Next International Plowing Match postponed until 2021
The 103rd International Plowing Match and Rural Expo — a major event that Chatham-kent hosted two years ago — has been postponed until 2021.
It will now run from Oct. 13 to Oct. 16 next year at the Lindsay Fairgrounds and neighbouring farms in the Kawartha Lakes area.
The Ontario Plowmen’s Association stated that leadership “made this most difficult decision” while closely monitoring local, provincial and federal government information and regulations.
“In spite of these difficult times, the (Ontario Plowmen’s Association) has never wavered from their responsibility to the people that make the IPM successful year after year,” organizers stated in a Friday news release. “The health and safety of our volunteers, sponsors, competitors, visitors and staff will always be our No. 1 priority.”
Since its inception in 1913, this is only the third time the match, which attracts tens of thousands of people each year, hasn’t been able to open. The first cancellation was in 1918 when the flu pandemic struck the Ottawa area.
During the Second World War, the International Plowing Match was also cancelled.
Leon Leclair, co-chair for the Chatham-kent IPM that took place in Pain Court, said he was sorry to hear the news, but understood the decision had to be made.
“It’s disappointment for all those volunteers. … They’ve been planning for three, four years,” he said. “There’s a lot of negatives, but health does come first.”
Leclair said everyone involved will likely miss the camaraderie and community-building of preparing for the match.
Organizers also said they’re moving ahead with plans for the 104th International Plowing Match, to be hosted by the Municipality of North Grenville and the Grenville
Plowmen’s Association in September 2022.
Leclair said IPM communities often have a core group of volunteers that often work together on other endeavours, whether it’s business or charity.
He has no doubt they will pull together through the pandemic.
“They’ve built lasting friendships — lasting partnerships,” he said.