When country came to town: Canterbury 155th A and P Show

Canterbury’s favourite community event – the Canterbury Agricultural and Pastoral Association Show  - has wrapped up for another year after three days of animals, fun and entertainment. Show organisers are waiting to confirm final numbers and they anticipate strong attendance (close to 100,000) after bumper days on Wednesday and Thursday. The last day of the event, Friday, also known as the Show Day culminated with the ultimate prize - the Supreme Champion Animal of Show, which went to a Southdown ram nicknamed Rock Star, owned by Ms Christina Jordan of Blenheim.

Overall, the annual agricultural show - held every year since 1862 - featured 500 trade exhibitors showcasing their services, animals and products. It also saw livestock and equestrian madness, with 3,000 animals competing in over 1,700 classes for the best of the best titles and over $100,000 in prize money. Along with the finale of Ballantynes Grand Parade, the show also witnessed watch dog trials, wood chopping competition, wool auction, shearing contests (including for children with their own “have a go” featuring a toy sheep) and cooking demonstrations.

There were performances by the internationally acclaimed NZ Army Band, country music sensation Kaylee Bell and local duo Assembly Required, as well. Another event that has become very popular in recent years was the Heartland Bank Young Auctioneers Competition. The competition aims to showcase and develop young auctioneers and improve the standard of auctioneering across the board.

Another big draw-card was the  steeplechase featuring Shetland ponies, known as the Shetland Grand National, which was won by Ms Mollie Hedgman, who is only 13 years of age.  

While the event ended with an exhibition Polo match, an event which was organised for the first time during the Show was the Gumboot Throwing Championship. While Mr Josh Leszczuk won the men's title with a throw of 39.46m, women's pack was led by Ms Shelley Norris (24.68m).