Don't Let It Rain On Show's Parade

Sydney Morning Herald

Friday March 21, 2008

Paul Bibby

THEY have come from some of the driest parts of NSW - towns where the drought has wreaked havoc on people's livelihoods and lives.

So there is irony in the fact that many of the exhibitors and operators at this year's Easter Show are hoping or praying that, for the next four days, Sydney stays as dry as a bone.

This year's show period falls outside the school holidays for the first time in three years - the result of the earliest Easter since 1913 - so those who make a living from the annual event are relying more than ever on the long weekend to make a buck.

It is traditionally the biggest revenue-generating period of the Australian show season, and some small operators will take up to 20per cent of their total annual profit over the four days, which leaves them at the mercy of the elements.

"It's all about the weather - that's the story," the general manager of the show, Michael Collins, said as the first showgoers poured in yesterday.

"It's a very important weekend for us. It makes the difference between a show that's fantastic and a show that's OK. If the weather's good we'll have bumper crowds; if it's bad some people will stay away."

Show organisers have gone some way towards compensating for the loss of school holiday trade by organising Easter Show excursions for hundreds of city primary and high schools. Between 18,000 and 20,000 schoolchildren will flock to the showgrounds each day, with more than 140,000 tickets pre-sold. Nevertheless, with showers predicted across the long weekend, operators were feeling anxious yesterday.

"I would make 60 to 70per cent of my revenue from the first five days," the owner of the Coffee Tram, Patrick Cowie, said. "The crowds are thinner today than they were on the first day last year. You could barely walk down Grand Parade, it was that packed - the school holidays definitely make a difference."

One attraction that was definitely not short of a crowd yesterday was the Pied Piper Duck Parade, with scores of children and parents packing in to see the winged supermodels show off the latest duck fashions.

The parade is "a show that never gets old", the chief duck handler, Bryan Harrington, said.

"I don't put out all of my top-shelf outfits on the first day - you've got to keep something in reserve for the second week of the show.

"I've got a lovely red and black number that looks fantastic on Jemima - the kids will love it, they love this stuff. Give 'em something they don't see every day and they'll keep coming - rain, hail or shine."

Royal Easter Show

WHAT'S ON

Alpaca fashion parades

Dairy goat judging

Poultry auction

Best of the best ute competition

Sydney bull riding spectacular

© 2008 Sydney Morning Herald

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