Inside Look is a Star series that takes our readers behind the scenes of some of the most well-known and not-so-well-known places and events in Kansas City.
One weekend each year, alpaca farmers from around the country flock to Kansas City for the MOPACA Invitational Alpaca Show and the Mid America Alpaca Challenge.
At the MOPACA Invitational, alpacas come in all shapes and sizes, from miniature, felted alpaca keychains and small stuffed alpacas, to the real, live alpacas being judged in show.
Hundreds of the fuzzy, South American mammals can be found March 22-24 at Hale Arena at the American Royal Center in Kansas City’s historic West Bottoms neighborhood. This year marks the 21st year of the MOPACA Invitational Alpaca Show, and the third year of the Mid America Alpaca Challenge.
At the show, alpaca pins line the arena where show-goers can see the camelid creatures while they wait to be evaluated by judges. In the halter and walking fleece shows, the alpacas are brought by their owners to the center ring, where they are judged based on the quality of their fleece and conformation.
Some of the judging criteria for the fleece includes fineness and handle, uniformity of micron and color, character, crimp and staple type, density and brightness, Absence of guard hair, impurities/stains/fleece damage, lock structure and density luster.
People of all ages love to see the alpacas’ goofy personalities and the products made from their fleece. Visitors of the show can watch alpaca fiber being spun into yarn, woven into rugs and shawls, and shop for alpaca products such as sweaters, socks, and scarves, according to the MOPACA website.
Alpacas can produce about 5-10 pounds of strong, soft, and warm lightweight fleece per year when sheered, according to the Alpaca Owners Association. MOPACA says alpacas are the perfect small livestock, as they don’t require a lot of land, are easy on the earth, and are generally safe and pleasant to be around.