McGavin, Townsend triumph at Huron County Plowing Match

BY SHAWN LOUGHLIN

The results are in for the 95th annual Huron County Plowing Match and plenty of locals have reason to be proud of their performance.

 

On Junior Day, the Huron 4-H Sodbusters Club held its achievement day at the match, which was held just northeast of Brussels on the farm of Pete and Leisa Albers. There, Clayton Hern proved to be tops, winning the Top Plow Person Award, followed by Wyatt Govers, who won the Ross Gordon Memorial Award for Top Crown, while Hern also won the William Leeming Memorial Award for Top Finish.

 

Hern finished the match with 135 points, placing first, followed by Govers in second with 130 points, Peter Albers in third with 121 points, Dugald McIntosh with 119 points in fourth and Brendan Hickey with 118 points in fifth place.

 

Joel Fleet finished the match with 116 points and a sixth-place finish, followed by Cole Hugill and James Speer who both finished with 114 points in a tie for seventh place. Ben Speer finished in ninth place with 111 points, followed by Aiden Hickey in 10th place with 110 points, a tie for 11th place with 107 points between James Miller and Ryan Miller and Brooklyn Hendriks and Darcy Fear in a tie for 13th place with 106 points.

 

As for Friday’s match itself, Dugold McIntosh was named Grand Champion Junior Plow Person, while Brendan Hickey was named Reserve Champion Junior Plow Person, as well as the winner of the Huron County Scholarship Award.

 

Ben Speer won the Warden’s Award and the McGavin Award for his performance at the match, while Aiden Hickey won the Val-Lea Award as the match’s youngest participant.

 

McIntosh topped Class 2 (Huron Junior), followed by Brendan Hickey in second, Ben Speer in third, James Miller in fourth and Darcy Fear in fifth. In Class 4 (Huron Green Class), James Speer placed first, followed by Ryan Miller in second, Aiden Hickey in third and Cole Hugill in fourth.

 

In the senior competition, it was a familiar story, with Brian McGavin being crowned Grand Champion Senior Plow Person, followed by Lucas Townsend as the Reserve Champion Senior Plow Person - two men who are no strangers to representing the county provincially, federally and beyond.

 

McGavin topped Class 5 (Huron Senior), followed by Townsend in second, Paul Dodds in third, Andrew Fear in fourth and Joe Ryan in fifth.

 

Alex Cameron placed first in Class 6 (Open Junior), followed by Austin Brodhaecker in second.

 

In Class 7 (Open Senior - Two Furrow), Brian Davenport placed first, followed by Patrick Sanders in second, Kody Vandevenne in third, Tom Evans in fourth, Craig Cameron in fifth, Paul Robinson in sixth and Darnell Francis in seventh.

 

No one participated in Class 8 (Open, Three-Furrow) this year, though Gerald Corbett placed first in Class 9 (Reversible Plows), while MacKenzie Reinhart finished in second.

 

Ken Milligan topped Class 10 (Antique - Trail/Drag Plow), followed by Tom Thede in second, Jim Cox in third, Kent Robinson in fourth, Keith Robinson in fifth, Richard Pepper in sixth and Fred Richardson in seventh, though he was unable to finish due to a malfunction with his tractor.

 

In Class 11 (Antique - Mounted Plow), Brian Helkaa placed first, followed by Paul Hodgson in second, Doug Smith in third and Ian Break in fourth.

 

In Class 14 (Antique - Junior Plowed Drag or Mounted Plow), Cameron Vos was the lone participant and winner.
As a result, Brian Helkaa was named the Grand Champion Antique Plower, Cameron Vos was named the Grand Champion Junior Antique Plower and Brian Davenport (of Owen Sound) won the Don Dodds Award for Highest Visitor’s Score.
Jordan Shortreed won Class 12A (Horse Sulky Plow) as the lone participant and John Dekroon won Class 13 (Horse Walking Plow), also as the lone participant.

 

Dekroon also claimed the Best Plough Team Award.