Scaled-back show meets targets

Although the show has been a centrepiece of Canterbury’s Show Week for many decades, in April the then Canterbury A&P board cited financial pressures in a shock announcement that there would be no full-scale public show this year.

Only the Canterbury Agricultural and Pastoral Association (CAPA) livestock and other competition classes would go ahead - without the public, as they had through two Covid show cancellations.

However, an approach from event management company Event Hire gained grassroots support from the wider association, leading to the ousting of the old board and a new board giving Event Hire the go-ahead in August to run a public show.

Both Event Hire and the board say they are happy with the event, saying it met public attendance and other targets despite many of the big traditional rural supporters being unable to attend.

“With a 90-day turnaround we really needed support from the trade, from the public, from the food trucks, from the entertainers. And we really needed support from the [A&P] Association. And they all came through, so we’ve had a fantastic show,” said Event Hire’s event manager Karl Horwarth.

The show met a target of around 60,000 people over the three days – despite possibly the poorest show weather for many years. They had also met their target of around 300 trade sites.

But conspicuous by their absence were many traditional big supporters.

Horwarth said that when the old board announced the cancellation, several of the big rural trade sites, like PGG Wrightson, Ravensdown and Silver Fern Farms, committed their staff and their budgets elsewhere. When the new board gave the go-ahead in August, giving Event Hire just a 90-day turnaround, they went back to those companies, but they were unable to commit.

“We still got some good support from some of those big rural guys. They couldn’t have the presence, but some of them were able to give sponsorship dollars. Some were able to give equipment.

“Now they’ve all pretty much said that they’ll be back in 2025.”

Speaking on the second day of the event, the new board chair, Sir David Carter, said it had gone “unbelievably well” with great attendance despite a shower of rain early on the opening day.

“Today’s been fabulous. At one stage I heard a complaint that it was taking too long at the gates to buy your tickets. As an event organiser, that is a wonderful complaint to get.”

CAPA show president Bryce Murray promised that next year would be better.

A board meeting after the show confirmed the intention to go ahead with Event Hire again next year, he said.

Event Hire co-owner and director Philip Anderson said the show had been a great experience and they learnt a lot.

Feedback from the board, the committee and the various show sections had all been positive, he said.

Glenbrooke Pageboy ridden by Charlotte Roberts is named the overall Supreme Champion Animal of the Christchurch Show. Holding the trophy is show president Bryce Murray with his wife Janet, left, RAS president Rachel Walker, and show board chair Sir David Carter.

Saturday Show?

Bryce Murray says the timing of the next show is a question to be decided, probably early in the new year.

“There’s probably going to be quite a bit of debate about that,” said Murray.

The public show and the bulk of the competition classes traditionally run Wednesday, Thursday, Friday – Friday being Show Day, Canterbury’s statutory anniversary holiday and usually the busiest day of the show. At Event Hire’s request, this year’s public show ran Thursday Friday Saturday, in the hope that it would give working people one more day to attend, despite there being almost no livestock left on site to see by Saturday

One possibility is to push the competition classes back a day to match a Thursday Friday Saturday public show.

However, that is not supported by show stalwart, Tai Tapu Holstein Friesian breeder Dean Geddes.

Geddes, who is from a family that has been showing for more than 106 years and hasn’t missed a show in decades, points out that in the traditionally busy Canterbury Show Week, Saturday is for the New Zealand Cup at the Riccarton gallops.

“You won’t have me here then, because that’s my racing. That’s my day off.”

Geddes was speaking to Rural News on the Friday afternoon of the show, when almost all dairy entries had already gone home, apart from a few calves and Geddes’s Tahora Pharo Abriana, which had been named Supreme Champion Dairy Cow of the show, and was awaiting the judging of the overall Supreme Champion Animal.

Geddes said that while it would be a shame for the public to have no livestock to see on the Saturday, showing dairy cows was a big commitment taking up nearly a whole week. He brings his animals into the showgrounds on the Sunday to get them used to the chlorinated town supply water, then has to employ staff to milk them and stay with them 24 hours a day, while other staff continue to run the farm. Then it takes a couple of days to wean them back onto grass.

“And I’ve had 20 cows here – more than anyone.”