2014 Royal Agricultural Winter Fair Wrap Up & Photo Gallery
By Kim MacMillan, MacMillan Photography & Media Services
Photos by Kim & Allen MacMillan, Tammy Brown and Shelley Higgins/MacMillan Photography Media Services. All photos are copyrighted. For more information or to purchase photos please contact us at photo@looncreekenterprises.com.
The 92nd Royal Agricultural Winter Fair wrapped up in Toronto last weekend with dozens of champions being named in the Royal Horse Show, as well as in the Agriculture Show. Roughly 300,000 visitors attended the Fair which ran from November 7 – November 16 at the Canadian Exhibition Place located near Lake Ontario in the heart of Toronto, Canada’s largest city.
The Royal Horse Show is one of the last remaining grand, old-style horse shows packing the stands each day with fairgoers from Canada and around the world. The show offered classes for draft horse hitches, antique carriages, hunters, jumpers, dressage horses, Welsh Ponies, Standardbreds, Hackneys, Thoroughbreds and Canadian Sport Horses. The popular annual Canine/Equine Challenge class held on the final Saturday combines a jumper horse and rider pair with a canine agility competitor and handler as each runs over their own course (show jumping for the horses and agility for the dogs) with the two scores being combined to determine the winners.
The first week featured a rodeo, the always exciting indoor eventing and Shetland Pony Grand National racing complete with tiny jockeys and simulated steeplechase fences. The second week of the Royal featured Australian “Bush Poet” and horse trainer Guy McLean performing with his four home-bred, red dun Australian Stock Horses. Now based in Texas, McLean entertained the audience with his unique mix of humor while riding one horse and working the other three at liberty.
The Royal international show jumping tour continued in the second week including: the $100,000 Hickstead FEI World Cup Qualifier Grand Prix on November 12 (won by McLain Ward and Rothchild from the U.S.A.); the $50,000 Weston Canadian Open on November 14 (won by Beezie Madden and Coral Reef Via Volo from the U.S.A.); the always entertaining $15,000 Canine,/Equine Challenge class (won by Jessica Springsteen and Zero from the U.S.A. plus their dog and handler partners) held in the afternoon on November 15, and the $75,000 Big Ben International Challenge (won by Nicola Philappaerts from Belgium and Challenge Vd Begijnakker) on November 15.
Leading Canadian Rider was Jonathon Miller, Leading International Rider was McLain Ward of the U.S.A. and the Leading Canadian Jumper Horse was Game Ready owned by Susan Grange and ridden by Ireland’s Connor Swail.
The Royal is the largest indoor combined horse show and agricultural fair in the world. The Royal Agriculture show features classes for livestock, farm crops and garden produce, as well as unique classes such as the Gay Lea Butter Sculpture Contest (see gallery of sculptures here: http://www.royalfair.org/node/229), the Most Unusually Shaped Vegetable Class, and the Ladies Lead and Wool Class where the handler and sheep are both dressed in wool (see description of this class at http://www.royalfair.org/td-ladies-lead-and-wool).
The 4-H bunny jumping competition, held in the President’s Choice Animal Theater arena for the second year in a row, was a very popular program. The competition involved each 4-H member taking their pet rabbit through a course that was a cross between a show jumping course and a dog agility course, only with heights set appropriately for rabbits. Other events featured in the President’s Choice Animal Theater were: educational clinics for dressage, eventing and show jumping (to educate the crowds about the sports competing in the upcoming 2015 Pan American Games to be held in Toronto); Goats on the Go; Super Dogs agility performances; a performance by the Medieval Times cast; The Spirit of the Horse breed demonstrations, and more.
The Royal is truly a unique competition with the top international level horse show alongside the Canadian agriculture showcase with a host of shopping, entertainment and dining options as well. Hundreds of merchants offered wares ranging from antiques and artwork to tack and riding clothes and from clothing and home improvement products options to health and beauty items and gifts. There were a number of farms offering Canadian grown meats, produce and dairy products for sampling and purchase as well. Cooking classes, riding clinics, horse breed demonstrations, wandering musicians, square dancing, children’s’ activities, Toyotas to test drive, and Super Dogs performances were among the many entertainment and educational programs offered during the Royal.
For more information and a complete list of results to go www.royalfair.org. The 2015 Royal Agricultural Winter Fair will run November 6 – 15.
1-McLain Ward and Rothchild won the $100,000 Hickstead FEI World Cup Grand Prix on November 12.
2-U.S. rider McLain Ward won the coveted Leading International Rider sash at the 2014 Royal Winter Fair. He has been competing at the Royal for around 20 years and loves the atmosphere.
3-Jonathon Miller’s mount Calvin Klein could hardly control his enthusiasm at Miller being named Leading Canadian Rider at the2014 Royal.
4-Karen Pavicic and Don Daiquiri won the Royal Invitational Grand Prix dressage competition, which included a Grand Prix class on one evening and a Grand Prix Freestyle on the next evening.
5-Wysteria Lane owned and ridden by Nancy Fagan, won the Lieutenant Governor’s Cup class on the final Saturday morning. The Governor General’s Cup (in-hand) and Lieutenant Governor’s Cup (under saddle) classes are the highlight of the sport horse breed show. The classes are for three-year-old Canadian-bred horses suitable to become sport horses.
6-The 2014 Governor General‘s Cup winner was Abbey Road FF (by Aloha) shown by Ronnie Davidson and owned by Shannon and Chris Smith.
7-A small pony hunter packs his precious cargo around the Ricoh Coliseum arena during the Royal Horse Show. The hunter show included classes for ponies, juniors, adult amateurs and also featured the Canadian Hunter Derby.
8- First place yearling Thoroughbred colt Copy Cat Creek (by Yellow Creek), handled by Amber Cranston and owned by Sandra Zelmer. The Royal Horse Show is home to the country’s most prestigious breed show with classes for Thoroughbreds, sport horses, draft horses and Welsh Ponies.
9-Champion Thoroughbred stallion at the 2014 Royal, Simply Decadent by Niigon, handled by Marc Desautels, and owned by Treena McClelland-Desautels.
10-The diminutive and feisty pony jumpers are fun to watch as their determined riders pilot them around a miniature Grand Prix course.
11-The ground shakes as the draft horse hitches take center stage. Here 11 four-horse hitches were lined up in the arena all at one time; that’s a huge amount of horse power!
12-The Green Meadows Carriage competition was for antique carriages pulled by four matching horses. The drivers, passengers and grooms were all dressed in formal costume. The First Place Red ribbon went to Glenmore Farms Entry driven by Glenn A Werry Jr.
12-The Green Meadows Carriage competition was for antique carriages pulled by four matching horses. The drivers, passengers and grooms were all dressed in formal costume. The First Place Red ribbon went to Glenmore Farms Entry driven by Glenn A Werry Jr.
13-The “Road Horse” classes feature Standardbred race horses complete with sulkies and racing silks.
14-A favorite of the audience and the competitors alike, the indoor eventing offered lots of action and thrills. Canadian Olympian Jessica Phoenix rode Charlotte Schickedanz’ Trakehner mare Abby GS.
15-Educational clinics for show jumping, dressage and eventing took place in the President’s Choice Animal Theatre arena. Here show jumper Hyde Moffatt explains the finer points of competing over fences.
16-The featured equestrian entertainer at the Royal Winter Fair in 2014 was Australian “Bush Poet” Guy McLean and his four home-bred red dun Australian Stock Horses. For his signature finale three horses stand over one horse laying down as guy wails his bullwhips.
17-Twins in a stroller were greeted by a friendly lamb.
18-Goats were everywhere at the Royal. The Royal Goat Show offered many prizes, plus a “Goats on the Go” presentation in the President’s Choice Animal Theater and also many goats in the pens in the Pizza Pizza Petting Farm. You could also sample and purchase many flavors of goat’s milk cheeses at a number of booths in the shopping area
19-Some white Sebastopol geese in the Pizza Pizza Petting Farm. Agriculture historians think that this goose breed was developed either in Central Europe or the Ukraine.
20-This Jersey dairy cow tethered in the Royal barn area appears to be telling onlookers all about her show career.
21-Alyssa Deneau, Coldwater, ON, and her ewe Karma, contestants in the Ladies Lead to Wool class
22-In Canada the color of the first place ribbon is red rather than blue as in the U.S.A.
23-Garden and farm produce exhibits added color to the show. It was anyone’s guess how many pumpkin pies this large pumpkin would make.
24-4-H bunny jumping was a huge hit at the Royal Winter Fair. Featured in the President’s Choice Animal Theater, each 4-H member attempted to put their rabbit through a cross between a show jumping course and a dog agility course.
25-The 2014 Royal Agricultural Fair Dairy Show Supreme Champion, a Jersey cow. Jersey’s are known for their sweet temperaments and the high percentage of cream they produce in their milk making the milk great for premium ice cream production.
26-There were many educational agricultural exhibits at the Royal, such as this egg fact: One good hen can lay around 332 eggs in a year.
27-Butter sculptures are a popular exhibit at the Royal Winter Fair. Young artists are given a theme, a large amount of butter and a time frame in which to complete their masterpieces while working in a cooler. The sculptures are judged and then put on display for the fair attendees to view.
28-Several antique tractors and trucks were on display in the Royal shopping area.
29-Cooking demonstrations were offered at several locations throughout the Royal Winter Fair. Celebrity chefs made appearances and the Canadian dairy council offered classes in cooking with cheese.
30-The Royal Agricultural Winter Fair is a great place to do Christmas shopping. Several hundred merchant booths offered a wide variety of wares from antiques and home décor to tack, horse care products and riding clothes, to health and beauty aids, to food and gift items.
31-This enterprising young musician was one of several wandering performers who added to the festive atmosphere at the Royal. The Toronto area Salvation Army brass band was another group who performed.
32-An artistic horse sculpture made of cardboard and packing tape mounted on a base decorated with photographs of war horses honored the working horses of World War I and World War II. Artwork in various mediums is also featured at the Royal – everything from oil paintings, watercolors, woodworking, textiles, ceramics and sculpture were available for viewing.
33-The University of Guelph “EquiMania” area offered many fun and educational activities about horses for kids and their parents.
34-A little girl tries her hand at milking a cow in “Ag-Tivity Central” in the middle of the Royal Marketplace.
35-A little girl exercises her artistic expression as she paints a small Breyer model in the kid’s activity area.
36-Tossing a ball into the back of a Toyota truck was a way for kids to win fun prizes.
37-“The Amazing Food Journey” educational exhibit offered kids and their parents a look underground at simulated growing root vegetables (carrots, beets, parsnips and turnips).
