President David Skorton got off on the right foot at the 161st New York State Fair in Syracuse Aug. 23 by taking the Cornell Cooperative Extension's (CCE) "Choose Health" walking challenge, a 4-H initiative.

Upon arrival Skorton and his entourage, including son Josh, were presented with pedometers by Barbara Schirmer, New York State 4-H Youth Development Program leader and 4-H youth members Alicia Keller of Genesee County and Collin Render of Lewis County.

The president clipped his step counter on his belt and joined 1,700 young 4-H members in the new "Choose Health" program that is aimed at reducing childhood obesity and educating children about healthy lifestyles in New York state. CCE runs the 4-H program, which serves more than 468,000 young people in the state.

All 4-H members at the fair are keeping track of their steps on the job to see which county group walks the most during its four-day stay. At the end of the fair the totals will be converted to miles to show how far the 4-H'ers walked as a group, Schirmer said.

The initiative is a challenge close to the Cornell president's heart: Skorton is a cardiologist who has worked in pediatrics and is a member of the Weill Cornell Medical College faculty in New York City.

"The time to make changes is early in life, and this is great motivational tool," he told reporters gathered near the Chevrolet Court stage area on the fairgrounds. "So many things in our lives conspire against us being healthy. People can make the fair a healthy experience by walking around a lot and choosing wisely what they eat. It's an uphill battle we all have to fight, and the 4-H program is making it easier," Skorton said.

Since good nutrition is a big part of the "Choose Healthy" program, Schirmer said 4-H members will use global positioning devices and maps to locate where healthy food vendors are on the fairgrounds That's a challenge in itself at an event as much known for its deep-fried wonders as its agricultural exhibits.

Skorton hoofed it through a five-hour tour that included five interviews with broadcast news and the Associated Press -- and one with the 4-H teen press club. He also delivered a short address at the opening ceremony, mingled with state officials, including Patrick Hooker, the state commissioner of agriculture, a Cornell grad. Skorton also paid a visit to the Art and Home Center to see Cornell's 2007 Earth Day Eco-Fashion Dress display promoting the university's commitment to sustainability. The exhibit, created by a team of designers from Cornell's Office of Publications and Marketing, features a gown made of hundreds of partially shredded pages from old brochures, pamphlets and booklets sewn to a discarded prom dress. From there the president lunched at Baker's Chicken Coop, established by the late Cornell professor emeritus of animal science Robert C. Baker, whose North Lansing family has presided over the fair's chicken emporium for 58 years. The Baker family was presented with a lifetime achievement award by state fair officials during the opening ceremonies.

Skorton and son Josh then got a lesson on a GPS device from 4-H members and navigated the dessert hazards to the CCE building where the president visited 4-H and Museum of the Earth exhibits. Father and son also partook of "Dance Dance Revolution," a computerized dance-step game that was part of the Choose Health fitness trail.

By the end of Skorton's visit in the mid-afternoon, he had tallied 5, 793 steps -- more than halfway to a healthy daily total, according to experts.