West Nipissing – People turned out in droves for the 2019 International Plowing Match and Rural Expo (IPM), held just outside the Northern Ontario settlement of Verner in the Municipality of West Nipissing from September 17 to 21.
“Our Board of Directors is thrilled and proud to have met one of our objectives of welcoming over 81000 attendees to our event. We would like to thank our volunteers, sponsors and exhibitors for joining us at IPM 2019,” says Neil Fox, Chair of IPM 2019.
“The community of West Nipissing pulled out all the stops to ensure our visitors felt welcome and enjoyed their stay in our community.”
The official attendance tally for this five-day celebration of agriculture and rural living is 81,517, including 7,400 school children.
There was no shortage of attractions at IPM 2019, which kept the crowds coming day after day. In addition to the BMO Plowing Competition there were hundreds of exhibitors/vendors, three stages of live music, West Coast Lumberjack Shows, RAM Rodeo Tour, Canadian Cowgirls precision drill team, chainsaw carving demonstrations, performances by the Skyhawks Canadian Armed Forces parachute team and more.
“The IPM was jam-packed with great entertainment and non-stop things to do for people of all ages,” says Sheila Marshall, President of the Ontario Plowmen’s Association, the parent hosts of the IPM. “There’s a reason we say you can’t do it all in one day.
“It was great to see so many people come out for IPM 2019 and have a blast while learning about the importance of agriculture and Northern Ontario’s many contributions to it.”
In addition to the efforts of about 1,200 local and provincial volunteers, the IPM would not be possible without support from the business community. At the top of that list are Presenting Partners BMO Bank of Montreal, Hydro One and the Ontario Mutual Insurance Association.
Platinum Partners of IPM 2019 include Bruce Power, Dodge RAM, Rogers Radio, Ed Seguin & Sons and West Nipissing Sanitation. Gold Partners are Baker Tilly, Cambrian College, College Boreal, Co-Op Regionale, CTV, Eastlink, Home Hardware, LeVoyageur/LeLoup, RONA Goulard, Savage Ford, Science North, Tremblay Chevrolet-Buick-GMC and Twiggs Coffee Roasters.
Contributions were also provided by the Government of Canada, the Province of Ontario and the Municipality of West Nipissing.
Source : Ontario Plowmen's Association