Exhibitors set up for ploughing championships
More than 150,000 people are expected to attend the three-day showpiece, regarded as the biggest outdoor agricultural event in Europe.
Work on preparing the 600-acre site is nearing completion for the September 25, 26 and 27 championships.
The ploughing championships will be worth an estimated 20 million to the regional economy.
Some 300 competitors will chase 19 national ploughing titles at the event which President Mary McAleese will officially open at noon next Tuesday.
Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, members of the diplomatic corps, Cabinet members, political party, agri-industry and farmer leaders will be among the visitors.
The event will have 850 trade exhibits on 60 acres and is costing €3m to stage.
Gardaí working with Superintendent Dennis Bowe and Inspector Joe Prendergast, Tullamore, have drawn up a detailed traffic plan, which will be implemented across several counties.
Supt Bowe advised those travelling to the event to plan their route in advance, come early and follow the directions to the various car parks.
Some 500 staff, mostly volunteers, including 200 stewards from every county in the Republic, will also be on duty for the event, which will be held on land made available by the Deverell and Cox families at Annaharvey.
National Ploughing Association managing director, Anna May McHugh, said everything was going according to schedule with the ploughing competitions at the core of the programme.
She said the trade display is so large that a person visiting the site on each of the three days, from 9am until 6pm, could only afford to spend less than two minutes at each stand if they wished to see the entire exhibition.
Co Offaly will be hosting the event for the fifth time.
It was last held in the county 10 years ago.
www.npa.ie
See Thursday’s Irish Examiner for a special 20-page free supplement on the National Ploughing Championships.
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