Ploughing fans have booked out Co Carlow B&Bs
All of the registered accommodation in the county was booked out, 10 weeks before the National Championships at Tullow will take place on September 28, 29, and 30.
Now, the Association's volunteers are diverting enquiries to unregistered accommodation, or directing the expected attendance of 150,000 to the nearest accommodation in surrounding counties.
The event is living up to NPA managing director, Anna May McHugh's expectations.
Ms McHugh says their aim is to get maximum local involvement, and, when the event moves to Mogeely, in east Cork, in 2005, she envisages a huge tourism boost from a big attendance.
Ms McHugh says Cork and Munster people traditionally support the Ploughing, while the trip to the south coast will have holiday appeal for the people of the midlands, where the Championships has been sited for many years.
The Forrest family, who farm at Deerpark, Mogeely, in Midleton, are to provide the main site for the 2005 event.
Ten neighbouring farms will help to stage the exhibition.
The agri-business companies who exhibit at the ploughing championships are also happy with the trip to the south, says Michael Macken, chairman of the NPA.
Jim McCarthy, chairman, East Cork Ploughing, says the event is coming to "great agricultural country," where the local dairy co-operative was set up in 1929.
Mogeely is now one of the Dairygold co-operative's most important processing centres.
Announcing the 2005 Cork venue last week, the Agriculture Minister, Joe Walsh, thanked the Forrests for providing a site and praised the NPA for showcasing the farming sector with flair and distinction.
Meanwhile, the build-up to Carlow in nine weeks' time continues. In an early preview of the 2004 championships, Anna May McHugh says it will feature several farm machinery demonstrations near the trade stands, and the fashion section should be equally successful, with 17 shops involved.
