TILLSONBURG Organizers of the Tillsonburg Tri-County Agricultural Society Fair were not sure what attendance would be like in the 168th year of the fair.
After a two-year pandemic pause, the fair, held Aug. 19 to 21, smashed recent attendance records.
“It’s been an overwhelming weekend,” said Rosemary Dean, president of the Tillsonburg Tri-County Agricultural Society.
She said Friday and Saturday night attendance “broke records.”
Pleased with their Friday night mini-tractor pull, Big Creek Tractor Pullers Association said it was their ‘best audience in years.’
On Saturday night, members of Tillsonburg AGM performed live music at the Kinsmen bandshell.
“Great music and we appreciate them coming out,” said Dean.
Karl (Paz) Pazdernik brought his unique brand of hockey humor to the fair, performing three times Saturday and Sunday.
“We loved the Hockey Circus Show – he’s got a great sense of humor and he knows how to interact with the crowd,” said Dean.
“We had Titan Trailers here (Sunday) and he also did a show just for them.”
Saturday afternoon’s ice cream eating contest had four categories with ice cream donated by Shaw’s Ice Cream.
“We had a little tykes/kids area and it got so busy. That was new this year, we wanted to target that age group and people said it was a great idea, so we’ll continue that.”
It rained off-and-on Sunday, but Dean said it didn’t hurt attendance.
“We were worried but we accommodated people and we had a great (demolition) derby. We said it would be ‘rain or shine’ and it was a very healthy derby crowd.”
Edge Motorsports provided Sunday afternoon’s demolition derby in three categories, including small-size cars and vans, and the bleachers filled up.
“Our midways were busy – it was packed on Saturday,” said Dean.
“This was the first year we sold out pre-sale ride wrist bands. That was a nice sign that something good was coming… we sold out 500 of them. We’ve never had that happen before.”
A couple rides were not operational for a portion of the fair, Dean noted. After making minor repairs, Magical Midway was unable to get Ontario’s Technical Standards and Safety Authority (TSSA) to inspect the repaired wrinkles in time and they were unavailable for the remainder of the fair.
Safety inspectors, represented by the Ontario Public Service Employees Union, have been on strike since July 21 after contract negotiations with authority broke down.
With a “royalty theme, Saturday morning’s baby show at the Lions Auditorium boasted 19 entrants.
There was also a successful pet show at the Kinsmen bandshell for cats, dogs and rabbits.
“We appreciate everyone who came out to support us again,” Dean summed up.
“If it wasn’t for them, and our donors and supporters, the Town of Tillsonburg, and our volunteers, we couldn’t have done this. So we thank everybody — and Mother Nature.”