The
Show Times
Monday, August 15th, 2016 - WYOMING COUNTY FAIR
Beautiful Chaos
By Emily Vandenbosch, Wyoming County Teen 4-H Member
One of the busiest days in the 4-H youth building
happens before The Fair even starts. Friday before
Wyoming County Fair opens has traditionally been
the day the 4-H’ers young and old enter their
homemaking crafts, veggie art, sewing projects
and all other “non-animal” exhibits.
Walking through the livestock
equine buildings, you can probably
imagine the amount of work
that is required to prepare,
transport and show an
animal at Fair. But have
you ever browsed
through the Youth
Building to notice the
astonishing number
of entries brought
by one person,
or
one
family?
Some
4-H’ers
present
multiple
baking exhibits, a
handmade
sewing
creation,
various
vegetable
specimens
and photos all in one
year,
sometimes
even
more. Now imagine what
their home must be like the
week before Fair!
the day of entry. But before that even happens,
4-H’ers must review the year’s activities and
projects to select “fair-worthy” entries and begin
the exhibit paperwork. – this was always a struggle
for me. My mom wanted me to take responsibility
for my projects (I also think she didn’t want to deal
with the paperwork), which meant I had to look
through the Fair Book and find the correct
category for each exhibit, write
that on the form, complete short
answers about why I did the
project and what I learned,
and then properly attach
the little slips to my 10
plus photos and cookies
and veggies, praying
that none were lost in
transport. Usually all
of this happened last
minute, sometimes
Friday morning.
or
“Emily – we have to
go!”, my mom would
holler from the car as
I grabbed the last of
the papers and made sure
everything was packed. We
then began the 45-minute drive
to the Fairgrounds, found a parking
spot and lugged boxes through the hot
August heat to the Youth Building where we
were met with a hundred other families doing the
exact same thing.
“Which tag goes here?” “Are you sure that’s the
right entry number?” “Mom! I have another box in
the car. Can you get it?” – all phrases that you might
Let me help paint the picture. I have been a 4-H
member for the past 11 years, so I have a little
experience with the hustle and bustle of “fairprep”. It seems that regardless of how much you
prepare, you always end up running around crazy
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Monday, August 15th, 2016
The
Show Times
THE WYOMING COUNTY FAIR
... “Chaos” continued from page 1
hear throughout the day as youth load in thousands of entries and
fill the shelves, racks and walls of the 4-H Youth Building.
Some 4-H’ers are awarded various ribbons; some are even
selected for State Fair. There are youth everywhere, carrying
trays, coming and going from judges, waiting for siblings, chatting
about the fair and taking naps in the corner.
Finally, at the end of the day, after hours of judging and entering
and displaying, the dust (literally) settles and night falls on the 4-H
Youth Building. In the coming days another thousand people will
roam the rows and admire the work of 4-H’ers, often completely
unaware of how much effort (and a little bit of chaos) goes into
making it possible.
In the end, the exhausting days, long drives, stress and seemingly
disorderly weeks preceding the Fair are worth it year after year
after year. It is my last Fair as 4-H member, and I will truly miss this
beautiful chaos that makes being a 4-H’er that much more unique
and special. So take a gander at all of the hard work that lies
within the Youth Building. Stop to listen to a public presentation
that a young member has been practicing for weeks. Look closely
at the nametags and sheer variety of crafts and projects that 4-H
embodies. Stop and smell the flowers.
Senior 4-H Member, Emily
Vandenbosch has been Editor and Reporter for The Show Times for 3 years.
Fair is so much more than one week – every 4-H’er knows that and
now you do too.
WYOMING COUNTY’S 3rD 4-H
DUCK DERBY
ADOPT A DUCK
FOR THE RACE!
1 for $5
Abby Paddock won Reserve
Champion with her goat on Sunday.
FRIDAY, AUGUST 19TH AT 1PM
Wyoming County Fair Grounds in the Wiscoy Creek
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The
Show Times
Monday, August 15th, 2016
Media of Choice:
Vegetables
THE WYOMING COUNTY FAIR
48th Annual
Wyoming County Fair
Meat Animal Auction
By: Mary Vandenbosch, Wyoming County 4-H
Member
Wednesday, August 17th at 5:00 PM
This year’s overall winner of the Youth
Building’s Vegetable Art Contest was
James Prattico. He created “The John
Deere Tractor”. His favorite part was at
the end when he finished. He has been
doing vegetable art for three years and
he really enjoys it. Another participant of
the vegetable art contest was Cameron
Milligan and Jada Smith. There creation
was “Penguin”. They worked really hard
on their creation and really enjoyed the
way it came out in the end. This year’s
judges were Kelsey and Lydia Milligan.
Their job was to judge each of the creations and pick the best for each category. Some of the categories included funniest, scariest, cutest, and best of show.
Each of the participants received a small
ribbon as a prize for their creation.
James Prattico and his
Veggie Art.
Jada Smith and Cameron Milligan and their
Veggie Penguin.
4-H’ers work on their
Vegetable Art on
Sunday, August 14th.
Inquiring Photographer
Photos by: Mary Vandenbosch
What is your favorite part of Fair?
“THE FOOD.”
“Hanging out with
friends.”
“Entering the
exhibits”
Tyler Day
Patrick Fontaine
Lilly Younger
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“Helping out”
Anne
Vandenbosch
“Showing the
animals”
Anna Spicer
Monday, August 15th, 2016
The
Show Times
Clipping and Fitting
THE WYOMING COUNTY FAIR
Cloverbuds and
4-H’ers had their
projects judged in
the Youth Building on
Friday, August 12th.
Youth showed off
their craftsmanship
in many areas including sewing, woodworking, crafts, fine
arts, and gardening.
By: Lilah Stroud,
Wyoming County 4-H Member
Hi, I’m Lilah Stroud and I’m going to
tell you about the clipping and fitting
contest. What you do is you clip and put
a top line on a cow in one hour. I know
what you’re thinking, not that hard. I
thought that too. Until I did it. It is very
difficult, but I’m not trying to discourage you. It is also very fun. It gives you
this rush, but if you do it make sure
your clippers work. Mine broke down
so I didn’t clip for five minutes. Maybe
more, but that might not sound like a
lot. Trust me, it is. It is difficult when
it happens and it is fun. So if you are in
4-H you should try it. Thank you Tracy
R. for doing it. It was fun.
Getting your projects
judged is never as
scary as you think.
It’s actually a whole
lot of fun!
Grace
Stroud gets
serious
while clipping and
fitting.
Addy
Millhollen
and Laura
Grey work
on thier
dairy cow
Isabella Noon
and Phyllissa
Mitzel pose
with their
pups during
a 4-H rally
obedience
show.
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Monday, August 15th, 2016
The
Show Times
THE WYOMING COUNTY FAIR
“We’re here!” The 4-H’ers begin settling into their
home for the next week.
Youth having fun at the fair. Smiles can be found
everywhere!
Jaclyn and Anna
Torrey arrived with
their rabbits on
Saturday
Jacquelyn Szucs and
her Champion Duck.
You can meet them
in the Poultry Barn.
4-Hers Get Ready to Chop at Iron Chef Competition
By: Mary Jane Mathis, Wyoming County 4-H Teen Member
The 4-H Iron Chef Competition will be held for the
first time at this year’s Wyoming County Fair. It’s
modeled after the TV series, ‘Chopped’, from Food
Network. ‘Chopped’ is a cooking competition that is
all about skill, speed and creativity. The 4-H contestants are given different fair foods that they must
re-invent into a tastier and healthier dish. 4-Hers
are eager to compete in the competition at this
year’s fair!
The 4-H Iron Chef Competition is causing a lot
excitement as 4-Hers wait for the contest to begin.
The teams will be provided a common fair food
such as a blooming onion or fried dough. The contestants will then use other ingredients and spices.
Each team will be given about forty five minutes to
re-invent their team’s fair food into a healthier and
taster dish for the judge.
Food growth and preparation is a large part of Wyoming County 4-H from the Produced in NYS Foods
Contest to entering baked goods into the fair each
year. 4-H youth take their food preparation one step
further by growing their own fruit, vegetables and
herbs, milking their own dairy animals, and raising
their own meat. This helps give 4-H youth a better
understanding of food preparation and it will give
them an advantage in this Iron Chef Competition.
Come and watch 4-Hers turn mystery fair food
ingredients into extraordinary dishes that not only
taste good but are healthy too! The competition is
Tuesday night in the Youth Building starting at 4:30
pm. See these talented 4-Hers show their skill and
their knowledge of food during this Iron Chef Competition. By the end of the competition, ice cream
omelets or cotton candy baked beans might be the
start of the next food craze!
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Monday, August 15th, 2016
The
Show Times
Embracing The Obstacles
THE WYOMING COUNTY FAIR
timed. This fun sport tests your dogs ability to get
around a series of jumps, tunnels, the A frame, the
dog walk, weave poles and others. The dogs look
to their handler to guide them properly around the
course.
By: Lea White, Wyoming County 4-H Member
3 years ago I got my first dog. I was so excited! I
told my parents that if I got a dog I would bring it
to obedience for training, that’s how I got involved
with 4-H. This is where I started my adventure into
the canine world.
I’m involved in all 3 classes and we have qualified
for the state fair for rally obedience and obedience.
(It takes two years to qualify for the state fair in
agility) It takes hard work and lots of practice, but
I have learned patience training my dog and he has
grown to trust me and has become a happier dog
because he’s busy and pleasing me.
My obedience instructor is Joan Sage, and my agility instructor is Pennie Smith. They are both very
patient and encouraging with my many questions
and mistakes. Skills and commands are practiced
weekly at your instructors home. These skills and
commands are tested during trials throughout the
summer and again on graduation day before qualifying for the fair. My dog Little Bear and I have
became a great team, and in the 2 years we have
been to the Wyoming County Fair, we have had
many accomplishments.
Thank you to Pennie Smith and Joan Sage for their
time, and expertise.
Lea and
Little Bear
after their
show on
Saturday,
August 13th
In the beginner (novice) obedience classes your
dog preforms different commands, instructed by
you as you are judged. Commands such as heel, sit,
down, come, and stay are performed on a lead. As
you and your dog advance in skill levels and become more proficient, more commands and skills
are added and are performed off lead.This can be
very challenging. Your dog can, and most likely will
be distracted by something outside or inside of the
ring. Each level has to perform all the skills and
commands required to advance to the next level.
The levels range from Novice to Advanced.
LIttle Bear
loves Agility
which includes many
different
obstacles.
It takes lots
of practice
and a great
relationship
between a
dog and his
owner to
achieve excellence in
this event.
Rally obedience is a more relaxed, fun way to participate in an obedience class. This class involves
talking to your dog in a happy voice throughout the
course. Written signs instruct you on what skills
and commands you need to perform as you move
along the course. The rally obedience is timed.
You are judged by how well your dog performs the
skills, but also how fast you finish the course. Your
dog has to be on a loose lead, be attentive and
happy.
Agility is my favorite. This is also my first year
participating in it. This class involves guiding your
dog to run through a series of obstacles while being
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Monday, August 15th, 2016
The
Show Times
THE WYOMING COUNTY FAIR
4-H’ers show their goats on Sunday, August 14th.
Come watch them show their Goat knowledge at the
Goat Knowledge contest on Monday at 2:00 PM.
Find Fair Results
ONLINE:
fairentry.com/Fair/
Results/456
The Swine Experience
Carla Fontaine and the rest of her class get judged
in Showmanship on Sunday, August 14th.
By: Carla Fontaine, Wyoming County 4-H Member
Showing a pig at the Wyoming County Fair is a
great experience. Taking care of my hog consists
of walking it around before arriving at the fair,
clipping its ears and tail on show day, washing it
and making sure he has a clean pen and food and
also checking to make sure my hog has water.
Not only is showing a pig about the experience,
but is about building friendships and also just
having a good time at the fair. It’s not summer
without Pike Fair!
Puzzle Corner
Wyoming County Fair Finder
By Allison Herrick and Danielle Herrick
Try and find…
• A tiny milk-maker
• A ribbon of every color (blue, red, white, light and dark purple, rainbow)
• A first year 4-Her and get their signature ___________
• A barn quilt that is Black, Red and Blue
• A flowery photograph
• Some greasy goodness
• A public presenter, sit and watch them and get their signature ____________
• Visit every animal barn, talk to an exhibitor about their animals, and get their signature
Cow_______ Horse______ Pig______ Goat_______ Sheep______ Rabbit/Cavies/Poultry______
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Monday, August 15th, 2016
The
Show Times
Fairly Punny
By Taylor Tyczka, Wyoming County 4-H Teen Member
THE WYOMING COUNTY FAIR
Upcoming Events
Monday, August 15
4-H Beef Show
9:30AM - Livestock Barn Arena
Groovy Smoothie Contest
2:30PM - 3:30PM - Youth Building
Little Britches Showmanship
4:00 P.M.- Livestock Barn Arena
Tuesday, August 16th
4-H Horse Show, Western
8:00AM- Outdoor Arena
4-H Livestock Skillathon
3:00 PM- Livestock Barn Arena
4-H Costume Show
7:30 PM- Cattle Barn Arena
The
Show Times
The Wyoming County 4-H Youth Development
Program is pleased to present “The Show
Times,” a publication developed by 4-H’ers
with the goal of informing the public about the
4-H Program in Wyoming County.
ccewyoming.com/showtimes to see even more
articles written by youth about 4-H right here
in Wyoming County. You can also find Wyoming
County 4-H on Facebook to see more pictures
from the 2016 Wyoming County Fair!
We could not be more proud of the effort
that our teens have put into making this
publication a reality. We hope that you have
enjoyed reading with us and invite you to visit
We hope that you enjoy the rest of your time at
the fair and invite you to keep an eye out for
our next issue of “The Show Times”, which will
be released on Wednesday, August 17th.
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