| AUGUST 18, 2010 -- Who's got the best live chicken, tomatoes, roses, or bird feeder? The blue ribbons for these and other homegrown points of pride will be awarded Sunday, Aug. 22, at the Cannon Grange Agricultural Fair and Exposition.
More than a contest for bragging rights over the best backyard rabbits or zinnias, the fair, now in its 78th year, offers old-fashioned games, exhibits and entertainment, as well as perennial favorites: a watermelon-eating contest and rubber duck race.
"There's something for everyone," said Don Offinger, president of the Grange Committee. "The fair hearkens back to a simpler, rural time when Wilton was a small town. But it also taps into our 21st-Century concerns, like locally grown produce, homemade items, and community participation."
Highlights of the fair include judged exhibits, which give local gardeners, collectors and craftspeople a chance to show off the fruits of their labor. Best-in-show and other awards are given in each category: home-baked goods, flowers, vegetables, handmade clothing and knitting, crafts, photography, farm animals, eggs and homemade spirits. Also on exhibit will be antique cars, tractors and trucks, plus live music provided by local musicians and bands.
Food is a big part of any fair and there will be judged classes of all sorts including brownies, chocolate chip cookies, carrot cake, cupcakes, jelly or jam, relish, pickles, honey and fudge. The Cannon Grange Perpetual Trophy will be awarded to the best key lime pie.
Baked goods aren't the only items to be judged. Fruits, vegetables and flowers will all come under a critical eye. If you like what you see, they will all be auctioned off at 4:15.
For a complete list of classes, consult the Grange Fair book, available at retailers and banks in town as well as the Wilton Library and town hall. It may also be downloaded from cannongrange.org.
There will be three Association of Connecticut Fairs contests relating to baking. There will be an adult baking contest focused on cranberry chutney coffeecake. Entries for the junior contest will be almond glazed sugar cookies. As always, there will also be a two-crusted apple pie contest. Recipes and contest rules may be found in the fair book. All entries must be brought to the fair by 8:30 Sunday morning.
The local winners of the state baking contests will receive blue ribbons and be eligible to submit their entries at the annual meeting of the Association of Connecticut Fairs in the fall.
Music and more
There will also be food for purchase, with Ancona's Market hosting a food concession.
Showing and selling their wares will be 24 vendors, most of them local, including Red Bee Honey and Wave Hill Bread, but some from out of state.
The main stage will feature entertainment most of the day with John Ottman and Grant Mudge taking the stage at 11; Rita Caruso and Family at noon; Billie Sue Hollingsworth and The Ridge Boys at 1; Matt Campbell and The Ridge Boys at 2; and Acoustic Wilton at 3.
Throughout the day there will be children's games, a farmers' market, and a display of antique cars, trucks, fire trucks and tractors. Among the concessionaires will be displays by civic organizations.
Later in the day the heat will be on with a watermelon-eating contest for kids at 3.
The annual Rubber Duck Race gets under way at 3:30. Entrants buy a duck, which becomes part of a flock let loose in the Norwalk River. The first 10 to make it downstream will win a prize for their owners. First prize is a child's bicycle. Proceeds will benefit Female Soldiers-Forgotten Heroes, a housing project for female soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.
"This is the best value you can spend on a Sunday with your family, friends and neighbors," Mr. Offinger said. "Come gawk, learn, play, race, eat, tap your feet, swing your partner, and enjoy!"
The fair takes place at 25 Cannon Road, just off Route 7. Admission is $2 and kids 12 and under are free. The fair will run from 10 to 4, rain or shine.
For more information, visit cannongrange.org, e-mail Cannon.Grange@yahoo.com , or call 203-762-1900.
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