About three dozen competitors brought their tractors and horses to Plympton-Wyoming Saturday for the annual Lambton Plowing Match.

Sunny skies and slightly chilly late August temperatures greeted the field at Keith and Alma Hart’s London Line farm.

“Absolutely fantastic conditions,” said Patrick Sanders, who placed second Friday at the Canadian national championships in Ayton, southeast of Hanover in Grey County.

The long-time Alvinston competitor also was coaching family members and competing in Lambton’s event Saturday.

The match is one of several on a circuit of qualifiers for the International Plowing Match, the provincial competition in which Sanders placed second in his class last year, advancing to nationals.

“Exactly what we love to plow,” Sanders said of Saturday’s conditions. “Nice clay ground, but lots of moisture in it.”

Repeating as second best in Canada, a title Sanders said he’s held a few times before, is “all right,” he said.

“It’s always a thrill to be one of the best in the nation, but I haven’t quite achieved that goal of being the best plowman in Canada.”

He’s looking forward to Lambton hosting provincials in Brigden in 2027, he said. “It promises to be a heck of a show.”

A handful of first- and second-year competitors took part in Saturday’s competition, signalling some could be gearing up for 2027, said Kathi McNeil, an event organizer with the Lambton Plowmen’s Association.

Queen of the Furrow, municipal class competitions and antique tractor displays also were part of the annual event, she said.

“It’s a great family day,” she said. “It certainly celebrates our roots.”

Keith Hart, who also hosted the 2024 Lambton Plowing Match at the property, said he was pleased to see it back.

“It’s wonderful to see it,” he said Saturday, hours after competing in the walking plow category.

The committee organizing for the 2027 International Plowing Match & Rural Expo meanwhile is calling for submissions for a logo.

“Just as a way to get people involved,” McNeil said, noting designs must include the plowman statue from the Brigden Fairgrounds, an outline of Lambton County, and the event name.

Submission deadline is Sept. 12. Entries and questions can be sent to contest@lambtonipm.ca.

More details are available from the Lambton Plowmen’s Association and 2027 International Plowing Match & Rural Expo Facebook pages, McNeil said.

People interested in volunteering for the 2027 IPM also can watch those pages for opportunities, she said.

A committee is judging logo contest submissions, said Don Lunn, vice-chairperson of the IPM Lambton 2027 committee.

“We’re looking for contributions from anyone,” he said.

~Tyler Kula~
Sarnia Observer