Plenty of alpacas at windy A&P show

Conditions were breezy for the 143rd South Otago A&P Show at Balclutha on Saturday but those attending appeared keen to have fun.

President Jackie Kelly, of Balclutha, said she was pleased with the two-day event.

Crowd numbers were about the same as last year while entries overall were slightly up.

She was pleased to see goats and alpacas, both of which were relatively new to the show. "Years ago, we used to have lots of beef and pigs entered, but now we do not have any pigs but lots of alpacas."

The dairy judge said the entrants were of a high standard.

Although Saturday was reasonably calm, the wind caused a headache for volunteers erecting one of the large marquees on Friday.

It was glamour and goosebumps for one of the most popular events, the Show Queen competition.

The entrants smiled despite chilly conditions on the stage.

Balclutha's Ashleigh Calder (18) won the title as well as the Miss Friendship and public-speaking awards.

Dunedin's April Dennis (19) was runner-up, with Christine Harrington (22), of Balclutha, third.

Miss Calder, a management and business law student at the University of Otago, won cash, vouchers and the trophy.

She said she was surprised to win both awards and the Show Queen title: "You have to come with an open mind and be ready for anything.

My hairdresser convinced me to do it and I thought I might as well give it a go."

One of the highlights during the lead-up to the competition was a ride in a rally car with Duncan McCrostie, of Kaitangata.

Miss Calder will represent South Otago at various events during the next year.

"I was not even watching how fast we were going, and we were going through gates sideways."

Alpaca show convener Brenda McLean, of Winderemere Alpacas and Llamas, Milton, said there were 64 entries in this year's show, one more than last year.

Several entries came from Canterbury, with both the supreme champion awards for huacaya and suri going to Christchurch.

"The quality of alpacas was very high," Mrs McLean said. Dunedin opera mezzo soprano singer Claire Barton performed for an appreciative crowd, then sang the New Zealand national anthem just before the grand parade.

Other attractions included a display by Owaka chainsaw artist Stephen Hurring, while the children's animal nursery proved popular.

Mrs Kelly said the committee volunteers had all worked extremely hard.

"It is so good to have people who are passionate about it and prepared to put that extra effort into it.

"People who tell us they enjoyed the show really make a big difference to the committee," she said.