Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival - A Study in Frugality and Excess
Written: May 05 '03 (Updated May 11 '03)
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Pros: Sheep, wool, music, chance to make some cash.
Cons: Expensive food and long lines for ladies' room.
The Bottom Line: The Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival is a wonderful, annual event, that is fun for the whole family but leave that dog at home.
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| thedragonweyr's Full Review: Maryland |
Every year on the first weekend in May, thousands of frugal shepherds and fiber freaks gather at the Howard County Fairgrounds in Friendship, Maryland to show sheep, eat lamb, buy and sell everything you can (or can't!) imagine related to sheep and working with fiber, and generally get reacquainted with old friends or make new ones. Bill and I were among the throng! For me it was one in a long series of nightmarish weekends camped beside the Interstate but for Bill, my Devoted and long-suffering Consort, it was a first. I was able to lure him to the event with promises of genuine bluegrass music and lots of fair food.
OFF TO THE FAIR
This used to be a yearly event for me, especially when I was running the large flock of Romneys and Cotswolds a few years back. Between showing and selling animals and fleeces I was always so busy all weekend that I seldom had time to relax, eat, drink, sleep or pee. Well, now that all the sheep have gone to live in Pennsylvania or North Carolina and our closets are packed full with ready-to-spin fiber, the only reason to go to the Festival is to have fun; what a novel concept, going to a fest just for the fun of it! However, we decided that a little profit on the weekend would also be a good thing and carried along lots of used sheep and fiber equipment to sell in the two auctions.
This year was the 30th anniversary of the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival and a big welcoming party was planned for all the participants. Participants are those who arrive one or two days before the gates open to the public and are generally easy to identify from their harried expressions, strangely-soiled clothing, or badges proclaiming for all to see, "Ask Me About Romney Sheep," "Spin or Die," "Useful Ewes," "Warped Weavers," "Karakuls Rule!" etc., etc., ad infinitum and every bad sheep or fiber pun the twisted mind can devise.
GETTING THERE
We had hoped to arrive at the fairgrounds in plenty of time to unload then stroll in a leisurely fashion to the show arena to partake in the opening festivities. Alas, such was not to be the case. Howard County, Maryland is located just west of Baltimore on Interstate-70 and is very easy to reach from just about anywhere on the east coast. As we live in central Virginia, we drive up Route 15 to I-70 near Frederick and than drive east about 20 miles to Route 97S to Route 144E then about 4 miles to the fairground entrance. Those approaching from the east can use I-95 to the Baltimore Beltway (I-695) and exit I-70 on the east side of the fairgrounds on Route 32S then go west on Rt. 144. The place sits right beside the Interstate so it is impossible to miss it. Either way, you will pass by and can get off on the next exit and backtrack.
Normally our route of choice avoids all Washington, D.C. traffic and takes about four hours. This time, due to over-development of the Leesburg, Virginia, bedroom community of D.C. commuters, traffic in the Leesburg area was grid locked. This sorry state of affairs added about an hour to our ETA. If you are ever contemplating a drive to scenic Leesburg, do not, under any circumstances, fall for the notion that the so-called Route 15/7 Bypass will save you any time at all. Historic Leesburg is tiny and there are only a few traffic lights. You can drive from north to south or east to west in only a few minutes and even have time to rubberneck at some of the sights. The Bypass, on the other hand, has the same number of traffic lights and is the access road to a huge outlet mall. Traffic was bumper-to-bumper and we Dragons were not at all amused. We put the sitting time to good use by lighting up some of the more annoying drivers with the laser sights on our new Sig 9mm.
DID SOMEONE MENTION FREE BEER AND EATS?
According to the fair catalog, the Welcome Party was to start at 6:30 and run for two hours. By the time we rendezvoused with our friends and made it up to the show ring it was after 7 and a plague of locusts had consumed most of the food and drunk all the wine and good beer. Our share of what must have been a fairly bounteous (judging by the piles of well-gnawed chicken bones and empty Sam Adams bottles lying around) offering consisted of the remains of a sliced honey-baked ham, a few Millers and Coors beers, and bowls of pretzels. Did I mention this crowd consists entirely of frugal shepherds? “Frugal” is a nicer way to say “cheap freeloader!” Free food and drink is a powerful draw for folks who spend their days devising inventive ways to build fences, feeders and sheep shelters from discarded wooden pallets and burned-out water heaters. During the height of the feeding frenzy the bluegrass band was totally drowned out by the sounds of chewing, gulping, and swilling.
We returned, still hungry and thirsty, to our convenient campsite, with its unimpeded view of scenic I-70's heavily congested six lanes of traffic, and dined on grilled hotdogs and fresh-from-our-garden asparagus with hollandaise washed down with cold sangria made from our home-brewed wine (ok, we are a tidge frugal, too). The sounds of trucks and autos speeding by on the Interstate provided background music every bit as authentically American as Bluegrass if not so melodic to the ear. And the partly-combusted hydrocarbon emissions from the big diesel rigs added a tasty tang to the grilled fare.
WHERE TO SLEEP
Festival weekend always involves camping of some sort for most of the participants because the Howard County Fairgrounds are not close to any commercial lodging, cheap or pricey. When you are showing sheep and your first class is at 8 in the morning, there is simply no time to be driving 20 miles from the Days Inn in Frederick. Most people who raise sheep can't afford to stay at the closer but frightfully expensive big-name hostelries near Baltimore. Instead we have always made do with tents or shared a camper with other sheepish friends. If you decide to visit the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival next year to browse and buy, be comforted to know that there are lots of places available to stay if you can't do this as a day trip. If you raise sheep and live anywhere east of the Mississippi you already know about this festival and show and don't need me to point out accommodations options.
REASONS TO VISIT THE SHEEP AND WOOL
If you live within day-trip distance of Howard County and have even the slightest interest in sheep, herding dogs, knitting, spinning, weaving, etc. then this is a great way to kill a day. Vendors from all over the east gather here to hawk their wares and you can bring home just about anything from a bag of un-washed fleece to a finished sweater. Plant sellers abound offering herbs, heirloom vegetable plants, perennials, and annuals. All manner of spinning, weaving, knitting, and dying equipment is offered for sale plus everything you need to turn that dirty fleece into a useful item. You will see demonstrations of felting, weaving, spinning, shearing, dying, and rug making as well as sheep milk cheese-making. If you raise sheep or goats this is also a great place to pick up new or used equipment for the farm. Parking and admission to the fair are free but leave your dogs at home or you will be ejected and possibly arrested.
For those with absolutely no interest in sheep, wool, or eating lamb there is music. Various bluegrass and Celtic musicians perform in different parts of the fairgrounds both Saturday and Sunday. They run the gamut from superb to mundane to really awful depending on your tolerance for bagpipes and hammered dulcimer.
RING YOUR OWN PORTA-POTTY
Despite many structural improvements to the fairground buildings, there are still not sufficient restroom facilities for the huge crowds this event draws. The lines at the ladies' rooms stretch across the midway and into the sheep barns. It was much quicker for us to jog back to the campsite and utilize the handy camper convenience and we counted ourselves very fortunate as we threaded our way through the long lines of anxiously fidgeting fair-goers awaiting their turn to…er…ah…wash up. Be forewarned ladies, if you attend don't load up on the coffee or iced tea, especially later in the day when the crowds are at their largest.
BRING LUNCH OR LOTS OF MONEY
The concessionaires who provide the food for this event must have met in secret a few weeks ago to set their prices because everything was pretty much priced the same. Five bucks would get you a lamb sandwich of varying quality OR a malted milk OR a lemonade OR a funnel cake. For a few dollars more you could also gorge on a few fries or a blueberry muffin. One booth was offering deep-fried Twinkies, strawberry, chocolate, or dusted with powdered sugar. We avoided that stand as the first casualty of the day occurred there (EMS personnel were working pretty hard over a prone fair-goer) and we did not know if it was a simple coronary or fatal overdose of fried-Twinkies. Not wanting to appear overly insensitive to the woes of another, we decided to take the high road and just avoided the Twinkies altogether rather than take unnecessary chances with our health and well-being.
However, there is some wonderful food sold at this event. The Maryland State Lamb Council sells delicious lamb treats and gives very good value. The price is still steep but you won't die from eating the food. In the same exhibit building with the Maryland lamb you will find yummy sheep-milk cheese and fresh honey. The local 4H group sells decent snacks all day for a fair price, starting with breakfast sandwiches in the morning. In addition to ready-to-eat lamb dishes, you can purchase fresh lamb to carry home and cook. The quality is excellent; if you like lamb plan to stock up. Everything else is typical fair food and you are on your own.
For popcorn lovers, the Kettle Korn concession is truly a great deal. The stuff is tasty and filling and you can get a really generous bag-full for your five bucks. They make the stuff fresh all day long and stay open until after the official fair closing time of 5 P.M.
HOMEWARD BOUND
By Festival's end, we were more than ready to load up the new Blazer and head back to Appomattox County, good food, a comfy bed, the soothing night-sounds of frogs and whippoorwills, and our beloved critters. However, we will most certainly return next year, by which time memories of 18-wheelers speeding by all night long only a hundred feet from our tent will have faded a bit, because we managed to sell all our surplus sheep equipment at the auction. It is plumb amazing how much money some frugal shepherds are willing to pay at auction for someone else's used hay-feeder built of discarded wooden pallets. We made back more than gas money, much more! I intend to spend the next few months collecting pallets and putting them to profitable use….
THE DRAGON HUMBLY SUGGESTS
The annual Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival is a lot of fun for the whole family. The environment is family and especially kid-friendly. Adult beverages are neither sold nor permitted on the grounds (apart from the participants only party Friday night) so the crowd tends to be both mannerly and subdued.
If you are within day-trip distance of Howard County, by all means load up the crew and go look at sheep and the wonderful things that can be done with their wool.
Do eat first unless money is no object and you have a strong stomach lining. Do bring a cooler along if you enjoy lamb so that you can carry home some of the excellent fresh cuts that are sold here. You won't find this quality in the local Food Lion for any price!
Ladies, remember to lay off the liquid refreshments unless you want to spend some very uncomfortable time standing in a long line to use the rest room. If you do find yourself in this predicament, try to be at the Main Exhibit Hall at the far western end of the fairgrounds. The stall doors here often look closed and occupied when they are, in fact, empty, look for feet!
A USEFUL LINK
The Festival has an official website, www.sheepandwool.org, where you can keep track of what is being planned for next year, May 1-2, 2004.
Copyright 2003, Pamela Matlack Klein
Recommended:
Yes
Best Suited For: Families
Best Time to Travel Here: Mar - May
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thedragonweyr
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Member: Pamela Matlack Klein
Location: Appomattox, VA
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