From our side of the fence

Blake Hansen

Hansen’s Dairy

Hudson, Iowa

Black Hawk County

We have 300 cows and milk 150.

Who is your favorite all-time Olympian? There’s only one GOAT: Michael Phelps. There’s no one better than him. He has 23 gold medals, more than any other Olympian in history.

If you had to pick one winter Olympic sport to compete in, what would it be? At my age, I’ll take the safest sport: curling. You don’t need a helmet for that.

If you created an Olympic sport on the farm, what would the participants do and what would it be called? Silo ice climbing. The first one to the top of our 104-foot silo wins.

What attributes of a farmer translate well into being an Olympic athlete? Hard work and passion. You have to live and breathe farming like Olympic athletes do in their sport.

What farm-related job should be considered an Olympic sport? Hoof trimming. There’s a certain risk you take, and you have to have speed and precision. You have to get it right for the health of the cow.

Tell us about your farm. Hansen’s Dairy has been farmed by the same family for over 150 years. Blake and his three brothers, Brent, Brad and Blair, are the sixth generation of Hansens to farm the land. We grow the crops that feed the cows, and the cows’ milk is processed right in our on-farm creamery. In our creamery we make: skim, 1%, 2%, whole and chocolate milk; seven flavors of cheese curds; butter; heavy cream; and 30 flavors of ice cream

       We also raise a small herd of Wagyu-Holstein beef cows. We deliver our products to our own two retail stores in Cedar Falls and Waterloo; other Northeast Iowa grocers; restaurants; coffee shops; day care centers; and long-term care facilities, all within about a 75-mile radius of the farm.

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Jason and Nancy Bachmann

Frazee, Minnesota

Becker County

90 cows

Who is your favorite all-time Olympian? Jason: The 1980 and now 2026 hockey teams because they never quit playing. Nancy: Can’t say that I have one.

If you had to pick one winter Olympic sport to compete in, what would it be? Jason: Curling, as I think I can handle the broom. Nancy: Alpine skiing, if my body allowed.

If you created an Olympic sport on the farm, what would the participants do and what would it be called? Dair-O-Limp-Icks would be the name. Throw 25 80-pound bales of hay over a 7-foot wall, then pitch calf manure into a wheelbarrow and wheel 200 feet across frozen manure pies, change a skid steer fuel filter while the wind is blowing 40 mph at temps below 0, sort two heifers out of a pen of 50 and, lastly, lie on the ground and thaw out a waterer while cows are licking on you.

What attributes of a farmer translate well into being an Olympic athlete? Long grueling hours of working in the cold with the will to never quit until the job is complete.

What farm-related job should be considered an Olympic sport? Jason: Chipping silo walls. Nan-cy: Chasing cattle when they get out.

Tell us about your farm. We milk around 75 head of Holsteins (not including dry cows) in a swing-8 parallel parlor that we just retrofitted into our tiestall barn, raise all our own replace-ments and farm 150 acres of alfalfa and 100 acres of corn for feed for our animals. Nancy also owns and operates Nancy’s Drafting & Design, an architectural drafting business out of our home.

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Keith Fasching

Winsted,

Minnesota

Wright County

100 cows

Who is your favorite all-time Olympian? I would say Shaun White. He was so innovative in the snowboarding industry. He is the first one who came to mind. I don’t watch the Olympics for a certain athlete; I just watch to watch.

If you had to pick one winter Olympic sport to compete in, what would it be? Curling. It looks like a sport that anyone could somewhat do and have fun with.

If you created an Olympic sport on the farm, what would the participants do and what would it be called? The sport would be based around calving. It would be to help a cow that has a mispositioned calf. Who can do it the quickest and safest, without hurting the cow?

What attributes of a farmer translate well into being an Olympic athlete? Work ethic. The harder you work at it, the more successful you are going to be.

What farm-related job should be considered an Olympic sport? Feeding calves in hutches during the winter. I built a calf barn about two years ago, and now we realize how much work the little hutches were.

Tell us about your farm. We predominantly milk Guernseys, some Brown Swiss, Milking Shorthorns and a few Holsteins. We raise our youngstock along with corn and alfalfa for the cows.

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Alex Ode

Brandon, South Dakota

425 Cows

Minnehaha

Who is your favorite all-time Olympian? I really do not have a favorite Olympian; there are so many tremendous athletes that come to mind, all in their own way. Michael Phelps and Katie Ledecky are the first to come to mind, as Phelps won so many gold medals and Ledecky is so dominant currently in swimming. Kobe Bryant is the ultimate competitor who refused to lose, taking out his Los Angeles teammate in the opening game. I remember specifically watching Rulon Gardner (Wyoming dairy farmer) back in the 2000 Olympics with his huge upset in wrestling. Elle Purrier St. Pierre, in the most recent summer games, is proudly outspoken about her family's dairy farm.

If you had to pick one winter Olympic sport to compete in, what would it be? If I had to pick one winter Olympic sport, I would choose 4-man bobsled. I've pushed enough cows that I could be the brake man in the back.

If you created an Olympic sport on the farm, what would the participants do and what would it be called? Since everything at the Olympics is about speed, strength and time, I would have an Olympic sport called "Speed Pill." Contestants must draw a cow’s number, find the cow, get the cow locked into headlocks and then proceed to get two pill boluses down her throat. Once the number is drawn, your timer starts. Unsuccessful boluses are a 30-second penalty. The event would force the contestant to be keen at spotting numbers, have wit for locking the cow up and use strength and skill to finish the job correctly.

What attributes of a farmer translate well into being an Olympic athlete? Attributes that come to mind immediately are resilience and determination. In both acts of life, it would be easy to quit, but to keep dairy farming and keep competing to be the best in the world takes drive, as there are so many ups and downs, wins and losses. Sacrifice is another one that comes to mind. Both sacrifice so much time and dedication to the farm or sport that, to outsiders, it is not as easily understood.

What farm-related job should be considered an Olympic sport? I used to think changing a tire should be an Olympic sport on the farm until cordless impact wrenches came around; they really changed the game from my youth. I would time myself on how quickly I could get the old tire off and a new one on. In today’s world, answering the telephone some days seems like an endurance sport that never ends when it rings off the hook and you're either trying to coordinate 100 different things at once or putting out 100 different fires.

Tell us about your farm. Royalwood Farms is a family-owned operation by my father, Gregg Ode; my uncle, Doug Ode; and me. We milk 425 of mostly registered Holstein cows with a few Jerseys in the mix. Cows are housed in a 6-row, sand-bedded freestall barn and milked in a double-8 parallel parlor. Heifers are raised to 600 pounds and then taken to a custom heifer raiser, returning as springers. We farm 1,100 acres of corn and alfalfa with some oats and summer forage crops.

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Funk’s Midway Dairy

(from left) Ian, Karl and Owen

Melrose,

Minnesota

Stearns County

800 cows

Who is your favorite all-time Olympian? Owen: Steph Curry because he can shoot the lights out. Ian: Brock Faber because he is from Minnesota and still plays hockey for the Wild and is an electric player to watch. Karl: Michael Phelps. I just remember the excitement every time he competed in an event.

If you had to pick one winter Olympic sport to compete in, what would it be? Owen: hockey. Ian: hockey. Karl: freestyle skiing.

If you created an Olympic sport on the farm, what would the participants do and what would it be called? Owen: Covering bunker; the winner will be whoever can cover the most square feet, tire to tire, in 15 minutes. Speed stacking. Ian: Rock picking; the winner is the person who can pick the most acres of rocks and do the best job. Karl: Bunker stripping; it would be a timed event in which participants strip one row of tires on a 75-foot-wide bunker and throw moldy feed away. Judging is based on how straight plastic is cut and the quality of the feed left. An-other choice could be a feeding triathlon. Participants have to feed 60 cows, 12 calves and a family of six breakfast before everyone leaves for school.

What attributes of a farmer translate well into being an Olympic athlete? Owen: Hard work, dedication and willingness to put in the time for a better outcome. Ian: Work ethic. It’s the base of becoming the best at what you do; as long as you have a good work ethic, anything is possible. It means being able to grind through the tough times. Karl: We spend all our energy turning our business into a fine-tuned machine, as do Olympians. The pride we feel just working to get there is what keeps us motivated to continue working every day.

What farm-related job should be considered an Olympic sport? Owen: Covering bunker, vaccinating cattle and milking. Ian: Rock picking, bunker covering and sorting heifers. Karl: Opening an 80-foot Harvestore silo and tying up breather bags. Another choice could be a feeding triathlon.

Tell us about your farm. Our farm consists of John and Dorothy and three sons: Greg, Jeff and Karl. About 200 of the cows are milked with three Lely robots, and the rest are milked with a double-12 parallel parlor. We raise all our own feed, which includes alfalfa, corn and soybeans. We inject our own manure using a drag line system. We raise all our own replacements and also finish 100 steers per year.

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Melissa Haag

Dane, Wisconsin

Dane County

115 cows milking

Who is your favorite all-time Olympian? Kristi Yamaguchi. As a young child, I was interested in the sport of figure skating. My mom always talked about Dorothy Hamill, and I had the Dorothy Hamill haircut in kindergarten. As much as my mom loved Dorothy, I have vivid memories of falling in love with seeing Kristi Yamaguchi’s artistic style of skating on ice. Watching Kristi win the Gold Medal in ladies' singles for the United States in 1992 had me excited and wanting to get on the ice myself.

If you had to pick one winter Olympic sport to compete in, what would it be? Figure skating. Specifically, I would love to compete in synchronized figure skating (think synchronized swimming but on ice). “Synchro” isn’t currently an Olympic sport, but fans hope to have it included in the 2030 games.

If you created an Olympic sport on the farm, what would the participants do and what would it be called? Tire Toss. Off the farm, I work as a large-animal veterinarian, and I see a lot of talented individuals tossing tires while covering bunkers. You could create an assortment of events related to this. Who can toss tires the highest or who could toss tires tightly in neat rows from a certain distance? You could also create a biathlon tire toss. Participants would have to run laps in muck boots around the bunker and then operate the tire shooter to create a specified pattern on the bunker.

What attributes of a farmer translate well into being an Olympic athlete? In my opinion, no one works harder than farmers. Their strong work ethic would translate well into being an Olympic athlete. Farmers are up before the sun and often go to bed long after it sets. They work in all weather conditions and ever-changing circumstances. Farmers must think creatively, solve problems on the fly and stay strong in the face of adversity. They have an unwavering passion for their way of life in the same way Olympic athletes dedicate their lives to their sport.

What farm-related job should be considered an Olympic sport? Climbing the silo, leveling off the feed and getting the unloader started.

Tell us about your farm. My husband, Josh, and I farm with Josh’s parents, John and Julie Haag, at Haag Dairy LLC. We milk 115 Guernseys and Holsteins in a freestall/DeLaval voluntary milking system. We ship our milk to Rolling Hills Cooperative. We farm 200 acres and grow primarily silage corn and alfalfa. Josh and I have three young daughters — Kayleigh, Kelsey and Karlee. John and Josh run the day-to-day operations on the dairy. Julie and I both have primary jobs off the farm but help onsite in smaller roles.

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Shellie Kappelman

Manitowoc, Wisconsin

Manitowoc County

450 cows

Who is your favorite all-time Olympian? My favorite Olympian is Scott Hamilton, the 1984 Olympic gold medalist known for his signature backflip. He overcame a childhood brain tumor and has survived multiple bouts with cancer. Beyond his athletic career, he works as a skating commentator and analyst and founded the Scott Hamilton CARES Foundation in 2014 to support cancer research and awareness.

If you had to pick one winter Olympic sport to compete in, what would it be? I'm not athletic or adventurous, so Olympic sports aren't my strength. My husband jokes that I could try biathlon since I have skis and can shoot. We tried bobsledding once, but once was enough for me. If I had to pick, I'd go with alpine skiing. I've done it before, although I prefer board games in the chalet. Wait — maybe curling. It’s strategic, like a board game.

If you created an Olympic sport on the farm, what would the participants do and what would it be called? I would create a “Get the Right Part” relay. Here’s how it would go:

— Identify the part: Stare at the broken thing for at least 10 minutes. Invent names for it like “doohickey” or “that spinny thing.”

— Describe the problem: Phone a friend, a neighbor and, finally, your dad — none of whom know what you’re talking about but all have opinions.

— Locate the retailer: Drive to the nearest farm supply store. Realize you left your wallet at home. Drive back. Repeat as necessary.

— Explain it to the specialist: Attempt to draw the broken part on the back of a napkin. Watch the clerk squint, turn the napkin sideways and say, “Hmm.”

— Play charades: Act out what the part does using interpretive dance. Attract a small audience. Still, no one knows.

— Random guessing: The clerk hands you three similar-looking parts. You pick one at random, pay, and leave with optimism.

— Test and repeat: Return home. Discover it doesn’t fit. Go back to the store. The clerk greets you by name this time.

—Victory lap: Eventually acquire the right part on the third try. Install it, only to discover there’s another broken doohickey. The relay begins again.

What attributes of a farmer translate well into being an Olympic athlete? Like Olympic athletes, farmers train from an early age, commit to intense preparation and make sacrifices. They depend on advisors and teamwork for success. Their reward is sharing values with their families and finding the joy of a job well done. The thing is, no one is watching or cheering us on (usually), so we need to share our story.

What farm-related job should be considered an Olympic sport? Treating and tagging a new calf. The competitor must spot the newborn calf, gently wrangle it without stressing the animal and administer necessary treatments like vaccinations, nutritional supplements and colostrum. Speed and precision are critical as the athlete prepares the ear tag, records essential details and clips the tag onto the calf with one swift, accurate motion. Judges award points for calm handling, correct identification and record-keeping accuracy. The crowd cheers as the farmer completes the event — demonstrating teamwork, adaptability and care for animal welfare — a showcase of agility and dedication worthy of Olympic recognition.

Tell us about your farm. We have two farm entities: Meadow Brook Dairy Farms, owned in partnership with our son, Mitch, and his wife, McKenzie; and Tru-Ag Services, owned with our son-in-law and daughter, A.J. and Erin Kenneke. We milk 450 cows that are housed in free stalls and ship to Land O’ Lakes. We farm approximately 1,400 acres.