Fix your mullet and grab your racing zucchini; Palmerston Fair runs Aug. 21 to 23

PALMERSTON – First, it’s not the Palmerston Fall Fair, just the Palmerston Fair.

“I’ve been working for 20 years to get ‘fall’ out of our title,” said Angela Schneider, the Palmerston Agricultural Society’s secretary, who made time for an interview in the midst of some mad planning.

“It feels like summer is over when you call it a fall fair, and there’s still plenty of summer to go.”

Second, the theme this year is Barn Doors and Farm Chores, which is a cute way to brand this year’s exhibitor entries and crafts, and perhaps to inspire costumes for the pet competition.

But at its heart, the fair is about agriculture and community, Schneider said.

“We remind people where their food comes from,” she said, adding the fair is also a time for locals to see people they haven’t seen for years and for those who have moved away to return to their roots.

“It does feel like a homecoming. You get to see and catch up with people you don’t normally get to see.”

Third, while the fair officially runs Aug. 21 to 23, it actually begins ahead of that.

Wednesday: Ambassador to the Fair contest

On Aug. 19 local youth will compete for the much coveted junior and senior Ambassador Fair titles.

The competition is not a beauty contest anymore. Fair ambassadors spend their year attending events and representing the community in and outside of Palmerston, affording an opportunity to build leadership, public speaking and networking skills. It is open to all genders.

Junior ambassador participants must be eight to 12 years of age and senior ambassador participant must be 17 to 22 years of age prior to Aug. 20 this year.

The junior ambassador travels with the senior ambassador to many events throughout the year including the Santa Claus Parade and Pumpkin Palooza.

Doors at the Palmerston Community Centre open at 6:30pm and the competition begins at 7:30pm. Participants will make speeches and answer interview questions posed by the panel of judges. Admission is by donation.

On Aug. 20, exhibitors bring their baking, vegetables, crafts and other entries to the community centre and they are judged the next day by a panel of judges.

Friday: Parade and Taste of Minto

Fair weekend begins on Friday with a parade to usher everyone into the fairgrounds, outside the Palmerston Community Centre.

Parade assembly is at 5:45pm and the parade begins at 6:30.

The children’s village inside the grounds opens at 7pm. Children must have a wristband at a cost of $10, but it’s good for the entire weekend, Schneider said.

The big draw on Friday night is A Taste of Minto, which offers a sampling of locally grown beef, pork, vegetables and beverages.

“It started off as a way to get the commodity groups together,” Schneider said. “Beef and pork groups and those with farm gate businesses.

“It’s grown to become quite a sampling event with all the food locally grown. This is what’s in our neighbourhood.”

Taste of Minto is in the Palmerston Curling Club, next door to the community centre/arena.

Saturday: Food, games, auction of champions

Saturday is probably the biggest day of the fair, Schneider said.

The arena opens at 9am, but the local Kinette Club is offering a pancake breakfast from 8am to 10am; there’s a tailgate garage sale in the parking lot from 8am to 11am, and a farmer’s market at the Heritage Railway Museum from 9am to noon.

Once on the grounds, visitors will find all their favourites – a tractor show, pet show, Party Safari, the baby show, inflatables in the children’s village, games and crafts and hockey skills interactive games.

There will be entertainers, food trucks, and lots to see and do.

The Auction of Champions begins at 3pm, where beef, pork, pies and cakes are auctioned off. This is a fundraiser for the Palmerston Agricultural Society, which organizes the fair. Proceeds are donated to a number of local causes, like the hospital, fire department, Women in Crisis, and children’s food programs.

The junior and senior corn hole tournaments begin at 4:30pm; live music by The Consolers begins in the beer garden at 4pm. And you won’t want to miss the corn eating contest or the mullet competition and moustache and beard contest.

“Everyone was sporting mullets a few years back, so we thought we’d have a contest,” Schneider explained, adding this is mainly for kids.

Sunday: horse show, dog show, zucchini race

Sunday tends to be quieter.

It begins with local churches coming together for a service at 10am.

The children’s village is still on and there are the horse show demonstrations and the dog agility show.

But the big draw is probably the zucchini race, where contestants put wheels on a zucchini and race them down a track for fun and prizes.

“It’s quite wild as there is no steering,” Schneider said. “All you can do is hope for the best. It draws quite a crowd and is the highlight of the day.”

If enough tickets are pre-sold, there will be a fish fry dinner from 4:30 to 6:30pm hosted by the Palmerston Junior Broomball and National Junior Tournament Committee.

Schneider said information about the fish fry, and other fair updates, can be found on their social media platforms.

It takes an army of volunteers to organize and operate the fair, Schneider said. This is the 147th edition, so organizers have it down to a science.

“But the people who come and volunteer, there are too many to count. We are very grateful for their help,” she said.

All the specific details and schedules for the Palmerston Fair can be found at palmerstonfair.ca.