V8 Shorthorns is owned by Jim and Luann Williams and their children Rachel & Brandon Cutrer and Catherine & Luke Neumayr. Though ranching has been in the Williams’ family for over 100 years, Shorthorns are relatively new to the V8 Ranch operation. Jim’s grandfather, Lanier Forgason, was the original creator of the Forgason Division of J.D. Hudgins, Inc. Growing up in the cattle and rodeo business, Jim attended Texas A&M University-Kingsville on a college football scholarship for two years. After a devastating knee-injury, he was unable to continue in athletics and he transferred to Texas A&M University, where he received a degree in Animal Science in 1976.

After receiving his B.S. in Animal Science from Texas A&M University, Jim married his high-school sweetheart, Luann, and they returned to his family ranch in Boling, Texas where Jim became the manager of the V8 registered Brahman herd. Luann then left her job in medical records andhospital administration and began working as the office manager of the V8 Ranch, which is owned by Jim’s parents Sloan and Mollie Williams. Over the past 30 years, they have helped build the V8 herd of cattle into one of the most well-known Brahman cattle herds in the United States.

After 20 years of working on the Brahman herd, Jim and his family wanted a new project that they could work with together as a family and build from the ground up. They had used Brahman x Shorthorn recip cows on the ranch and liked the Shorthorn crossbreeding factor. Jim began studying more about the Shorthorn breed, and in 1986 they purchased their first Shorthorn female from Granada Shorthorns.

In 1989, the family set a goal for Rachel to win the “All Around” of the Texas Club Calf Association heifer division. Though her Brahmans were virtually unbeatable, she needed a second breed to help boost her point accumulation. So, our natural choice was Shorthorn cattle. By 1992, when Catherine became eligible to show in junior shows, we were hooked on Shorthorn cattle.

During their junior show careers, the Williams’ sisters enjoyed one of the most successful and dominating junior show programs in the history of the Shorthorn breed. Catherine especially took an interest in the Shorthorn breed over the Brahman breed and holds the record of exhibiting three back-to-back Junior National Champion Females (1999, 2000, and 2001)…a feat that has never been accomplished before or repeated after in the history of the breed. Both girls were very active in the American Junior Shorthorn Association, winning both national leadership contests and national champion showman awards. Rachel is a former President of the American Jr. Shorthorn Association, and Catherine is a former Vice-President of the AJSA and was awarded the highest honor bestowed on an AJSA member…Junior Breeder of the Year.

The entire Williams family strongly believes in giving back to the beef industry and especially to youth programs. We are happy to support junior show programs and currently award scholarships at both Texas A&M University and Michigan State University Departments of Animal Science. Jim, Rachel and Catherine assist many youngsters by giving showmanship clinics and advice to FFA and 4-Hers. Jim judges many shows across the nation where he travels to many state fairs, major shows, and even local and county shows to evaluate the cattle and motivate and encourage the exhibitors.

In leadership roles, both Jim and Luann have served as advisors to the Texas Junior Shorthorn Association. Jim is the American Shorthorn Association’s only three-time president. He is still very active on committees and long-range planning for the breed. He is a former chairman of the Texas Beef Council and former executive board member of the National Cattleman’s Beef Association. Rachel and Catherine have now stepped up to take more of an active role in the industry. Rachel serves on the NCBA’s Public Relations Committee and Catherine is the breeder chairman of the ASA’s Shorthorn Historical Preservation Society.

In addition to their activities on V8 Shorthorns, Rachel and Catherine also operate Ranch House Designs, Inc., a full service graphic design and communications firm that focuses on the agriculture industry.

The success of V8 Shorthorns would not be possible without the support and guidance from Travis and Beth Pembrook of Fairview, Oklahoma. Travis and Beth manage our show cattle and coordinate the showstring that competes at nearly 10 major stock shows each year. They joined the V8 Shorthorns team in 2003 and have been very instrumental in taking our open show program to an elite national level.

As you can see, the Williams family loves their involvement in the Shorthorn breed and the cattle industry. Through the years, God has blessed our family by allowing us to live the lifestyle we do and loving every minute of it. We believe in being good stewards of the land, and providing the animals on our ranch with the proper care, handling, and nutrition they deserve. We follow beef quality assurance and care guidelines on all animals on our ranch. We invite visitors to the ranch at any time, and we always enjoy meeting and getting to know fellow Shorthorn breeders at shows and sales throughout the year.