HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Brussels Post, 1978-09-20, Page 35Carol and Jim Armstrong.
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THE PLOWING MATCH SUPPLEMENT — 3
The joys of hosting, the ..IPM
By Alice Gibb
In November, Jim and
Carol Armstrong will un-
doubtedly notice a great
change in their lives
silence.
The Armstrongs, the
Wingham area couple who
offered their farm as the host
farm for the 1978 Inter-
national Plowing Match,
haven't had a great 'deal of
peace and quiet for the last
eight months.
The telephone rings. con-
stantly, visitors parade in
and out of the house, and
reporters are always drop-
ping by for more information
on the match. Also, a crew of
hydro men have set up
temporary residence on part
of the Armstrong Farm.
But all this commotion is
just a normal part of hosting
the annual plowing match,
and even though the Arm-
strongs may sometimes look
a little harried, they insist
they wouldn't have missed
the experience.
Both. Amrstongs
emphasize being the host
farm is "delightful", as well
as allowing them to make
many friends "they might
never have come in contact
with if it hadn't been for the
plowing match.
The Armstrong also give,
some special credit to fill,
their 21 year old son and
their four daughters vvho have
pitched in and taken over
many of the behind the
scenes chores !formerly
handled by their parents
before preparations for the
match became almost a.
fulltime job,
The Armstrongs moved-to
Huron County 10 years ago
when their “alniost century
farm" outside Bramalea was
sold.
and the turnout was far less
than had been expected.
Jim Armstrong said Huron
County wanted another
chance to prove themselves,
and so when the association
starting tossing around the
idea of bringirtg the match to
the county again the Arm-
strongs offered their farm as
'an incentive.
Approved 1104
The Huron County Plow-
men's Associaton, with the
backing of county council,
made four separate pre-
sentations to the Ontario
Plowmen's Association, be-
fore the provincial body
approved their application in
1974 to host the 1978 games.
When a county takes on
the responsibility 'of hosting
a match, it takes hundreds of
hours of planning by
volunteers willing to spend
many of their evenings in
committee meetngs. It also
takes co-operation from other
county residents who spruce
up their farm buildings, and
it takes a national advertising
campaign to alert potential
visitors to the match.
All in all, hosting a
plowing match means a good
many headaches.
But, there are also bene-
fits. This year's match, ex-
pected to be the largest ever,
will bring more than 250,000
people to the site.
Also, this year a seventh
avenue has been added to
the tent city 'which means
more exhibitors than ever
want booths at the match.
If nothing else, Jim Arm-
storng believes this is an
indication that the. poor
weather at Fronte,trac
County's 1977 match didn't
scare anyone off.
Also, the facelifting
around the county will last
long after the plowling match
itself is just a memory.
But even more important,
organizing the match, with
23 committees working out
arrangments for everything
from where farmers will land
who come by plane to
antique and historic displays,
can't help but bring the
people in a county together,
since they're all working for
a common goal.
Industry
As well as the enjoyment
people take from the match
itself} there's always the
Chance some industry might
consider settling in the
county as a result of the
match, which means more
jobs for local residents and'
more tax revenue for county
coffers,
Jim Armstrong's words;
they say a plowing match
means eight years of pro-
motion for a county - four
years before the match and
four years after.
It also engenders a re-
markable amount of en-
thusiasm in the county itself
and there's already ample
evidence of this in Huron
from the distinctive signs
advertising the match posted
around the county, to articles
in both local newspapers and
national magazines, as well
as the preparations by county
clubs and organizations whp
are planning either exhibits
or money-raising ventures at
the match.
Anyone in Huron County
who doesn't know about the
(Continued on page
Two years after they set-
tled in, on their farm on
Hwy-86, just outside Wing-
ham, Jim Armstrong joined
the ' Huron County Plow-
men's Association, an or-
ganization that's open to
rural and urban residents
alike.
• Huron County . hadn't
hosted the International
Plowing Match ,since 1960,
when plowmen from Canada
and the United States com-
peted on the Jim Scott farm
in Seaforth.
Unfortunately, tke match
was plagued by heavy rains