Hundreds of residents and guests celebrated the Thanksgiving weekend at the 162nd annual Burford Fall Fair which ran from Saturday, October 12 through Monday, October 14, 2024.
The event, which took place at the Burford Fairgrounds, kicked off on Saturday with the Western Ontario Outlaws (WOO) lawn tractor racing, toilet bowl races, ATV and SxS mud bog racing, the 2024 Ambassador competition, and the Southwestern Ontario Tractor Pullers Association’s (SWOTPA ) truck and tractor pull. The day ended out with live music from Dennis Napper and Junkyard Delight.
Like every good fair, guests spent the day chasing thrills with classic midway rides and games, as well as indulging in the variety of food trucks on site.
On Sunday, the festivities continued with a pancake breakfast in the Agricultural Hall, followed by Captain Corbin’s magic show and Jason and Bronwyn Irvin’s liberty show, as well as the kid’s roping competition.
Also going on throughout the afternoon was the classic car show, RC crawler trials, a homesteading demo, the baby show and the kids pedal pull.
To end out the weekend, the final day of the fair featured the Jungle Jamz reptile exhibit, the annual chainsaw competition, a Thanksgiving dinner, the Canadian Raptors Birds of Prey show, and a princess and superhero party.
Youngsters in attendance throughout the weekend also took the chance to enjoy their first pony-ride, discover new animals at the petting zoo, sit for a fun face paint design or visit the kids play area.
Gayle Barker, a director with the Burford Agricultural Society, said the weekend was all about the community and giving young families a fun experience without breaking the bank.
“It’s a nice event because a lot of people come home to visit their friends and families for the holiday and for many of them, coming to this fair has become a real tradition,” Barker said. “We’re happy to be a small family fair and because we know we have a lot of young families coming out, our goal is to try and make it nice and manageable for them. Other than the price of entry, midway rides and food, once you’re through the gate you can really participate in a lot of fun knowing that it won’t cost your family a lot of money.”
Barker said that for her, the best part of helping to organize the fair is watching the locals come together and seeing her volunteers work side by side.
“My favourite thing about the fair is watching my volunteers do phenomenal work and just being out with our local community members,” she said. “A lot of the community service groups are involved and even though it’s a busy weekend, people carve time out of their day to come out for some fun, and it’s just always nice getting to see the neighbours and old friends together, you know?”
Kimberly De Jong’s reporting is funded by the Canadian government through its Local Journalism Initiative.The funding allows her to report rural and agricultural stories from Blandford-Blenheim and Brant County. Reach her at kimberly.dejong@brantbeacon.ca.
