Rodeo brings new excitement to 165th Bolton Fall Fair

September 28, 2023 · 0 Comments

Organizers estimate 25,000 people attended fair last weekend

By ZACHARY ROMAN

Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Another amazing Bolton Fall Fair is in the books.

From toonie rides night last Thursday, to Family Fun Day last Sunday, the 165th annual Bolton Fall Fair was a lively event with a packed schedule of things to do each day. New this year was the addition of a rodeo on Friday and Saturday.

During the fair’s opening ceremony on September 22, Dufferin-Caledon MPP Sylvia Jones stopped by to address the crowd.

“Please thank a volunteer,” said Jones. “Your evening, your weekend, will be a success because of all the hard work those volunteers put in.”

Each year, the Bolton Fall Fair is put together by volunteers from the Albion Bolton Agricultural Society. These volunteers also put together another of Caledon’s biggest yearly events, the Bolton Truck and Tractor Pull.

Heather French, a volunteer with the Albion Bolton Agricultural Society, said the company they worked with to put on the rodeo, Rawhide Rodeo, was fantastic.

“The feedback we received from people was great,” said French, noting many people were asking if the rodeo would be back at the fair in 2024. “It was really well received.”

She said the vibes at the fair were amazing this year, and she was happy with how much there was to do. French said the fair couldn’t happen without the generous support of sponsors, who also donated prizes for various competitions at the fair.

French said the barn dance held on Friday night was a great time.

“It was fun planning it and fun watching it unfold,” said French.

Something else French enjoyed was watching local firefighters duke it out in the tug-of-war competition. She said community partners such as Caledon Fire, Caledon OPP, and the Knights of Columbus play a big role in making the fair a success.

“Our community partners are so important to us,” said French.

While official numbers aren’t yet in, French suspects this year’s fair had the largest turnout ever.

Ahead of the fair, a scarecrow making competition was announced and 25 different entries came in. People that made scarecrows received free entrance to the fair and had a chance to win prizes — plus, the scarecrows around Caledon helped market the fair to potential attendees.

“We had one guy that had his scarecrow ‘cutting the grass’, he kept moving it around,” said French. “On social media, it created quite a buzz… people had a lot of fun with it.”

Caledon Mayor Annette Groves said she loves coming to the fair each year and has been since her son was little.

“I love the food here, please support all of our local vendors,” said Groves.

She thanked the fair volunteers as well, noting that Caledon owes them a big debt of gratitude for putting on such an amazing fair every year.

Groves said agriculture is an important part of the economy in Caledon and stressed the importance of supporting farmers.

Nicole French, outgoing Senior Fair Ambassador, said it was an honour to represent the Albion Bolton Agricultural Society over the past year. She said she’s thankful to have been part of the team that puts on the fair.

“It takes a village to put a fair like this together,” said French. “This is not done without many hours of time and dedication.”