The leaves may not have changed colours just yet, but the crowds at ODAS Park Saturday indicate fall has, indeed, come.
Hundreds flocked to the facility on Fairgrounds Road to attend the events taking place as part of the 168th Orillia Fall Fair this weekend.
The busiest stops starting out today were the 4-H sheep and cow competitions.
Lucas Cairncross, of Tiny Township, had already won a couple of ribbons to start off the day.
“I enjoy doing it,” said the 12-year-old who has been showing sheep for four years. “I like coming out to fairs and talking to people. I have a bunch of friends in 4-H, so I get to meet them, too.”
Lucas was at the fair with his mother and aunt, who owns the sheep he was showing today.
To prepare the sheep for showing, he said, they have to be bathed, sheared evenly, and given enough exercise so their legs are muscular.
“Judges look at the length of the loin and a strong top line,” said Lucas. “They’re looking for muscles on their legs, capacity, and depth of the rib cage.”
He said the judges will also check the animal’s teeth to make sure it isn’t older than being claimed.
“With the sheep, you have to stop showing them when they’re a year old,” added Lucas.
The 4-H clubs across the province give young people a chance to take part in a variety of activities, both farm-related and otherwise, said Jessica Cairncross, Lucas’s mom.
“(4-H) stands for ‘head, heart, health, and hands,’” she said, adding it’s part of the pledge the members take before every meeting: I pledge my Head to clearer thinking, my Heart to greater loyalty, my Hands to larger service and my Health to better living for my club, my community, my country, and my world.
“These are the four qualities they’re looking for in the person showing the animal,” said Cairncross.
The concept that started in the farming community includes several clubs that focus on arts and crafts, photography, home economics, agriculture, and animal management, she said.
“It has great leadership qualities for kids,” said Cairncross. “They do projects and attend meetings.”
For instance, she explained, Lucas’s project is his six-month-old lamb, Fidget.
“He has to make sure it’s ready for confirmation and showmanship,” said Cairncross.
Over by the Roller Skating Place, Kevin Moore, of Oro-Medonte, was managing the Orillia 4-H Calf Club show.
The 27 members of the club were taking part in the showmanship competition, among others, in which judges assess the presentation of the cows.
The club, said Moore, is open for membership to those aged nine to 21.
“The kids are taught about show judging, clipping, showing, proper feeding, and animal comfort,” he said. “And they’re taught parliamentary procedures at meetings.”
Simcoe North has about 120 members in various 4-H clubs, and a member has to attend at least four out of the six yearly meetings to continue.
More information can be found online at 4-hontario.ca.
This is just one part of the fall fair, said Bob Bowles, president of the Orillia and District Agricultural Society.
“We were one of the first fall fairs in Ontario and one of the first ones in this area,” he said. “It was a time when we were living off the land. Farmers brought produce to show who had grown the best produce.”
The significance of a fall fair for a rural community is exactly that, said Bowles: the ability to reconnect with our roots.
“Now we go to the grocery stores and don’t know where our food is grown,” he said. “This is an opportunity to get back to our rural roots.”
Most teenagers today, said Bowles, haven’t had a chance to interact with animals at such close quarters.
“Here, we have a stop where they can go in and experience what it’s like being on a farm,” he said.
Alison Gamble, of Guelph, who was visiting a friend in Carden, said she was excited about attending the fall fair as it reminded her of growing up in a rural area.
“In Toronto, and the GTA (Greater Toronto Area), it’s disheartening to see the disconnect from the rural lifestyle,” she said. “This is great for kids to be exposed to a farming life here.”
Bowles said it was the fall fair committee’s hope that attending activities at the fair would interest people in getting back into healthier food growing.
Saturday afternoon the fair features favourites such as tractor pull, demolition derby, Scottish dancers, and the mini pedal truck.
Visitors coming on Sunday can see horse show, poultry, petting zoo, a magician, experience axe throwing and take part in the singing and baby contests.
For more, visit orilliafallfair.com.
