Difficult to decide which day to go to the fair
He’s a dynamo of energy. In spite of almost crippling arthritis and the challenge of preparing and arranging accommodation and maintenance of his pet project, the largest poultry show in Canada, Richard Grimard still has the time and energy to undertake the responsibilities and challenges of the president’s role at the oldest agricultural exhibition in Quebec and second in Canada.
Missisquoi County Fair, getting ready to open the gates on Wednesday evening, will present the 2015 edition of the 190th event of this kind in this corner of the world. A dyed-in-the-cloth feather fancier, (his favourites are the Wyandotte bantams), Grimard’s first project was modernizing and enlarging the small animals building where, in spite of cramped conditions, fair visitors, by their numbers coming through the doors, proved this could be a most popular spot.
“So we looked for sponsors and volunteers and succeeded in rounding up the necessities for doubling our avail- able space, sent out hundreds of invitations to feather fanciers and exhibitors I knew and, last year, tallied up over 800 birds, housed in a well ventilated and airy space.” Grimard still wonders at the crowds that walked the aisles, asking questions and admiring some of Quebec’s finest show birds. “I believe in answering questions and explaining why this or that bird was awarded a red ribbon,” this supposedly retired farm service expert said during an interview last week. “But this year, we’re already running out of space with well over 800 head of poultry or every size and color already registered.” Sure enough, we found him dismantling small cages to make larger ones for an influx of turkeys and pheasants. “It’s amazing, we have exhibitors from Ontario and New Brunswick and just about every corner of this province,” he explained, the stress of once again making room obvious.
Laying down hammer and saw for a few minutes, he talked about the resurgence of interest in these sometimes noisy creatures. “You know, poultry houses were scratching for exhibitors just a few years ago. But, maybe because they’re small and easy to look after, city kids want to know more about them, want to touch the feathers without fear and are interested in knowing why some birds have feathered heads and legs and others don’t. It’s quite a world and the kids love it,” he says, picking up his hammer meaningfully and commenting there was still a lot of work to do. “I believe in this fair and in county fairs in general,” he added. “Young people today don’t know where their food comes from and here, they can get a hands-on experience,” he said, adding he would be giving a conference on egg incubation, (there’s an incubator in this small animals building) and poultry breeds on Friday morning. Also on Friday, just outside this new building, a conference on dairy cows with interactive participation for adults and children is scheduled at 1 p.m. “We were well pleased with attendance last year and seeing the numbers increase gives us hope this fair is back on track to bigger and greater events in the near future,” the president concluded.
But it hasn’t always been easy. A quarter century ago, attendance began to slip. Some bad choices for investments in spite of consideration of the pros and cons resulted in huge debt and dwindling crowds. It’s been a long struggle to regain the glory days of 30 to 40,000 folks streaming through the gates, but the last few fairs have shown numbers rising slowly.
“We are so close to the south shore and the city of Montreal, interest in the hands-on farming experience has all but disappeared and fair organizers must devise a program that will persuade people there’s something worth seeing on the other side of the fair gates,” Maud Cote, society secretary explained. So organizers have stepped back and taken a look at what could interest urban folk and soon realized bringing in popular musical groups, recognizing today’s young folks are more interested in small animals such as poultry, pigeons, rabbits, guinea pigs, (the type of critter found in pet shops) and plenty of mechanical things such as the giant machinery used in this area of cash cropping.
At this fair, folks will see some of the largest cropping machinery, including cultivators, seeders and fertilizer spreaders, giant rock pickers, harvesters, silo filling equipment parked right next to a display of antique farm tractors and equipment, proving agriculture is still a major contributor to the local economy.
Cote, in her second term as secretary but with 12 years working at the fair office under her belt, is also bursting with news about this year’s event. “We have a blacksmith competition going for two afternoons,” she announced. Apparently, local farriers will gather at this year’s fair anxious to show off their prowess with the forge and anvil, forming horseshoes using tried and true methods hundreds of years old. Exactly how a competition of this sort of event is calculated is still a bit of mystery — is it based on speed to produce the finished horseshoe or is the quality and shaping of the steel considered. Folks will just
have to take time to watch and appreciate as straight bars of steel are heated and shaped to fit whatever size of hoof is called for.
“And another thing,” Cote could hardly contain her excitement. “We will have a re-enactment of a battle in the War of 1812, complete with uniforms, guns, (of course firing blanks and making the usual smoke), and showing off the practiced discipline of warfare circa 1812.” Missisquoi County is a historical corner of the Townships with memorials and memorabilia at the Stanbridge East Museum, a trail up Eccles Hill where opposing forces once gathered although few shots were fired and documentation readily available describing the effect of this war on this particular corner of the Americans battle plans. This presentation will be Thursday evening at 7 p.m.
Friday is Kiddies’ Day with special events and of course, a reduced admission price planned. Free pony rides, a new petting farm where, with large and small animals separated, youngsters will have the chance to mingle with the smaller furry and feathered friends and admire the larger animals from a safe distance. Free pony rides are also on the program and a spinning demonstration in the crafts section is also planned at 11 a.m. There’s the option of a free minitrain ride for kids of all ages and the Bedford Camp de Jour are planning a variety show as well.
Anyone planning a trip to Bedford, (Missisquoi County Fair will have a difficult time choosing just one day to attend. There are horse pulling competitions on the program along with a demolition derby on a different night, farm tractor, stock, super stock, pro stock, and semi-trailer pulls on Sunday, sanctioned by the ASTTQ. Lawn tractor racing takes off Saturday at 3:30 p.m. and a guided tour of farm animals takes place Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. There are prize draws on Friday and the annual sweepstakes drawing on Sunday at 4 p.m. It’s not unreasonable to consider a “friends of the fair” pass for $35, allowing admission to the four fair days plus one admission to the Auto Fest at the end of the month. For information visit the website — expobedford.com or call 450-248-2817.