The Fergus Truck Show not only attracts the largest crowds of the three biggest festivals in Centre Wellington, it is the largest truck show in North America in paid attendance and also in the number of entries in the Show and Shine competition.
The Fergus Truck Show features over $150-million worth of trucks, trailers, equipment, accessories and more, on display.
Chief Operating Officer Wayne Billings said this year the show is offering a demolition derby for fans of all things automotive.
The Truck Show runs July 24 to 27 at the community centre, and it attracted over 60,000 people last year. It was started as a way to raise funds for the community centre, and later became a means for local volunteer groups to fundraise by working at the show. Each group that works gets to claim its hours, and those hours divide a share of the profits.
Billings said the truck pulls this year will be condensed to Friday and Saturday nights so the demolition derby can take over on Sunday.
Thrill Show Productions will be bringing the demolition derby team to town.
On July 24, there will be truck pulls, and admission is $5 only, and Billings said it is the evening the show hopes to attract a large number of locals.
The truck and tractor pulls this year include an American – Canadian rivalry heating up again.
Over 200 pullers from Canada and the USA will compete for over $75,000 in 25 different classes.
The pulls are sanctioned events by Empire State Pullers and the Great Lakes Truck & Tractor Pullers Association.
This year, the second track, which was added in 2007, will provide non stop pulling both Friday and Saturday evenings.
The Friday night will also be offering something a little different.
In the past, most of the shows offered country and western music. Last year, the show provided some classic rock to attract a different audience.
Billings said this year there are eight Canadian groups coming to play: Kim Mitchell, April Wine, and David Wilcox will perform.
Saturday afternoon the show will add a new twist with some bluegrass music by the Dixie Flyers, and Jessie Farrell a new comer in Canadian country music. On Saturday Night Canadian Juno nominated Gord Bamford who’s latest single is Stayed til two, and 2007 Canadian Country Music Award winner Aaron Pritchett, who won for his single Hold My Beer.
On Sunday Alex J. Robinson opens for Aaron Lines.
The Fergus Truck show attracts hundreds of people, and families of truckers from across North America often take their holidays to ensure they can attend and catch up with friends and families across North America. There are huge breakfasts and meals, and lots of camping.
Financial effect
One of the biggest attractions, besides all the industry displays, is the incredible artwork that some of the truckers have placed on their rigs. From abstract art to gold accents, the trucks themselves are a very big part of the show.
The Truck Show thousands of dollars in the community. The local groups who work at the Truck Show, for example, make hundreds and thousands of dollars for their volunteer work in the community.
The Fergus Truck Show offers families a chance to camp and meet. Billings stated that that there are very few unlet rooms locally. Two new hotels in Guelph have opened and are expected to be packed for the show.
Local merchants will also likely benefit from visitors who wander into the downtown.
Billings said local restaurants certainly benefit. Many people who come to the festival will either shop locally, and, in some cases, come back to visit the town at other times during the year, or recommend Fergus to friends.
Centre Wellington Economic Development Officer Dave Rushton that day visitors to the township usually spend an average of $100, and people who stay overnight often leave $250 or more.
In the case of Fergus, it is difficult to determine the economic effect, because many visitors stay right at the site.
Rushton added that it is difficult to quantify, but he suspects that spin-offs help attract some who visit for one purpose to return for other reasons at other times of the year.
“It’s the simply awareness that we exist” he said.
That means the Fergus Truck Show is spreading the name of the community far and wide at a time when visitors are at a premium.
For more information see the show website at www.fergustruckshow.com
