Tractor pull
MP to host three new Ex events
The Peterborough Exhibition began as a celebration of the work farmers do, Peterborough MP Dean Del Mastro says. And while it’s grown to include carnival rides, music and more over the past century and a half, agriculture remains at its heart.
After telling reporters Friday he plans to be a big part of this year’s Ex, Del Mastro grabbed hold of a rope and pulled his sixtonne John Deere tractor through the parking lot at the Peterborough Agricultural Society at Morrow Park.
Pulling tractors, he explained, will be part of the Farmers’ Games at this year’s Ex. He’ll host the event on the afternoon of Aug. 8 at Morrow Park, giving farmers a chance to test their skill at hay-bale rolling, trough filling, grain-bag carrying and, of course, tractor dragging.
Before that, though, the MP will lead a tractor parade from Selwyn Outreach Centre on Lakefield Rd. to the park.
And on Aug. 11, Del Mastro will host a free pancake breakfast at the Ex.
It’s all about celebrating this area’s agricultural heritage and recognizing the contributions of farmers, he said.
"What they do is hard work," he said. "It pays a lot back to this community, and it always has."
Del Mastro, who owns and runs a farm in Otonabee-South Monaghan, joked that he and Otonabee-South Monaghan Deputy Reeve Joe Taylor plan to team up to represent the township in the Farmers’ Games.
“Pride’s on the line,” he laughed before demonstrating tractor pulling with his own John Deere, a six-tonne 100-horsepower model. Rope in hand, he managed to pull it a few yards before asking Ryan Moore, president of the agricultural society, to grab on and lend a hand.
The 168th annual Ex runs Aug. 8 to 11 at Morrow Park and the Memorial Centre. It will feature agricultural exhibitions and competitions, a midway, food, games and more.
The tractor parade opens the event, leaving from the Selwyn Outreach Centre at 1 p.m. after a barbecue lunch for participants.
Anyone interested in taking part is asked to register in advance via the Ex website, www.peterboroughex.ca. Tractor drivers are asked to gather at the Selwyn site at 11 a.m.
The games then take place beginning at 3 p.m. at Morrow Park.
The pancake breakfast will run from 9 to 11 a.m. on Aug. 11, with children 12 and under receiving free admission to the Ex during that time.