A LADY presided over this year's Kilnsey show and sports for the first time in its 108-year history.

The honour of show president went to Pat Metcalfe, of The Grange, at Linton, whose late husband Ronnie was a former chairman of the Upper Wharfedale Agricultural Show Society, which stages the largest of Craven's rural highlights.

Mrs Metcalfe said she was honoured to officiate and delighted to see such a large crowd enjoying the day.

"It really is lovely to see such a lot of people here supporting the farmers. We are a dying breed," she exclaimed.

She added her relief that the weather had been kind, as well as her thanks to all the exhibitors whose creativity and dedication provided the backbone to the show, and the behind-the-scenes team who ensured its smooth running.

"Everybody has worked very hard throughout the whole year to make today a success," she said.

On the showfield trade stands, amusements and stalls enjoyed a constant stream of between 13,000 and 14,000 visitors. "It certainly wasn't a record gate, but there were more people here this year than there has been over recent ones. It's a while since we had to open another field for car parking," said show chairman Robert Lambert.

He added that the new farmers' market section was a great success: "We're certainly looking towards having it as a yearly attraction," he said.

He too congratulated the committee on putting together another successful event

On the whole there was little discord to mar the day, other than the banning of pet dogs, a decision introduced for health and safety reasons last year.

One visitor was upset because she had taken the day off work to attend the show with her pets, only for them to be refused entrance.

Elsewhere the emergency services reported a quiet day with the Event Ambulance Team reporting nothing more serious than two dislocations, a youngster bitten by a sheepdog, runners' blisters, a couple of rashes and an impromptu visit from a gentleman with grazed knuckles sustained in an altercation the previous night.

On the exhibition side, high standards were maintained in all categories, although a decline in dairy farming in the area was evident with fewer entrants in the relevant classes, the most notable being no exhibits at all in the dairy open non-pedigree section.

Taking the silverware for overall dairy champion was Gargrave Show winner Brian Moorhouse of Hesper Farm, Bell Busk, with his three-year-old Holstein Aireburn Ingro Sarah. Top commercial beef entry was a limousin shown by the Rice family while a Texel ewe shown by Appleby farmer James Winter was crowned overall champion sheep.