Quite a day for Llama Lovers

Brittany Haughey feeds her llama, Phantom, outside of the llama obstacle course.

At 9 a.m. this morning I got to see the 4-H fair llama show. The Allen County Llama Lovers who participated are the largest group of their kind in the state.

The first part of the show was an obstacle course that included ramps, hoops, and cones. Groups ranged from beginner to advanced, and slowly one by one llamas completed the course. The event was judged by Beth Myers and Mary Jo Miller.

By talking to Llama Lovers members and leaders, I learned enough about llamas to probably raise one myself! They are adorable, gentle animals. And wandering around the fair, I stumbled into the horse driving competitions. The next major event is the Classic Car Cruise In, which I wouldn't miss, so I'm headed back to the fair!



Horse driving trials started at 11 a.m.



Antique tractors were on display outside of the tractor-pull arena.

"Kids Day" at the Allen County 4-H Fair

"Alligator Aaron" of the "Silly Safari Show" holds "Polly," a python snake.


I caught the tail end (no pun intended) of the "Silly Safari Show," part of the 4-H Fair's "Kid's Day." Events geared toward children were lined up from early morning to late night Thursday.

The blue-tongued skink was displayed. "Alligator Aaron" touched his tongue to the skink's, which got a reaction of "Ewwws" from the crowd of children. Next was a skunk, and then "Polly" the python snake. Audience members lined up after the show to pet the scaly creature. Even Ronald McDonald, who was next on the event list, got up close to view Polly.

Some kids were frightened and some warmed when Ronald McDonald made his appearance at the fair. He made jokes and did magic tricks for the crowd. When it started to pour outside the event tent, Ronald had the crowd do a "rain chant" and yelled to be heard over the thunder.

The cookie-stacking and pizza-eating contest came next. Yours truly entered in the pizza-eating contest, but alas, I only could scarf down three pieces. The winners of the competition ate their whole pizzas in less than three minutes.

What kind of fair fun did you have today? Comment and let us know!



I pose with Ronald McDonald in the Activities Stage tent.



Nicole (left) and Kayla Bunkowske are greeted by Ronald McDonald.

Joe F. Knight teaches 4-H Fair-goers how to paint landscapes. This work of art took him less than 30 minutes to paint.

Today was "Home and Family Arts Day" at the Allen County 4-H Fair. I was lucky enough to catch the end of "Paint with Joe" in the Home and Family Arts building. Joe F. Knight painted a landscape of mountains, pines, and pristine water in less than 30 minutes. He said that his landscapes usually take that long or less to paint, which is impressive to me. When he was finished with his oil painting, he donated it to an audience member whose name was drawn from a box. He encouraged beginners:

"Do yourself a favor and don't be too afraid to try. If you do one and don't like it, don't stop. And if your first one is a masterpiece--STOP!"

Paul Creager (left), Sam Tash, and Eli Arnold of the Northeast Indiana Banjo Society played old-time ditties Wednesday afternoon in the Home and Family Arts building.

Next for the day at 2 p.m. was the Northeast Indiana Banjo Society. With their striped red-and-white vests, old-fashioned hats, and garters, these boys were charming relics of the past. I recognized a lot of the songs even though they were before my generation by far, some choices being "Oh Suzannah", "Tennesee Waltz" and "Amazing Grace."


Several pies were contributed for judging and auctioning this year. Judge Laurie Weir said that, in her opinion, pies made with lard taste the best.

After that performance, the building was abuzz for the pie-baking contest and auction. The judges for the contest were Nadine Scholz and Laurie Weir. Before the contest, Weir explained what factors are considered when judging. They are:

▪ Color: Pies should be evenly browned.
▪ Edges: Should be regular, not bulging.
▪ Size: Should fit the pie pan.
▪ Taste: Tender and flaking, not crumbly.
▪ Flavor: Rich, well-blended, not doughy.
▪ Filling: Taste like the fruit, not too sweet or starchy.

Among the pies were pecan, chocolate, cherry, apple, peach and blueberry. When Weir came to the last pie, a peach-blueberry pie, she shook her head and said:

"There is no pie more perfect than this one. It should be in a magazine."

It's raining rabbits

Even rain couldn't damper the excitement at the Allen County Fairgrounds today. Opening day at the fair featured Horse Completion and Showmanship, the 4-H Swine, Sheep and Llama Entry, and my favorite, the Rabbit Show.

As a first time spectator I never could have imagined how many categories of rabbits there are. On the docket this afternoon were Dutch, Lops, Spotted, Rex, New Zealand, and the heavyweights of the rabbit kingdom, the Flemish Giant, weighing in at a whopping 30-40 pounds! The competitors brought their rabbits to the center of the ring at the show barn ten or so at a time, where a certified judge inspected each for criteria like weight and appearance. Around 100 spectators turned out to watch the show, some, like me, out of sheer curiosity. A day at the fair would not be complete without a trip to the Small Animal Barn, where you can check out all the winning rabbits this week.

Today was also the Horse Completion and Showmanship, which took place at the Horse Arena. Horses typically don't mind the rain, keepers told me, but some will roll in the mud to dry off their wet backs. The competitors did their best to keep their horses clean and out of the mud during the competition, but some still gave in to the temptation. A trip through the horse barn is well worth it to see all the different decorations put up by kids around the horse stalls. This year there was both a jungle theme and horse movie theme going on, and some of the stalls were lavishly decorated. I understand they will be judged for decorative awards later in the week.

The last place I visited was the Llama Barn, where about a hundred or so llamas beat the heat by enjoying the cool breeze of electric fans. With all that wool, llama owners have to be on the lookout for any signs of over heated llamas. Some will shave a strip of wool around the llama's midsection to keep them cool, while others use the fans. If they get too hot they will get dizzy and disoriented owners tell me, which would not be good for the llama obstacle course coming up in a few days. I can guarantee you I won't be missing that!

Cooking Skills, Artistry on Display

Most don't notice what goes on in the Home and Family Arts building near the Allen County Fairgrounds entrance, but it's worth taking a peek. Almost 300 pieces of art, crafts, cooking and clothing design were submitted this morning to be judged and displayed at the fair until next Sunday.

One of my favorite pieces was a replica model home submitted by Don and Dorothy Bruick, of Fort Wayne. It was the only entry in the miniatures category, which was fitting considering it was truly in a league of its own. Dorothy designed the home with painstaking attention to detail and an eye for interior design, while Don constructed the miniature furniture. What nimble hands they must have to place miniature books, wallpaper, electric lamps and replica animals in the house, and all accurately to scale!

I was fortunate to have the chance to speak with cookie judges Nadine Scholz and Toni Murray, who were nice enough to share their tasting duties with me. I was also given a taste of Pauline Baatz' famous zucchini cake, which took Best in Show in its category. Though fair goers won't be able to try the foods themselves I'd recommend checking out the cake designs on display, such as the mound-shaped beehive cake or the multi-layered sea-themed cake decked with shells and fish.

For art enthusiasts there were over 60 paintings and photographs, the best of which will be put on display at the exhibit. They all tell an intriguing story said photo judge Jim Gabbard, a photography professor at IPFW.

With temperatures in the upper eighties next week, take some time to check out the air conditioned exhibit, open every day from 10am-9:30pm at the Home and Family Arts building, and let me know what you think.