Central Texas most of people at sales are retired age , the national average age of farmers is 57 , ever the buyers are 50's and older, the younger ranchers have a main job to make a living and cattle are a side line. In the 1950's people were able to make a living off a few hundred acres of land , today noway, The weekly cattle sales numbers at local barn is half what it was few years ago and the other one in the County has closed after being in business 50 years from lack on cattle numbers, with the way the land is being sold off and put into small 5 to 10 acres lots and the large ranches are being high fenced and turned into game ranches in 20 years there will not be many cattle left in the area. I think this is a national trend where the large ranches are being sold and made into recreational ranches, the true ranchers and their life style are a dying breed and are becoming extinct . How many people on this forum are true ranchers and are able to make a living ranching. I now at heart we all are true cattlemen and would love to live that life style year round but financial situations will not let that happen. So lets hang in there and adapt to the changes to keep the life style going as long as possible . It just makes me sad to see my memories of the way I was raised a thing of the past and the young kids do not even know where their food comes from or how it is produced.