The sun was shining down on the crossroads of Ireland in the townsland of Rathensika, Stradbally, Co Laois this week as the NPA executive travelled to the site of this year’s National Ploughing Championships for the official event launch. There they walked the green fields that will soon host nearly two hundred acres of ploughing competitions and a hundred acres of a grassland trade arena.
Taking place from 24th to 26th September the National Ploughing Championships, long regarded as Ireland’s largest outdoor event, is making a long overdue return visit to the area for the first time in seventy years. The Championships last took place in Lamberton, Ratheniska in 1943.
Working in conjunction with Laois Partnership and Tourism Ireland, ‘Laois Ploughing Village’ promises to be a superb addition to this year’s event. The ‘Laois Ploughing Village’ marquee will be hosting an array of uniquely Laois attractions, including a traditional Irish Céilí, Laois photo exhibitions, genealogy workshops with presentations by Henry Healy, and a fantastic panel display of the History of Ploughing through the ages. Furthermore, the ‘Laois Ploughing Village’ marquee will be incorporating a brand new playground on their site, sponsored by Go Play/Kompan, with an array of exciting equipment, assuring to be a wonderful appeal to both children and adults . ‘Welcome to Laois’ packs will be distributed to visitors of the marquee promoting all the uniquely Laois attractions this county has to offer.
This year will see an array of new and exciting exhibitor’s as well as hundreds of veteran companies showcasing their products and services. In the machinery section for the first time we have Lucas G SAS, travelling from France to showcase their feeders, straw bedders and diet feeders. McHale will be introducing the Fusion 3 integrated baler wrapper along with their 5000 series of fixed chamber balers. On the motoring front we have Renault Trucks Ireland and Volkswagen Commercial the official motoring sponsors to the event.
In the competitive ploughing stakes a particularly strong programme has attracted entries from all around the country and Northern Ireland bringing the number preparing to plough in Laois to three hundred and thirty over the three days. Our newly crowned World Ploughing Champions, John Whelan of Wexford and Carlow man Eamon Tracey will both be defending their national titles in the reversible and conventional classes. Competitions will also feature vintage ploughing and loy digging. Results are announced each day in the evening at 6pm from the bandstand and over €18,000 is available in prizes.
There will be no need for the fashion police at Ploughing 2013 as our Fashion Show makes an even bigger return to the event. Coordinated by Holman Lee agency over eleven outlets will showcase the best of the Autumn/Winter fashions and sponsors Wineport Lodge and Louis Copeland will provide the Most Appropriately Dressed Lady and Gentleman competition prizes. Thomas Cook will sponsor holiday vouchers to the value of €500 to two lucky audience members attending one of the trice daily shows over the course of the three days.
The NPA Site Team is making great strides on marking out the Trade Arena, which is expected to exceed the size of the 2012 Championships with 1300 exhibitors. Exhibitors are choosing to press rewind on the recession by coming on board in huge numbers to showcase their wares. The exhibition arenas are now full and a waiting list is in operation pending cancellations.
The NPA Food & Beverages Hall will showcase Ireland’s finest producers of Agri-food and drink. Truly Irish, Ballymaloe Relish and O’Brien’s Fine Foods are among those exhibiting. Bord Bia and National Dairy Council will demonstrate all that is good about Irish food with the ICA holding food demos by celebrity chefs Cathal Moran of Wineport Lodge and Edward Hayden of TV3 fame and Edward Entertains. Nevin Maguire will be entertaining the foodies in the Farmers Journal tent while chef of the year, Paul Flynn will feature in the RTE tent. Food retail kings Aldi, Tesco and Lidl will promote Irish sourced produce along with running customer competitions in their marquees.
Our 2013 championships will see the welcome return of a revamped Innovations Arena. This year the NPA in conjunction with Toplink.ie will provide an Innovations tent for over twenty innovators to display their product. One lucky entrepreneur will be selected to win a prize of €1500 to showcase their product at the 2014 Lamma Show in England. The NPA are proud to promote all that is exciting in the field of innovations as it is the future of farming. Carlow Enterprise Board will be advising farmers on how to use Twitter and social media technology with their ‘Write on Track’ clinics.
The Forestry Village will feature the All-Ireland ‘Husqvarna Hurdle’, a new competitive obstacle course sure to put all in attendance through their paces. Advisory Authorities and many of the services associated with this sector will also feature . The Irish Hawking Club will display indigenous Irish Birds of prey such as the Golden Eagle and Barn Owl. Chewy the giant dog will be roving the site as part of the Chewys Worm Patrol Roadshow whom is visiting with us this year to promote their ‘Get Worm Wise Educational Tour’. Stradbally Allotments under the watchful eye of Noel Ryan will cater for all those with green fingers giving advice on gardening, orchards and poly tunnel maintenance.
In the vintage section, Irish Vintage Scene will be running a ‘Live Tractor Build Challenge’ with six teams competing over three days. Among those competing are ‘Heathers Angels’ a ladies team from Cavan who will surely put it up to current All-Ireland champions ‘Harry Heroes’ from Moylough in Co Galway. On the pony games front over 30 teams will compete with the Junior Hunt Chase Wednesday and Senior Hunt Chase on Thursday.
Accommodation across the area is filling fast and those planning to stay in the region are recommended to contact Laois Tourism in Portlaoise on 057 8621178 or Jessica Dowling on 087 3304539 for unregistered accommodation.