Rejuvenated Kincardine Fall Fair developing into a popular agricultural exhibition

By: Liz Dadson September 7, 2015 2621

Rejuvenated Kincardine Fall Fair developing into a popular agricultural exhibition

The 2015 Kincardine Fall Fair has certainly developed into a popular agricultural exhibition that is working with its community and striving to meet both the needs of young families and the interests of all the district´s residents.

Last year, saw the renewal of interest in the Ambassador Competition and the 2014 winner, Sadie Shewfelt, has been masterful in her planning and showcasing of the talents of hundreds of volunteers and interested parties.

Not only did the number of qualified contestants (Halley Allen, Christine Benney, Lara Clubb, Kelsey Padfield,) increase for this year´s competition but Sadie brilliantly advertised and organized a truly entertaining and fun-fllled fall fair dance. The dance celebrated what the parade showcased earlier in the day: tremendous enthusiasm and talent from local families and volunteers, including this year's Ambassador of the Fair: Hailey Allen!

The 2015 Ambassador Competition had tremendous candidates this year and the Friday evening showcase was packed in attendance. Entertainment was provided by talented local artists: Annie Colquhoun, Scottish Dancing, and the brother-sister pair of Irelyn Nixon, Irish Dancing, and Owen Nixon, Irish Fiddle. Speeches were magnificent and the judges had a tough decision, with Hailey being selected this year´s ambassador.

Just as Sadie did two weeks ago, Hailey will compete in the 2016 Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) in the ambassador competition, with community and agricultural society ambassadors from all over Ontario.

The number of exhibitors was up this year in many classes at the fair but the celebration of the local talent and agricultural abilities of people from far and wide was capped with the successful return of the Saturday Night Fall Fair dance. The members of the Ripley Agricultural Society kindly provided the safe-serve services that enabled the dance to offer a wide array of beverages and a hot lunch.

The evening´s entertainment began at 7 p.m. with Steve Deer and Friends, followed at 10 p.m. by DJ Ryan "The Buzzman" Berry. About 150 people attended the dance and the dance-floor was filled from the very beginning with dance-enthusiasts from our community who were able to show younger generations a few things about the two-step, waltz, and swing. The enthusiasm for dance was seamless as the entertainers transitioned while continuing to meet the interests of the crowd.

Now to the fair and its competition results:

Fall Fair Ambassador:

Hailey Allen is the 2015 Kincardine Fall Fair Ambassador. The judges made their decision Friday evening, in a competition that showcased young performers and two fashion shows by the ambassador candidates: Christine Benney, Lara Clubb, Kelsey Padfield, and Hailey Allen.

Congratulations to all of these wonderful young women.

Quilt Raffle:

Saturday at 3 p.m., the draw was made and the luck winner is Sandy MacLeod of Point Clark who won the beautiful blue-and-white quilt. The Scott family of Kincardine won the second prize, a crocheted wool afghan (blanket).

Parade:

In the Decorated Bicycle or Tricycle class, three-year-old Abigail Norcliffe won hands down. In the Decorated Scooter Class, Audrey Smith won $20 for first prize while Margaret Humphrey won $10 for second.

In the Family Float competition, the Craig Family placed first, followed closely by the Holtby Family and the Harvey McKay family float.

In the Commercial Float section, first place went to Homefront Acres, followed by Cottrill´s Heavy Equipment and Country Depot.

In the section of Float with Live Music, capturing first place in style was the Kincardine Community Concert Band. But the Craig Family was not outdone with a creative rendition of Sewing our Genes with a variety of bluegrass for second prize. Third prize went to the Shriners.

In the section Organizational Float, the Ripley Fall Fair placed first, followed by the Shriners and the Kincardine Fire Department.

In the Antique Vehicle or Tractor section, Dave Fritz placed first, followed by Bill Ballantyne in second and Wayne Palmateer was a close third.

Congratulations to all entrants and we look forward to next year´s creativity by these excellent exhibitors.

Fair Poster Competition:

Emma Hori won first while Laura McTiernan won second.

Showcasing the strong artistic talent and culinary technique of many in Kincardine and area, the fair had categories of Culinary Arts, Garden Produce, and Quilting.

In the Culinary Arts: Karen Whittle and Diane Atkinson tied with an overall of 23 points each and Colleen Craig was third with 19 points. Dianne Atkinson won for her Jam Special as well as the Bernardin Jelly Special. The Best in Show went to Karen Whittle. Dianne Atkinson also won the Bernardin Gift Pack Special and the Creative Craft Award. Colleen Craig won the Crisco Family Favourite Tarts and her dad, Ken Craig, won the Men´s Special. In the Best Shortbread division Dianne Atkinson won. For the Robin Hood Family Favourite section, Joan MacIntosh won with her Chocolate Chip Cookie.

In the Garden Produce section, highest points went to Joke Gutter while the New Exhibitor with the highest points was won by Li Bo. He also won for the Theme Special: Blue Jeans and Country Dreams Table Centrepiece. The winner in the section, Display from my Garden was Betty Jean White.

In the Plants and Flowers sections, the Grand Champion was Shirley Hartwick with 26 points (prize donated by Quinn Florist - $30 Gift Certificate) and the Reserve Grand Champion was Bonnie Plater with 17 points (prize donated by Smeltzer´s Garden Centre - $20 gift certificate).

In the category of First Year Exhibitors, Bonnie Plater won (prize donated by Huron Landscaping - $30 gift certificate) while Li Bo was second with six points (prize donated by Kincardine Home Hardware - $25 gift certificate).

In the Quilts Section, the Grand Champion Quilt, hand-quilted, was by Betty Jean White of Kincardine. The Reserve Champion, hand-quilted, was by Elsie Schuler of Teeswater. Both the Grand Champion and Reserve Grand Champion Quilts, machine-quilted, were by Christine Wells.

The most points in sections 1-14 were Katherine Gowing of Tiverton and in sections 15-44 Bessie Farrell of Kincardine had the most number of points. In Class 10, New Exhibitor Section, Christine Wells won and the Overall Judge's Choice went to Elsie Schuler (quilt at right).

In the Junior Baking, competition was stiff. In the sections of a loaf of bread, Dana Craig won first, followed by Emma Hori and Nicole Davey respectively. In the Robin Hood Squares section, Dana Craig won first, followed in second by Emma Hori and Nicole Davey in third. in the section, Chocolate Chip Cookie Competition, Lydia Ritchie placed first with Emma Hori in close second, followed by Dana Craig in third.

In the Junior Flowers, most points went to Grace Schweighofer with six points while Laura McTiernan was second with three points.

In the Junior Vegetables, Jerri Li won both highest points and the highest points as a new exhibitor.

In the Junior Arts and Crafts, AGAIN, a big thank you to the tremendous entries from all contestants, both in terms of quality as well as the number of eager contestants. The theme for the students was the fair´s theme of Blue Jeans and Country Dreams. There was a tie for Most Points with Rhys Thompson and Emma Hori, while second place went to new exhibitor Jordan Fidler, and Dana Craig winning third place. In the section of drawing of pet, first went to Rhys Thompson, second to Kelsey Thompson, and third to Liberty Martin. In Craft using a paper plate, Rhys Thompson was first, Kelsey Thompson second, Liberty Martin third, Caleb Martin fourth, and Jacob Dykeman was fifth.

In Toilet Paper Roll Animal, Kelsey Thompson was first, Caleb Martin second, Rhys Thompson third, and Liberty Martin fourth. In Painting with Hand-Print, Rhys Thompson was first, followed by Liberty Martin, Caleb Martin, Kelsey Thompson respectively. In Handmade Card, Jordan Fidler was first, followed by Graham Schweighofer, Tessa King, Reid Schweighofer, Grace Schweighofer, Emma Hori, and John Emmet Wright respectively. In Collage, Jordan Fidler was first, Reid Schweighofer second, Emma Hori third, Nicole Davey fourth, and Graham Schweighofer fifth.

In the section, Vehicle from Recycled Items, Jordan Fidler won hands down. In the Woven Article, Grace Schweighofer was first, followed closely by Laura McTiernan, Nicole Davey, Emma Hori, Tessa King. In Craft Using Denim, Graham Schweighofer won, Reid Schweighofer second, Grace Schweighofer third, and Jordan Fidler and Nicole Davey rounding out fourth and fifth places respectively. In Painting, any media, Kathleen Wright was first, followed closely by Molly King and Dana Craig. Daisy McAllister won Crocheted Item while Will Davey won Pencil Sketch.

In the Open Arts & Crafts, the Most Points were awarded to Katherine MacDonald, while tied for second were Karen Thompson Riley and Sandra MacDonald. Third place was Amanda Riley and Bryn Holmes won fourth. Katherine MacDonald won first in Nature - any media, Pen-Ink, while Hailey Allen won for Door Decoration. Betty Jean White won for her entry in Blue Jean Shopping Bag, followed in second by Karen Thompson Riley and Katherine Gowing in third.

Katherine MacDonald also won first in Halloween Decoration and Message Board, with Bryn Holmes following in second place in the latter. Katherine MacDonald also won for her entries in Decorative Painting - Wood and Decorative Painting - Non wood. Sandra MacDonald won first in Handmade Greeting Card, followed in second place by Karen Thompson Riley and Arlene Thompson in third. Bryn Holmes won first in Jewellery Set, while Katherine MacDonald received Thanks for Exhibiting in Garden Art.

In the section, Bazaar Item, Katherine MacDonald was first, Amanda Riley second, Emily Ferreira third, Katherine Gowing fourth, and Arlene Thompson fifth. Katherine Gowing won first place in the Handmade Article - Burlap/Blue Jean, followed by Karen Thompson Riley. In the Any New Craft category, Amanda Riley was first, followed by Anne Holmes in second, Hailey Allen third, and Bryn Holmes fourth. Katherine MacDonald won many of the Christmas-related sections, with first in the Christmas Card section, followed by Arlene Thompson and Sandra MacDonald respectively. The remaining Christmas-themed sections were won by Katherine MacDonald: Christmas Tags, Christmas Decorations, Centre Piece, and Decorated Sleigh.

In the Photography section, Arlene Thompson was the overall winner in the Singles section with 12 points, followed by Tawny Robinson with 11, and Amanda Riley, eight points. In the Group section, Tawny Robinson won first with 18 points, followed by Karen Thompson Riley and Arlene Thompson, with 10 and seven points respectively.

In the Junior Photography section, top points were awarded to Grace Schweighofer, with 20 points, followed by Molly King with 11 points, and Caleb Martin with seven points.

In the Pedal Tractor Pull, Noah J. was first with under 40, while William D. was first with under 60, and Kaden F. was first with over 60.

In the Bale-Rolling and -Throwing competition, the Girls section was won by Lauren with 17-and-a-half feet, followed by Zöe in second with 12 feet, and Hailey in third with 11 feet and one inch. In the Boys section, Parker threw 12 feet, four inches, while Brody N. followed closely in second throwing 11 feet four inches. Owen Farrell threw seven feet, seven inches for third place.

In the Ladies Bale Toss, there was a lot of trash-talking between the Murrays and Craigs, with the competition being fierce indeed! Colleen Craig threw down the gauntlet with a throw of 22 feet, three inches, with mother Nancy Craig following close behind with 20 feet seven inches. Rachel Murray threw an impressive 19 feet, five inches for third place, and providing further evidence that Rugby training will get you that much further in life!

In the Men's toss, the posturing was a little less but the throws were just as impressive. Brock Farrell threw 29 feet, eight inches, followed closely in second place by Bryan Huitema with a throw of 26 feet, 10 inches. Jay Eddy closed out the competition with a throw of 21 feet, eight inches.

Turning to the livestock categories, the Kincardine Agricultural Society´s Poultry Exhibition had its largest show to date with close to 400 entries.

In the Junior Competition, Best Bird was a pair of Pekin Ducks, shown by Bryn Holmes of Walkerton. The Junior Best Large Fowl was won by Ryan Colvin of Teeswater with his Golden Laced Wyandotte; Ryan also won for Junior Best Bantam with his Old English Game White. The best Junior Duck went to Bryn Holmes' Pekin.

The Overall Grand Champion entry, of young and old alike, went to James Tilt of Paris, for his Brahma Buff Hen.

The best Standard Poultry was exhibited by James Tilt with his Leghorn AOC hen. The Best Male Standard was Ryan Colvin's Dark Brahma rooster, while James Tilt's Leghorn AOC was the best Standard Female.

In the Bantam classes, the best Bantam overall and best Bantam Female was James Tilt's Grand Champion Brahma Buff hen, while the Best Male Bantam also went to James Tilt for his Wyandotte rooster.

In the Waterfowl sections, the best overall waterfowl went to James Tilt's African gander, which also won best goose/gander, while the Best Duck overall was James Tilt's White Muscovy duck.

In the 4-H Beef Invitational, Madison Beishuizen had the Champion Calf while Bailey McConnell was the Champion Showperson.

In the Open Beef Competition, the Breeder´s Herd competition was won by Tammy Ribey. while Stan Conquergood won the Exotic Breeder´s Herd and the Champion Beef animal.

In the Dairy Show, in the Open section, Junior Showmanship, Sonja Rechsteiner of Listowel won first, followed by Philly Baumberger of Port Elgin in second place, with Katja Rechsteiner, of Listowel and Mollie King of Kincardine rounding out third and fourth places.

In the Intermediate Showmanship, Emily Thornburn of Paisley topped her class, with Ashley McConnell of Kincardine placing second, Anna deBoer of Brussels in third, and Charlene Elliott of Kitchener in fourth.

In the Junior Champion Animal section, Norval McConnell of Kincardine won both Grand and Reserve Champions.

In the Senior Animal Section, Norval McConnell won Grand Champion, while Stefan Gubelmann of Walton won Reserve. The Honourable Mention went to Stefan Gubelmann as well.

In the Best Three-Year-Old section, Norval McConnell was first. In the Breeder´s Herd, Stefan Gubelmann won and the Best Udder Trophy went to Norval McConnell.

In the Horse Show, Elsa Jilesen on Jack won Tyke lead line. Gail Pletsch on Gem was first in English Pleasure, followed by Faith Duncombe on Sierra in second place. In the English Equitation, Faith Duncombe on Sierra was first followed by Gail Pletsch on Gem. In the Open Hunter Hack, Gail Pletsch on Gem was first with Faith Duncombe on Sierra in second. In the Open Hunter section, Gail Pletsch on Gem was first with Faith Duncombe on Sierra second. In the Open Hunter section, Gail Pletsch on Gem stole the show while Faith Duncombe was second on Sierra.

In the Prime Time Equitation, Gail Pletsch on Gem continued to dominate with Beth Jilesen on Rose second. In the Open Showmanship, Bronwyn Irwin on Apache's Gold Nugget was first, while Beth Jilesen was second on Rose. In the Open Halter section, Bronwyn Irwin was first again followed by Beth Jilesen. Lastly, Bronwyn Irwin on Apache's Golden Nugget was first in the Western Horsemanship while Beth Jilesen on Rose was second.

-- Fall Fair results provided by Watson Morris