Spouse carrying might be a crowd favourite, but it was rain that really stole the show at the Strath Taieri A&P Show, organisers say.
The show, in its 114th year, drew a crowd of about 1500 people to the Middlemarch showgrounds on Saturday, Strath Taieri A&P Association president Lynnore Templeton said.
The turnout was pleasing despite numbers taking a hit from the ''really wet'' conditions. The second annual spouse carrying competition proved a big hit, she said.
But the real star of the show was the rain that fell on parched soil in Middlemarch, she believed.
''Because we're a farming community, and we've been in the middle of one of the worst droughts in memory, to have it rain on show day was actually a great thing.
''Everyone was so happy to see the rain coming down, so it didn't matter if we all got wet,'' Mrs Templeton said.
The rain did not dampen the enthusiasm of competitors in the spouse carrying competition, which was eventually won by Adam Dale and Hayley Mackie, of Middlemarch, after two heats and a final.
Nor did it deter the crowd, who ''absolutely love it'', Mrs Templeton said.
''They line up along the length of the race, cheer them on, and it's really good.''
The winners' prize was another load to carry - Ms Mackie's weight in beer.
