After a two-year hiatus, organizers of the long-standing Bearspaw & Cochrane Old Tyme Country Fair are champing at the bit for this year’s edition, scheduled for Aug. 27 and 28 at the rodeo grounds behind the Lions Club Event Centre at 109 5th Ave. in Cochrane.
Known by a variety of names over the five-plus decades it's been in operation, the Old Tyme Country Fair is about connecting rural and urban lives, and providing agricultural education and family fun.
Carol Bancroft is the president of the fair. She remembers another time when organizers were a bit tense on the eve of the event. In 1969, when the fair started, there were very few entries the night before it was scheduled to open.
“So the directors started to hustle and by the morning, they had 120 entries, and my dad said they made a profit of $284,” she said.
Profit is not a concern nowadays because everything inside and out is free.
The people behind the fair are excited to be back in action, Bancroft said.
“We are back, after taking off two years because of COVID and everybody is hyped,” she said
Bancroft said volunteers are working on the fair on a daily basis.
Highlights will include live western music, domestic art, hobbies and crafts, horticulture, photography, and something new – rocks.
“Probably some of the most unusual rocks you will find, that’s mainly for the kids. I just found out that people are into painting rocks – I didn’t know this,” Bancroft said.
Kids’ activities will also include tattoos, twisted balloons, a petting zoo, and a pony corral.
The theme of the fair this year is "Bees and Trees."
“We have a new category this year, it’s for people to bake something with honey,” Bancroft said.
Entries for all categories will be accepted on Aug. 26.
Catalogues are available at the Cochrane Information Centre.
Bancroft said they are always looking for volunteers and judges, adding being a judge is a good way to get free pie.
For more information or to volunteer, call Tammy Cruickshank at 403-816-6863.
