[author]Story & photos Eve Jeffery[/author]
Blessed with three days of exceptional weather, this year’s North Coast National had everything you go to an agricultural show for and a tonne of entertaining and fun activities and displays catering to the thousands who walked through the gates at the showgrounds for the 126th Lismore Show.
For the farmers there was the chance to display their stock in the many stock competitions including the Dairy Spectacular – one of the country’s richest dairy shows – as well as exhibitions of beef cattle, alpacas, guinea pigs, poultry, pigs, dogs and cats.
For the kids there was the traditional sideshow alley of games and rides plus the chance to pet and feed baby creatures in Old McDonald’s Farm Animal Nursery and test their skills in the Great Lego Building Challenge.
Main arena events included a rodeo, the traditional riding and jumping equestrian events, and V8 Ute Trackskills drivers and the inaugural North Coast Ute Muster.
The show hosted a wide variety of exhibitions to keep the curious happy with a Sustainable Living Expo, the Banyam-Baigham Indigenous Art Space, music and dance demonstrations and competitions and, for the second year, the taste sensations of the Northern Rivers Regional Food Celebration (see separate article).
The show was officially opened on Thursday evening and the winner of the showgirl competition announced – 19-year-old Ellie Stephens of Tregeagle took home the 2011 blue ribbon. The blonde beauty says she joined the competition to raise awareness about the importance of agriculture on the North Coast.
