IPM Entertainers ANNOUNCED!

Verner, West Nipissing: The upcoming 2019 International Plowing Match and Rural Expo (IPM) offers an exciting mix of entertainment and activities that showcase the character of West Nipissing, its people, its culture and its languages.

The IPM 2019 Executive Committee and the Ontario Plowmen’s Association (OPA) are overjoyed to announce this year’s special features and attractions. The list is extremely varied and will please people of all ages.

With so much to see and to do, plan to spend more than one day!

This year’s highlights include:

• On Wednesday, September 18, a live display of the Skyhawks Canadian Armed Forces parachute team in full action!
• RAM Rodeo Tour and Canadian Cowgirls precision drill team will put on multiple performances throughout the five-day event.
• Amber Marshall, star actress of CBC’s Heartland, will be co-hosting RAM Rodeo Tour on Friday, September 20. Afterward, she’ll hand out a special signing card and fans will have an opportunity to take photos from outside the ring. A VIP Meet & Greet contest is also in the works.
• A West Cost Lumberjack Show, Northern Ontario style! The show features a full spectrum of lumberjack events including log rolling, axe throwing, tree climbing and many others.
• The Main Stage in Tented City will keep visitors entertained with local talent from Northern Ontario and beyond. Performers include:  Small Town Girls, Gisele Small, Danny Pednaud, Commanda Bandits, Ramblin Fever, Ghost Town Cryers, Larry Berrio, Rob Watts Band, Naomi Bristow, Crystal Shawanda, Les gens du Nord, Don & Friends, Shania Live, Night Riders, Chanelle Albert, The Mudmen, Nicole Glover.
• Breaking with tradition, the Earl’s RV Park entertainment on Wednesday, September 18 and Saturday, September 21 evenings will be open to the public. Claude Lecuyer and Stompper Taw Connors, son of Canadian legend Stompin’ Tom Connors, will perform a tribute show on Wednesday evening, whereas Manny Blu and Larry Berriot will be featured on Saturday evening.
• In Tented City, the Northeastern Ontario Pavilion will allow you to experience Northern Ontario outdoors through interactive activities and displays.
• In the Lifestyle Tent there will be fashion shows by the Cutter’s Edge and Bow & Arrow, live presentations and demonstrations about home decoration and gardening, as well as fitness, artisanal workshops and French-Canadian storytelling.

Of course, visitors will be introduced to the BMO Plowing Competition with participants coming from all across Canada and the United States.  Visitors will be amazed by the skills required to plow the soil with horses and antique tractors, as well as with conventional and reversible equipment.

New this year, an out-of-field competition is being offered. It’s an opportunity for anyone to test out their plowing abilities – your own equipment and insurance are required – on Saturday, Sept. 21. There’s no entry fee. More information will be released about this in the near future.

There will be plenty of activities in the Hydro One Education Centre, and you won’t want miss the Ontario Queen of the Furrow competition, brought to you by the Ontario Mutual Insurance Association.

Then there’s hundreds of exhibitors, a large number of agricultural displays and demonstrations, quilts galore, a variety of food, and much more.

A full schedule of events is not yet available but will be posted online at www.plowingmatch.org/ipm2019 in the near future.

Come experience West Nipissing’s “Joie de Vivre” or Love for Life during the IPM, being held September 17-21 in Verner, Municipality of West Nipissing.  For more information about IPM 2019, visit www.plowingmatch.org/ipm2019/.