THE sun did have his hat on at this year’s Holsworthy and Stratton Agricultural Show on Thursday, August 24 — a first for many years.

Although there was a grey and mizzly sky in the early hours of the morning, showgoers were surprised when they were forced to take off their jackets due to the glorious sunshine that was pushing its way through the clouds to stay for the rest of the day.

During the choosing of the cattle champion the Post caught up with show president Dave Whitaker, who is new to the role this year. He was enjoying his time inspecting the fine array of pedigree cattle, and said: “We have had a very excellent turn out today, and it is nice to see so many excellent exhibitors in the cattle classes — and in the sheep classes too, actually.

“We have also been extremely lucky with the weather, it is lovely to see the sunshine.”

Speaking about how he was finding his first year as president, he said: “This is my first year as president and it is strange because we usually exhibit and this is the first year I’ve actually had a chance to have a proper look around the show — it is fantastic!”

He said he had been having a ‘lovely, leisurely walk around the show ground’ with his wife, Pat. He said: “So far this morning I have met some very interesting people and it is great to get to talk to so many exhibitors and to see the wonderful trade stands we have — everything is looking really good.

“I want to say well done to the fantastic committee we have, who have done an excellent job. People don’t actually realise how much time and effort goes in to organising this event. I really hope this show continues to go from strength to strength.”

The chairman, Robert Cole, has attended and exhibited at the show for many years. He agreed that the show was a brilliant event and was pleased to see so many people having fun. He said: “Well, what a super day it has been so far. What can I say? We have had fantastic weather, which is always a plus, and we have had some brilliant entries — especially in the sheep and young handlers’ classes; the children have honestly been outstanding.

“We had a slightly grey start to the day but the sun has shone through. We have got a really good and supportive crowd here today and everywhere you look you can see people having a really good time — and that is what it is really all about!”

Throughout the show ground at Killatree Cross there were a whole variety of things to see and do.

The food and craft tent offered a wonderful array of handmade goods and tasty treats for the visitors to try and buy. The Haines-Watts main ring was packed full of interesting events like the Mole Valley Farmers’ Young Handlers Series, the traditional parade of the hounds, a vintage vehicle parade and even bubble football — quite a sight to behold.

In the All Coast Media entertainment ring crowds, three lines deep, enjoyed performances from local gymnastic and dance groups, who coped impeccably away from their usual sprung floor training grounds.

A favourite in the ring was the ferret races. Children took on the sprightly creatures, dashing through ‘human-sized’ tubes, hoping to beat them.

The falconry display was once again cut short as one of the team’s magnificent birds of prey refused to return from a quick gallivant across the show field.

In the dog show ring the Parelli Natural Horsemanship demonstration proved what horse power really is and the family dog show saw record entries again this year, with a whole variety of breeds ready to strut their stuff for the judges.

Around the showground there were free workshops for the younger generation to enjoy including circus skills with Scotty and children’s craft by Marvellous Event-ures. The Tractor Trail proved very popular as it was hotly pursued by children racing around the showground looking for those all important stamps.

After all that excitement, show goers could stop off at ‘Iceman’s Bar’ in ‘The Watering Hole’— named after and dedicated to Todd [Iceman] Riggs, a former show committee member, who sadly passed away recently. People were reminded to #buckleupforiceman.

Finishing off the day, the Young Farmers Club held their highly anticipated ‘It’s a Knockout’ competition in the Haines-Watts main ring before everyone packed up their things and headed for home — content with how successfully the Holsworthy and Stratton Agricultural Show 2017 had been.

See this week’s Post for all the reports and results from Holsworthy Show.