The Norfolk County Fair and Horse Show, Oct. 3-9, kicks off Tuesday at the fairgrounds in Simcoe.
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“We are back to full fair, full rides,” said Angela Hogeveen, fair general manager/treasurer. “We’re seeing it at our neighboring fairs, people are ready to come back and people are looking for experiences and memories. So we’re hopeful that this is going to be an even bigger, better fair. People are ready.”
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More than 50 food vendors will be featured, including many local and historical options.
“Sweet and tasty, you name it,” said Hogeveen. “We’ve got any fair snack you could dream of – it’s incredible.”
It might be the dixie dogs, fudge, taffy, crumble crisp, candy apples, cotton candy, ribs, blooming onions or so many others, everyone is excited for the fair food, she said.
“It’s really incredible how many people look forward to their favorites at the fair. People are really passionate about it and looking forward to it – it really is part of the whole experience.”
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New food options this year include Philthy Philly’s, Cheeseheadz and The Dipped Dessert Club.
World’s Finest Shows ride-all-day passes ($40) are available in advance before the fair starts at Roulston’s, or online (norfolkcountyfair.com) until Oct. 2.
Grandstand entertainment, starting at 7 pm, includes FMX World Tour freestyle motocross on Tuesday, Edge Motorsports demolition derby Wednesday, and Monster Truck Madness Thursday.
Party on the Track concerts are Friday (The Reklaws) and Saturday (Alli Walker and Josh Ross) night. Tickets, which include general admission to the fair, are available at norfolkcountyfair.com.
Sunday evening is the OTTPA Grand Daddy Tractor Pull, 7 pm, and Monday evening is the demolition derby championships, 6 pm There is live entertainment throughout the fair.
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Considered to be the third largest agricultural fair in Ontario, behind the CNE and Royal Winter Fair, it is also one of the oldest at 183 years.
“We are the fair that everybody remembers, and we are excited to be ‘full force,’” said Hogeveen. “For a little town, we can leave the fair.”
The Norfolk County Agricultural Society’s mission and vision is to continue promoting ‘ag’ in the community.
“It’s the reason we exist – keeping alive the agricultural roots of our community.”
There is an ‘ag awareness’ area in the CIBC Auditorium. There are cattle shows, llama shows, poultry and rabbit exhibits, and of course, horse shows. Arts, crafts, vegetables, and baking are also exhibited.
“We’re the Norfolk County Fair ‘and Horse Show,’ so the horse shows are an important part of it. We’ve just invested some resources into improving our horse show rings to improve the quality of competitors we get, and potentially attract other horse shows throughout the year.”
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There are daily competitions, from heavy horses to miniature horses, hunter horses, jumper horses, Belgian, Percheron, Clysdales and Haflingers. More than $100,000 in prize money is awarded annually.
It all kicks off Tuesday morning with Young Canada Day.
“I think that is a force to be reckoned with,” said Hogeveen. “If anyone has not seen the grandstand activities that take place on Tuesday morning, I don’t even know how to describe it… other than, you have to see it and feel it to understand the energy and school spirit.”
Students, wearing school colors, fill the grandstand and cheer for running, tug of war, cheerleading and school spirit competitions.
“It’s amazing and I don’t think there is anything else like it short of something like Friday Night Lights in the States. Just that school spirit and that energy… it’s incredible.”
It all happens with a passionate and dedicated team and volunteer force, said Hogeveen.
“There are hundreds of volunteers, committees, and we’ve got nine full-time staff – they all know their roles and what they need to do to get it done. And of course, we bring in a lot of temporary staff, not only on the grounds but some in office staff that are here for about a month or so.”
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