A five-day celebration of agriculture and rural living is expected to draw roughly 70,000 people to Bruce County this week.
The 107th annual International Plowing Match and Rural Expo (IPM) kicks off Tuesday at Lang Farms at 51 Durham Road, just west of Walkerton. It is being held on the same fields where it was hosted in 1976 and 1993. The festivities begin at 10 a.m. with the Bruce Power opening day parade. It will be followed by the opening ceremonies on the main stage at 11:30 a.m.
Premier Doug Ford was among the dignitaries in attendance on opening day.
Throughout its run the family-friendly event will showcase 500 vendors and exhibitors in one spot, daily plowing competitions, a variety of live demonstrations, the Canadian Cowgirls drill team, and musical entertainment. There is also an RV Park for those who plan to stay on site.
The RAM Rodeo will bring all the traditional rodeo events to the IPM Thursday through Saturday and there will be a weekend combine demolition derby. The full list of daily events can be found by clicking here.
OPP are advising drivers coming to the event or passing through the area to expect lengthy delays.
"Bruce Road 3, which is the main corridor through this area, is reduced to a 40 kilometres an hour speed limit. So make sure you are reducing your speed and looking for officers out there in their traffic vests directing traffic," OPP Inspector Keegan Wilcox said in a video posted to social media. "We are expecting thousands of people to come in and out of this place throughout the day and throughout the week."
Wilcox also recommends families attending the large event have a plan in place with children in the event they become separated.
The plowing match will run through to Saturday and coincides with the inaugural Rural Ontario Week.
Hundreds of local volunteers have worked tirelessly for months, alongside the Ontario Plowmen's Association to get the event up and running. Profits generated at the IPM will be donated to local groups and organizations.
