Big Disappointment @ Argyle Lake Show

Drove 130mi. one way today to what used to be a real nice gas engine and antique tractor show. Never again!!! Show was gone at 10:30AM when we got there.Just a few flea mkt. vendors left.No food stands ,even the infomation tent was gone.I knew it was not good last yr. when it moved out of the trees but this is probably the end at least it is for me.

Where did all you guys go?

i used to make it a point to go every year to argyle. probably the best show to be at.....under the pines. very comfortable. nice place. when they moved it out of the trees last year, i didnt go. talked to quite a few people who did and said it wasnt nearly the same and i heard this year it was basically a disaster. i have no plans personally to go back. quite a shame.

The 'promoter' has to police this. I have helped friends set up and take down at different shows, trains, gunand knife, a couple other sorts, and every promoter had a rule about going home. If the public is going to buy a ticket to see stuff, the stuff better be there to look at, till the advertised closing time. Or don't even think about setting up next time.
I have seen a couple guys off load a tractor, drive it to the starting lineup, pull it a few minutes later, then in a minute- load it back up and drive off. Were they having fun driving there and back? I don't go to many shows anymore, ya see the same people with the same stuff over and over, got to hunt out something fresh now and then!

I can't comment too much on the State Park part of it, but I do live near the park and am a rural mail carrier. I also am a member of the Lion's club in Colchester.

Because I do still have to deliver the mail on Saturday then help with the Lion's food tent on Sunday I don't have much of a chance to get out to Argyle.

Basically, NOTHING is going on for spectators in Colchester on Labor Day itself except a pedal tractor pull at 11 AM. The rides are down, the vendors are gone, and EVERYTHING is getting torn down and hauled off.

I do agree that since the "tree huggers" won't let vendors set up in the woods it has gone down hill. I haven't been able to get out to the lake since they changed it, but my wife and her mom say it is not what it was before the wackos got involved.

As a Lion's club member I was asked by more than one person if I had a schedule of events for out to the lake. I had to tell them I didn't. The stuff that happens in town is in our Labor Day book that the Lion's have published.

I admit to not being as involved as I should in our Lion's club, but never gave much thought to the fact that the stuff at the lake isn't in our book.

I don't want to give you another reason NOT to come back, but we had a storm Saturday evening that cancelled the fireworks. They were supposed to happen Sunday 24 hours later. We went into town, about 15 minutes after they were supposed to happen someone came by and said they were cancelled again because the wind was from the wrong direction.

I am myself getting a little disappointed at the lack of communication at the last minute. There is no "whole town" type P.A.

But, please don't write the whole town off. I will bring this up at our next meeting and see if a better job can be done.

DOUG

Well, if you went on Sunday that was probably the problem.A three day show starting on Friday actually starts Friday nite and ends Saturday evening. If you go to any show on Sunday,you are sh*t out of luck.I've seen many p*ssed off people show up on Sunday and pay for nothing to see.

He went today, on Monday from what his rant said.

I talked to one of the club members that does the show at the lake about an hour ago or so. He said that he did his best to keep the lake show going
through today (Monday).

I don't know if there was ever that much on Monday itself in the past at the lake but Saturday and Sunday are a much "safer bet" for anything you want to do.

I won't get into all the places that USED to have the true Labor Day itself stuff, but most are gone. Not as easy to get time off, especially the day after a holiday, to "clean stuff up and put it away".

DOUG

I was at the Argyle Lake show, I missed last year and was really disappointed with the turnout.In the past this has been one of the biggest shows i go to. If i'd known that they had moved from out of the trees, i wouldn't have went. I know that problems exist, but i stayed till Sunday night anyway

I believe we're in a "generational gap" and it's going to hurt a lot of shows.

The old timers that have been the life's blood in these shows are dying off.

The younger generation (i.e. baby boomers) are just starting to retire, IF they can afford to retire. In a few years there will be more of them to help run these shows. But, you lose a lot of them to their kids' weddings and grandkid functions.

The next generation down is still working and taking care of young kids. Believe me we WANT to be there but life is getting in the way.

This coming weekend, is the show at Salem, IL. We have a consignment sale, Thur. Fri is for two schools to bring kids to. We start charging admission at noon Fri., and have tractor games Fri. evening. Sat. we do get a few more displays, and have the weighted tractor pull, toy show, toy auction. pedal pull, L&G tractor parade, and parade of power. Late in the after noon, the car show, on the other side of town, has a cruise through the grounds. Sat evening there is a fun pull for exhibitors. Sun starts with a church service, then another pedal pull, and the 2 parades. The show ends at 4:00, but yes some do leave early. Almost all of the venders and food stands stay till the end. $4 admission covers everything. I can be contacted at dhamps at excite dot com or six one eight six six two eight one five six www.antiquepowerdays If anyone has any issues with our show, please contact someone.

I was visiting with one of the exhibitors and he said the show is now 'officially a Friday thru Sunday show'. He wasn't too happy about that. I did think it was easier to look at the tractors all lined up nice and neat.