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RSSIowa, Illinois officials agree they learn from each other when they host the Farm Progress Show
Nirmalendu Majumdar/Ames Tribune
Spectators walk to the 2008 Farm Progress Show in Boone, Iowa.
Nirmalendu Majumdar/Ames Tribune
Mary Yearns, right, professor and housing specialist for Iowa State University Extension, talks about agricultural issues for farmers at the 2008 Farm Progress Show.
Katie Stines/Boone News-Republican
Craig Cameron puts his horse whispering skills on display in a program designed for visitors to the Farm Progress Show outside of Boone.
BOONE, Iowa - Hosting the Farm Progress Show is being viewed by officials in Decatur and Boone, Iowa, as an opportunity to work together rather than competing against each other.
Both facilities are what Show Manager Matt Jungmann considers world class. He sees no need for a rivalry to be formed as the two communities alternate hosting the show.
"It's not really anything that's competition," Jungmann said. "They both want to do a good job and play good hosts to the world when they focus their attention on their communities. These two facilities give growers an opportunity to enjoy a show."
Visitors had their first look at the Boone site as the show completed its second day Wednesday. A group of Richland Community College officials were among those in attendance, as were their Iowa counterparts at last year's show in Decatur.
Although they take pride in what each of their facilities has to offer, they're using the visits to help make the next show better.
"We're like sisters," said Cindy Laegeler, who runs Progress City USA. "We need to work together to bring off-year shows, for example. Our success hinges on each other."
Ames-based booking company VenuWorks has been hired to book non-Farm Progress events at the Boone field, as Laegeler leads the effort–;to draw other events to Progress City each year.
Before the Boone site was selected, Decatur officials had offered to host Farm Progress every year. That didn't work out because the show had two markets of people to serve: those in Iowa and Nebraska and those in Illinois in Indiana.
Boone and Decatur are about 400 miles apart, which is about a six-hour drive. The distance would be even farther for many visitors.
"It's not a rivalry," Laegeler said. "We cater to different people. We couldn't get the same contingent to come."
Darrel Rensink, head of the Iowa organizing group, learned from his experience in Decatur last year.
"We're not trying to get in competition with each other," Rensink said. "I don't think that benefits anybody. What we need to do is respectively provide the best site we can so Farm Progress can conduct a good show."
The permanent sites allow exhibitors to know what to expect every year and be able to expand their displays to provide visitors with the best experience possible.
"We know what we have so we can make sure the setup is the way we want it to be," said Bill Belzer, corn marketing manager for Pioneer Co. "In both cases, with Decatur and here in Boone, the folks are helping us take the question marks out."
Many of the things that weren't completed in time for this year's show, such as having paved streets, could be done by the time the 2010 rolls around. The Decatur site wasn't completely finished in 2005, either.
"Give them another year," said Don Seger, sales and production coordinator for AgriGold Hybrids. "They'll be as nice as Decatur."
This year's show concludes today and returns to Decatur on Sept. 1 through 3, 2009.
clusvardi@herald-review.com|421-7972
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