temptation of even taking it further than that wasn't really even a you know, and it you always have to have your have your uh your weaknesses kind of out in front of you, but it was just a different mindset from my standpoint, and and so to uh a long way of answering your question. I remember at Dallas that October um of 2021. I think it was 2020, it might have been Dallas in 2020, but either way, it doesn't matter. But I I can remember that being the first time that I was standing in a group of guys at Dallas, like the day before you know, one of the days of the show, and wherever the conversation led, um it was uh you know not appropriate, I guess maybe is the the kindest way to put it. But I I can remember that being the first time in a long time I was in a circle like that, and in that conversation, and I don't remember if I stepped away or if they moved away, but immediately like when it was realized that I was in the circle, separation happened, let's just say that. And and that was maybe the first time I remember realizing, like, oh, I don't know if I moved myself away from people or the Lord moved them away from me or both or what have you. But I hadn't been around in in a lot of those circles and those conversations that come up for a long time. And and and it wasn't because I intentionally removed myself, maybe other people intentionally removed their self from me, but it was it hadn't even really dawned on me, I guess, for all that that time, let's just say a year, that those con I didn't have to worry about those type of things. People didn't send them to me anymore. I can remember there being a Snapchat once that I got and uh in a group that I got put into, and and it was something again inappropriate. And I I sent something back. I can't remember exactly what I sent back. Now it was something like, well, maybe maybe you should should worry more about what the Lord thinks about it. Something like that. I can't remember. And the the text back was wrong group, and then I got removed from from the group. So yeah, I would say my friend circle depopulated, but not intentionally. Uh that could be a good thing. But uh you just the the Lord kind of removed people from my inner circle or removed me out of their inner circle that uh and you kind of naturally when you're when you're walking in anything, you you're drawn to the people, and the people are drawn to you that that are like-minded with the same thing that you uh you have. So yeah, it it depopulated it and and it probably increased in other ways. Um, but the uh the initial part of it was definitely uh not necessarily depopulating friends, because me and a lot of the people that I'm thinking of right now are still friends and I love them and they love me and and we have a good time. It's just uh a lot of the the conversations, the things that would have been uh happening before that that I would have been right in the middle of, that those just kind of naturally were removed.

SPEAKER_00 54:08

Yeah, I um that that makes so much sense to me, you know, that um you know things come naturally and and the way the Lord works, the way the Holy Spirit works, can put you kind of where you're supposed to be if you're following and um you know living that and doing the work you're supposed to do, um, and you know, get you out of situation sometimes, it it seems like. But I guess uh I mean I got a question that's just kind of been on my mind when I was thinking about this. Um, you know, there's probably a lot of people in our industry, and I don't want to speak for people because I could be completely wrong, but I I would tell you I've fallen uh to this category a little bit. So uh I think there's gotta be others like me. But um, you know, I've I've I've been a center. I um have done a lot of things at shows in our industry that I'm I'm not proud of, and a lot of it's been publicly, whether it be you know, drinking at big sales or shows or being involved in conversations that are inappropriate or just being uh amongst uh, you know, a group of people telling the the wrong kind of jokes or whatever, whatever those things are. You know, I people have visibly seen me do things that are very, very far from Christ-like. And um, you know, as I I've grown and matured maybe a little bit as a Christian, and I'm trying to raise my kids a little uh to be better than I am in that regard and uh to have a relationship that's closer with God at a young age, um, trying to spread that, you know, sometimes my faith and where I feel on things. Um, I've got maybe just a little bit of an irrational fear of being looked at as being really hypocritical in our industry because I know people have seen me do things that are that are so far from Christ like. So I know I can't be alone in that as a guy that would like to maybe talk about my faith, spread my faith a little more. Um what what would your advice be to maybe me and then then other people that are maybe in the same shoes I am on that?

SPEAKER_03 55:54

Oh, yeah, definitely. I and I uh uh let me let me start by saying that that you're you're you're gonna be all a hypocrite. Uh I have been and you will be. And so don't uh don't think that as uh as um it's just what it is. Christ Christ says in the ball in the gospels, you know, you you're gonna be persecuted. Just just look to it and and and expect it. But also in that know that uh that they're not rejecting you, uh, but uh that they're they're rejecting Christ more times than that. You know the Gospel of John starts out that says that that the light comes into the darkness and the darkness doesn't comprehend it, and the darkness turns from the light because its deeds are evil. And and that's why we even, uh even I that's why I, when I when I sin and I walk in a negative way, I I want to hide from God for a minute because because I I know that that's that's the darkness. But the the thing to remember is is the true believer, the first thing they they do is is admit exactly who they are. And so just like you just said, it's like I've guessed got through saying, it's like I'll I'm gonna sin today, probably in a different way than I did yesterday, and probably some in the same ways that I did yesterday. And I think if if I learned anything through through my conversion and story was the lifestyle and the pattern changes, but but but go back and hear again what I'd said just a while ago of that first uh that first February in San Antonio, it looked just the same on the outside for a moment, and then the the feeling it was on the inside was the conviction and and the sorrows was a godly sorrow that leads to repentance. Paul writes in in 1 Corinthians 7 about uh uh a godly sorrow and a worldly sorrow, and and and uh the true believer has a godly sorrow that leads him to repentance, that leads him to the mercy of Christ, realizing that he's sinful and clinging to the cross. If I wasn't sinful, then Christ wouldn't have wouldn't have had to die uh to pay for that. So so going about it from that mindset and and understanding really the first thing to if somebody comes up and tells me I'm a hypocrite, uh, I'm gonna tell them, yeah, I live not perfectly to the way that the that Christ commands me to live. No doubt about it, no if, ands, or buts. And the first thing to come to the cross is to admit that. Christ says, if you if you say you have no sin, then the truth isn't in you. So to this in some sense, it's to agree with him, yeah. But that's why I'm not telling you to follow me, I'm telling you to follow him. And and then you and you go about it. But you know, the word hypocrite, I think, is also interesting how it is uh how it's defined. You know, the way hypocrites used in the Bible, it's the the really the definition of it is is a play actor. So we we think of watching a a movie and we see uh uh somebody acting in in a certain role, and and their job is to convince you that they're you know, Leonardo DiCaprio in Titanic, his job is to convince you that he was that that Jack, whoever that that that went on the Titanic. I have no idea why that movie came into my mind, but um, and then you might see Leonardo DiCaprio in another movie, and he's convincing you of something else. Well, that's a hypocrite, he's a play actor. He's and that's what Christ talks about in the gospels of uh the Pharisees, they were completely different on the inside than the religious action they were acting on the outside. And so so a Christian isn't isn't a hypocrite because the first requirement of a Christian is to say, I am this sinful, needy, weak person in need of a savior. And and a hypocrite would be the one that says I'm perfectly righteous, so on and so forth, knowing inside that they're not. So and then your your your goal is is to also understand that that the gospel's not a I think we have a problem with this in the American church, the gospel is not a do better and try harder and be better. It's a realize Christ completed the mission, rest in his grace, and because of his kindness, that will lead you to your repentance of being thankful um in him. So, you know, I I get exactly what you're saying, and and we can all have the have the guilt of where we where we come up short, and we're gonna have the people that come up and say, I saw what you did yesterday when you lost your cool because your pig was third and you this, that, and the other, and said something you shouldn't have said and all that. Say, you're right, and I repented of it, and I am and then yeah, and I think it's it's good to even apologize to those people like I shouldn't have done that, and and I failed. And uh thankfully I have a savior that that is merciful. I'm gonna go on and walk in that mercy and and try again tomorrow, but I'm gonna rest in in his grace.

SPEAKER_00 1:00:30

Yeah, man, I I like that, and I I appreciate you sharing that. And I think that, you know, we're all we all struggle with that so bad. I mean, we're all incredibly competitive people. We live in an industry that's so fast paced, and um people only remember remember your last win, I feel like, you know, and we all we all put so much pressure on ourselves, I feel like at all these shows and sales all the time, and really none of it's in our hands or in our control at the end of the day, but we all, you know, walk around like a you know, powder keg pressured up, ready to go off at any time. And I think, you know, just like you said, where that that second San Antonio, it's not that you didn't want to win, um, but when you had your mind right, maybe about the the priorities of life, um, winning just wasn't everything. And I um I think that's an important thing to to look at, you know, is how we react in our in our losses and how we handle that, but you know, also probably the way we react when when we win and how we handle some of those things and uh to just know that we're all a little bit part of a bigger message and uh there's a lot bigger things in life, whether than they handed you a blue ribbon or a white one. There's there's just so many things that are a lot more important than that. And you know, guys that are that are in our shoes, Bryce, Josh, you mean and so many people that are gonna listen to this. I mean, there's so many people in the next generation, I feel like, that that look up to us, and we all should probably have just a little bit more awareness about that in those situations of you know how we handle that. And I'm as bad as anyone on the planet at some times, but I do think, you know, we we all have an opportunity here, in my opinion, to, you know, have a platform and you've used your voice and Carrie as well, just so well, and putting out podcasts and just all through your social media and through your brand of just entwining your faith into that and letting letting people know, you know, hey, well, we're not perfect, but we wanna we wanna be better and we want to try better all the time. And uh man, I think it's awesome what you guys are doing for for our industry in in a barn that sometimes, you know, uh fails to see the light. It's cool. And I um actually am so proud of West and Lackey as well, and the way that he's kind of you know put his faith out there publicly. And I know that can be be ridiculed at times, but uh for someone his age to you know start putting out that kind of material too and building his kind of brand around that, I I think is awesome. So um maybe maybe one more question here, just uh a little bit uh about that. Um I know I just talked about how busy we all are at shows and how fast-paced things are. Um in Texas, I feel like you guys are at Jack are at um county shows and then rolling to your majors. And I feel like you guys are on the road for for 90 days straight and just running on, you know, probably caffeine and fumes and just pure adrenaline, I would assume, in the springtime. What would your advice be on um, you know, for people uh as you're traveling, especially in those busy times of year when you're, you know, sun up to sundown, all you can take. Where do you go to to find time to get away and maybe get in the word a little bit during those busy times? Or how do you balance that, I guess, in those times of year and what we do that are just so busy? You know, where do you find time to stay committed uh to God and make time to get in the word and do some of those things, you know, especially in the spring when you guys are really, really busy?

SPEAKER_03 1:03:57

No, that's a that's a that's a great question. And how do I balance that the shortest answer is poorly? And and you can you can feel I can feel the difference. Like when I when we're at home and and you know, 15's the same, and and so like I start every day in my office uh in my Bible. Uh and that's just it's just how my day starts from from whatever time I get up, whether it's five or six or six thirty till seven thirty, when when shores get started, uh that's where I start my day. And so when we get on the road, man, it's difficult. And me and Carrie and the kids talk about this uh a lot before uh before we leave for Denver every time because it feels like you leave for Denver and then then it's just it's it's all out until we get through with Houston and Austin and March. And so that three-month stretch, man, the I I would love to to give anybody listening or you uh uh say this is this is what I do, uh, this is how I make it work. But but honestly, I haven't uh I haven't necessarily found that perfectly. I always start out uh pretty good and and and really the the the thing for me is um it is getting up early enough to sit in the motel room, to to pray, to to to read wherever I'm at uh and whatever I'm studying and to commune with God at that time before the day ever starts. That's how I that's how I start every day uh for the most part um at the farm. And so the the hardest thing for me on that is when we're on the road. It's not hard for me that to get up and and get going. Um, but when uh when we're at San Antonio and class one starts at seven, and so we're leaving the motel at four to get out there at 4:30 to get started. Um it's hard to just say, like, hey, I'm gonna get up at 3:30 and study my Bible 30 minutes before we go. So I mean, a lot of times that falls by the wayside, but it's being intentional, um, I think. And uh, I'm not a big devotional guy. I'm not saying there's there's things wrong with that. Um, I I don't read a lot of devotions because I I just find them to to focus more on the topic versus the the word. And so I'm I'm very much. um just open my Bible and and then go from there to to seek out more study on the on the scriptures. So getting up, making a time, whether it's whether it's in the morning, uh, whether it's you know at the end of the day is always the one I would say is is sometimes the only option you have, but still tough because you're you especially if you're at a show or sale or whatever, by the end of the day you're like beating over it. And if you're like me, you're ready to take a shower and just close your eyes and start again the next day. So um but it's making that time and and no different than we make that time for anything else. And and so um you know thankfully for technology these days like you you can you can pull up the Bible on your phone you can pull up a million different apps um you know and and go from that standpoint. A lot of the things that I'll do and uh uh you know there's podcasts and stuff that I listen to and and so I'll put my headphones in while we're clipping or getting stuff ready and listen through um while I'm doing that while I'm pulled away from people.

SPEAKER_02 1:07:01

So you you just gotta find uh find the things that work for you for Camlin uh her and her her and two or three of her friends they'll get in the stands uh sometimes pray they'll get in the stands and and read uh and do some of that so it's um and usually that's you know just the way our routine works out usually mid-morning we don't have a ton going and that's usually when they do that kind of stuff so it's uh yeah figuring it out and making the time but I I can tell you from experience uh again that that hypocrite thing I'm not I'm not pretending um I I I can feel the difference when we're out on the road and I'm and I'm not when I'm not taking that time especially and it just builds as you go so uh yeah that's that's still something I'm trying to work out the perfect way to handle but yeah I mean obviously uh you know uh just with our lives Delaney and I here uh talking to some of my mentors there uh on on the face side of things it's uh you know we always talked about uh the guy that I've always kind of looked up to on that regard is uh saying hey if you believe in him that's great but if you have a relationship it's even better and uh you talked about uh you know being on the road and and things like that um you said then we're back and and we're back in the house uh or back at the home place there uh the guy that actually I look up to and and we'll visit from time to time on things he always says uh having a relationship with Christ is uh is like sleeping in your own bed you know you can be on the road and uh you can uh you know still get a good night's sleep but there's nothing uh just perfect about it uh until you're in your own bed in your own spot in your own place and I thought that was a uh pretty pretty good uh analogy just to kind of jump on and uh kind of put that into perspective if you will but yeah with uh kind of that uh obviously with uh everything moving so fast pace uh what what's what's what's the future hold uh what's the future hold for Brockman Farms your family and uh kind of that moving forward uh we're gonna grow we're gonna shrink uh we we talked about uh maybe uh uh dialing some things back a little bit and running 125 south instead of 200 um just obviously you and Carrie judge shows and exhibiting with shows family dynamics things like that what's next no that's a good question and I mean and and the short answer is I guess we'll we'll uh not set on our hands but sit back and and see where the Lord leads as as he has uh so far.

SPEAKER_03 1:09:30

The the shrinking down to to where we're at like my goal has been uh been to be to 100 thousand and that took us three or four years to get there through just the culling process and and having production sales and selling breads and selling open gilts and and then culling some more and and so on and so forth. And so that that was the it took three years to get to here so we'll see uh our goal size wise is to is to keep things fairly similar um to where we are at the moment at least for the short term for now um and kind of see I think that's a good number to work through and and it seems like it's uh working it's interesting we've got less Souths and more people um than we've ever had we've got one more full-time employee than we've ever had and and as few sales as we've ever had so that's kind of interesting um but uh but it's been nice and so you know Caden's a senior this time Camlin's got five years left um and so uh or four years four or five years left anyway uh I got a little time so I kind of feel like we're we're where uh where we're supposed to be for the moment uh you know like we've talked about we'll kind of keep uh bringing up uh the social media side of stuff with showpake central podcast and the one truth podcast are the two that uh uh the first one carry and I do and then Dan Reed and I do the other one and and seeing uh where the Lord leads. But yeah JD talked about being busy and we're all sillyly busy. Um but the the more I realize um that that um yeah we're all too busy and so like this time we decided um that we shut the farm down uh on Sundays like we're not gonna show pegs or sell pegs on Sundays uh this time and that's not anything legalistic as much as the fact of just taking the day just kind of looking at at life and and kind of like we've talked about on here just the the priorities of life of of really seeing things clearly Camlin made a comment the other day that uh we were we were having some conversations and and and um she said um she says a lot of smart things for a teenager but she has a hard time just having deep not have a hard time but having someone else have deep conversations with her and particularly about about Christ or just about life in general and um I think uh us being busy all the time that's the detraction from that to where we are we we sunk in and I can catch myself we've got an online sale uh coming up and it's like okay I've got to do everything possible to make sure this is absolutely perfect and then you sit back and you think why like in the whole scheme of things like what's the most important and uh so we talk about we've talked about faith we've talked about the pig farm for for me it's uh it's walking and realizing that one day I will depart and die and uh depart from this earth and and live in eternity but it's realizing um that that that kingdom that eternity has already begun eternal life doesn't start when you die here it starts when you uh become a follower of Christ and so that's uh that's where we try to try to live is is in that living the things that are eternal um but remembering that the things that are eternal begin now because eternal life starts starts now and so uh for us that's that's kind of our uh our mo that's why everything you know we talk about brand and this and that and it's not that we try to inject faith into everything it's that faith our faith is our everything and everything else just overflows from that so yeah it's kind of where we're at no absolutely uh and I mean you gave a broad view of it and I appreciate your perspective on that because uh definitely definitely couldn't agree more and I mean that's awesome uh from from that regard.

SPEAKER_02 1:13:11

Uh turning the page back maybe a little bit and going to the other side maybe not so much on the future side uh a little bit I guess but uh what are two or three previous showmen that you've had or you've impacted that you think are going to go on and do great things or have done great things or uh just uh two or three people and maybe you can't just name two or three but uh have really just hit you as those type of young individuals that man this this is this is going to be really really good here in a couple years. Uh I mean I guess who are the two or three that come to mind or a handful of them.

SPEAKER_03 1:13:48

Huh I didn't I didn't I didn't see this question on the record there so um man that's a that's a list. I don't know I'm gonna think for a second on on that we've um we we've got to help so many that are so neat and and um let me make this easier for you how about in the last five years the last five years yeah that that that doesn't make it any easier but thanks um it makes it somewhat I mean maybe a little bit but no you know I got to tell a a a pair of them this time uh that graduated out as uh that I thought were as as good um as good a showman as as I'd ever got to work with and that was uh that was Kendall Shagelford and Kinley Rohan and I told them that at Austin that that if they weren't the the best two they were they were in the in the top three anyways uh of kids I'd ever got to work with and um as far as in the show ring and and it'll be interesting and and fun to watch them uh go on and and see what uh what their careers have and and go forward. You know I've got um I've got one that that's working for me now that's that's Trevor Bashata that um is uh it's it's fun to have him here it's fun to be able to to grab him right out of high school and be able to kind of mold him as a as a young man. And uh we've had uh had days that I think he thinks I hate him and days that uh he realizes that I love him. But that's uh that's been uh it's been fun to have him here pretty much since uh since Houston uh day in and day out and now working full time for the farm it'll be fun to see um what all he learns and goes from there. Um I I I could give a long list of of the kids that I think will be uh be successful. Um I I'm probably not going to name any more but that uh that we've had the privilege to work with. But what what's neat to me is is for those of you that are that are listening to this that are on the breeder or feeder or or pig jock or helping side is is I never realized probably until recently how much you know you hear it all the time of of the kids look up to you and the impact you have but I've probably never really truly realized the impact and and the influence that uh that we actually have have on most of them. It's it's kind of uh surreal really and it's kind of intimidating really for me to to know that that weight and that pressure um because of all the things we've talked about of of how sometimes I mean we're human and we fall and we fail and it's like man I hope they don't make the same stupid mistake that I just did or that I did then that and the other but uh I didn't I didn't fully realize that until probably here even the last last couple of years of of that impact. So that was that was that was my way of dodging your question.

SPEAKER_00 1:16:37

Dude I love it. It'd be it's it's a it's a little bit of a hot seat question there. So many kids obviously you get to work with that are going to go on and and do great things, right? That's that's what's so cool about our industry is the the lives that you get to touch uh I feel like are going to be lives that are going to be impactful on their homes, communities, businesses, uh families, you know, just just have the ability to really set the tone for for generations. I you know I I'd say the same thing. Just so many so many great kids um that it's it's really easy to easy to be proud of. We'll go into something just a little lighter here Josh to kind of kind of wrap things up uh just a little bit we call this uh segment extended bidding and it's um I know you didn't have these questions at all it's just uh you know some some hot seat kind of questions uh I'll fire off 10 or so of them and we'll let we'll let Bryce do the same thing. But this is uh just say whatever comes to the top of your head uh meant to be kind of light meant to be kind of fun some of the answers that we've we've heard and said uh to these are uh are pretty entertaining um I actually learned that I think Bryce uh is a is a big L Langley fan when we when we did his so that was that was interesting.

SPEAKER_03 1:17:49

Um so anyway so uh we'll we'll get started on these uh just whatever whatever comes to mind here uh quick quick answer kind of deal um if you could switch lives with anyone for one day who would it be probably uh let let's go with the apostle paul what is something that you've done uh that you'll never never do again well I'm slow on the hot seat here let's see here I I would say uh Caden showed a goat once I I wouldn't probably revisit that what uh if you won the lottery what's the first thing you'd buy land what is the best thing you've ever eaten in a restaurant uh filet recently what restaurant recently actually at Texas Roadhouse if all it was it was it was whoa yeah no that that I don't throw for a live I'll have the blandest answer of that but it was good this the next question could maybe have the same answer depending on the day uh what's the worst thing you've ever eaten at a restaurant uh there is uh so so I'm gonna I'm gonna I'm gonna reneg on the last one because there's another place that I really really like um called uh it's it's like a Texas day Brazil but it's in Culch Station it's called uh Casso do Brazil and they have a uh incredible uh cheesecake and and things like that but they've got some banana thing on the middle of the table oh yeah fried bananas they're so good no they're not either that that's gonna be my negative uh that that's banana or whatever it was it was it's it's not very good mixed reviews I would say sounds apparently apparently somebody likes her they wouldn't have it on the table yeah but um no not not too whoopy for me uh what is the uh weirdest or strangest thing you've ever done to save money oh that's a long list because yeah me too many people me and Carrie we're two the tired people that you you'll ever come across there's gotta be something I've fixed around here uh people give me a very hard time I don't know if this was the most but it comes to my mind um my my customers especially I'm bad about like if a water hose breaks I'm not going to buy a new one I'm going to buy the part to fix it still to this day and so yeah we're gonna go with that one.

SPEAKER_00 1:20:18

It's shoes for me. I'll sometimes like adhesive a pair of shoes back together or something in a show if I got to get through it. That's that's it's for me. Um all right this being my last one uh would you rather race Usain Bolt in the 100 meter dash or race Joey Chestnut and eating 10 hot dogs where do you have a better chance of winning I want to go with the hot dog eating because I know Usain Bolt and I can't outrun him I never heard of the other guy Bryce you can you can let him have a few all right I'll make them a little lighter a little quicker and a little more uh JD puts a lot of thought into his extended bidding question they were good I liked them I just I had to think about it yeah okay so uh best fast food French fries McDonald's uh does chilies have beans in it yes okay I was not expecting that uh diet or regular soda diet actually none but go ahead that's fine too favorite artist or musician well I'm I'm gonna take the heat on this one but lately I really like AI generated music particularly AI yeah I know I knew I was gonna take the heat on JD you can't you probably can't see this listening but yeah uh particularly AI generated Christian music and I'll tell you yeah we'll we'll just keep it short at that but yeah there you go okay if you could only watch one show or one movie for the rest of your life uh loansome deaf how many times do you hit the snooze button in the morning?

SPEAKER_03 1:21:54

Twice always twice or like depends but yeah this morning I I turned it off before it ever came on pretty much but yeah usually about twice.

SPEAKER_02 1:22:04

Don't ask my wife but okay last one are you the driver are you the passenger?

SPEAKER_00 1:22:10

Drive. Where do you even find AI Christian music? Yeah now I'm kind of interested you'll have to send me some of this I'll check it out.

SPEAKER_03 1:22:19

Yeah well yeah I'll send it to you I I stumbled across it and then I didn't even realize like I heard this song come across Spotify one day and I'm like that's incredible and I like put it on repeat I'm bad about putting it on repeat and um it was actually like a couple of weeks later that I realized it was AI and then I just kept stumbling across so anyway there's this guy that makes um he makes like I don't know if you like blues music or not but like he does like all the psalms he's pretty much done I don't know but like the psalms are in blue revelation's in blues and it's like really good theologically and like the song's good but then I learned like oh this is all made with AI.

SPEAKER_00 1:23:03

Anyway I thought maybe you're fixing to put a plug in for Brockman's new AI soundtrack coming out. No well uh Josh man thank you um for your time uh really really appreciate it um obviously you guys are on all the social media platforms can can be be found there uh give you a second real quick if you uh would like to just tell people about where they can find some Brockman Farms pigs auctions coming up here uh in in the next couple months like to give you an opportunity to maybe just highlight those sales you're uh going to be having and going to here uh as we get forward to selling these summer pigs.

SPEAKER_03 1:23:44

No definitely yeah there is um um the the easiest way to find any of our stuff is either on our Facebook page or our website at BrockmanFarms.com um on BrockwindFarms.com you'll see uh for sale tab and so we do what we call picks is picks of the week and um if if you go to that tab and it's locked then there's nothing for sale at the time but we sell a lot of stuff there.

SPEAKER_02 1:24:06

So we've got a uh show pig set all of our online sales are on show pig and so that'll be um that schedule's also on our website um depending on when this drops depending on when the next one is but um and then uh yeah so we've got uh got that so pretty much anything you want to find out about buying pigs from us you can find on our website we've got a monthly newsletter if you'll go and subscribe to our Substack page which is just my name Josh Brockman um you can get uh our sale schedule that way along with some other information just about uh us at the farm we call it inside the gate it drops the first of every month or in the first five days of every month and uh just a digital newsletter that kind of lets you know what's going on around the farm and then uh yeah two podcasts showpake central and then the one truth podcast so we're gonna check out both of those and uh yeah our our contact info is very easily accessible so anything we can do to help just reach out to us awesome well on that note uh subscribe and follow the lineup uh leave a review uh jd talked about uh the email address that we've got there to go ahead and uh podcast at the win went group I believe uh yep that's what it is and if you've got uh any questions there uh give us a shout I mean obviously if you've got our uh our numbers personally as well uh shoot us a text and see uh give us ideas of who you want to hear from uh we do thank our sponsors saw two supplement scientists uh got great products uh look them up there and uh we're excited for for the next episode JD uh I think it's gonna be a good one for sure so you're definitely gonna want to tune in.

SPEAKER_00 1:25:43

Yeah absolutely again uh Josh thank you thank you guys for listening