It’s been a tough year to be the president. But Sebastien McCarty isn’t going to let the pandemic change his commitment to his calves and his leadership of the Heart Mountain 4-H Club.

At 16, McCarty is already an experienced cattleman. He’s been running a herd of club calves for just shy of a decade. He received his first two calves when he was 6 and has built an impressive herd from there. McCarty now runs 20 cattle — the best of which are shown across the Rocky Mountain region.

The Park County Fair marks the end of show season. He’ll sell his prize steers and then start the process all over again, “burning the tires off” his truck to find good calves for the next year.

“All us livestock kids, we have to work with our animals all year round to get them ready for one week,” McCarty said.

It’s not an easy task, but one he was seemingly born into. His father, Mark McCarty, is the manager of the historic Two Dot Ranch. Sebastien McCarty has never known another kind of life. He grew up in the Two Dot headquarters home, a former stage coach stop east of Cody, located along the scenic Chief Joseph Highway. There, among mature cottonwoods, hills filled with toothy and tasty wildlife and 72,000-plus acres to roam, he’s grown accustomed to walking out his front door and into the beauty of the outdoors.

And that’s where he’d like to stay. Though McCarty hasn’t settled on a career path, he knows it will be something in the great outdoors.

“I really can’t stand the thought of an office job,” he said as the cottonwood seeds filled the air.

While he has a great start in the cattle industry, he also has dreamed of being a game warden. At 16, he really doesn’t need a plan yet.

Caring for livestock and training for summer shows is an endless job. But this year, as activities are scaled back or canceled, it is hard for some to get motivated for the fair season. Not McCarty.

Karista Low, the Heart Mountain club leader, said he is fully engaged and ready to help wherever needed.

“It’s been fun watching him grow up and seeing him take a leadership role,” Low said. “He’s a model club member.”

McCarty has three steers to show and he’s helping his brother, Matthieu, prepare for the fair with a calf he raised, named Bubbles. It sounds cute, but at more than 1,300 pounds, he’s definitely a chore.

Getting a rope on a calf is the hardest part. After that they calm down and even seem to enjoy time with humans. Bubbles likes to get scratched behind the ears.

This year’s Park County Fair has an abbreviated schedule due to COVID-19.

“I think it’s gonna be pretty weird this year,” McCarty said. “The fact that we show up one day, show our calves and then leave … that’ll be a little bit different than normal.”

He plans to make do this year and hopes for a better schedule the next. McCarty only has a couple years left in 4-H. Just being able to go to shows and the excitement of winning keeps him motivated.

“It’s a feeling like no other,” he said while working with his top steer.

Though he’s done his share of winning, McCarty is still humble, barely mentioning his awards.

“That’s the great thing about this program,” said his father, Mark. “It teaches you how to win and it teaches you how to lose. It keeps you humble.”

Raising cattle has also forced Sebastien McCarty to grow up quickly. Even though he loves to ski and hunt, he also knows his livestock are counting on him.

“The program teaches the kids responsibility. They know they’ve got to get up every morning and feed and take care of their livestock,” Mark said.

The fair is also a rare moment when McCarty sheds his independent nature and enjoys learning about the social aspects of the business, including the camaraderie of a week at the fair.

“It’s the entire community that I like. And the environment,” he said. “Everybody there is just super nice and honestly, you want to show, but then there’s also the fun of being with your friends and being able to go around the fair.”

But when all the pageantry is over, he’s always ready to go back to the Two Dot. McCarty craves the quiet and the excitement of spending time in nature.

“After a week of being in a city, you just feel trapped,” he said. “I just can’t wait to come back here every time.”