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Collectibles’ booth, Home Care shop win top exhibit awards

Thursday, July 31st, 2008

Mark Trombley started showing his nostalgic signs and collectibles at the Monroe County Fair in 2000 with a tent that measured 10 feet by 10 feet.
This year, he’s exhibiting in a tent twice that size. That’s how much business has improved in nine years for his Trombley’s Classic Collectibles’ booth at the fair.
For the second year in a row, his booth has won a trophy for being the best outside exhibit at the fair. The exhibit is located north of the midway just east of the South Exhibit Building at the corner of Fairgrounds Ave. and Whiteford St.
For the second year in a row, the Monroe Home Care Shoppe won a trophy for having the top exhibit in the Monroe Bank & Trust Expo Center. The business was judged the best again from among more than 130 exhibitors inside the air-conditioned building at the north end of the fairgrounds.
Read more about the top exhibitor awards in Saturday’s Evening News…

– Dean Cousino

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Best 4-H milk cow selected

Thursday, July 31st, 2008

It was deja vu for Steve Stump and his Jersey dairy cow named Hope.
Three years ago, the little calf was born at the fair and the Carleton youth had the top milk cow. On Thursday, the brown cow raised by Steve, a 2008 Airport High School graduate, was named the Supreme Milk Cow at the 2008 fair.
The cow produces about 43 pounds of milk a day. A gallon of its milk was sold in a special sale Thursday to benefit the 4-H Dairy Club. The sale grossed about $3,400, which is about $100 more than last year, said Denny Meyer, adult treasurer for the club.
“For the economy being what it is, that’s not too bad,” Mr. Meyer, a Carleton resident, said.
The first $600 will go to the club to help pay expenses for the coming year. The rest will be divided among the 17 members in the club.
The Jersey bested two other cows in the finals — the grand champions from the holstein division and the “other breeds” class,  which included ayrshires, brown swiss and guernseys. Skylar Buell of Ida raised both of the champions. She showed her holstein while a friend, Colleen Delaney of Maybee, showed a brown swiss cow.
Read more about the 4-H dairy show in Friday’s Evening News…

– Dean Cousino

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Video of the Clydesdales

Thursday, July 31st, 2008

Those of you who haven’t yet seen the Budweiser Clydesdales at the fair can get a preview and a little behind-the-scenes flavor of what’s involved in preparing the eight-horse team for its nightly show via a little video I shot earlier this week, which was edited by my son, Chris.

Not in the video or article that was published Wednesday is the fact that the team of chauffeur/groomers that accompanies the horses scrubs and groom sthe animals each day of an appearance. This week, the groomers will work 60 to 70 hours attending to the horses and preparing them for their 7 p.m. nightly shows at the Glenn Stock Arena.

The team at the Monroe fair is out of St. Louis and is one of five that make appearances at various events around the country. Some of the horses in the team at the fair were among those that were part of the memorable Anheuser-Busch television commercial that was shown during this year’s Super Bowl.

Each one of the horses is worth from $20,000 to $30,000. Horse owners might appreciate the fact that no one really cleans the hooves of the Clydesdales – a task that involves using a pick to pry out dirt, mud and other debris that can clog the hooves and make it uncomfortable for a horse to walk. The Clydesdales wear a special padded shoe on their massive hooves, like a new set of Nikes, according to Jay Peters, sales director of Floral City Beverage Co., the local Anheuser-Busch distributor.

Mr. Peters said those over age 50 seem to enjoy the Clydesdales show most because the iconic team conjures up memories for Baby Boomers. “They made the brand,” he said.

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