Friendly competition at the Wicomico County Fair
SALISBURY, Md. – At the Wicomico County Fair, it doesn’t matter what you came for, you might be leaving as a winner.
Gary Tilley came to the fair with his wife and friends, planning to just walk around and enjoy the food. His Hawaiian shirt caught the attention of the mainstage MC, who roped him into the seed-spitting contest. Gary won the whole thing.
“I walked through here and a young man with a microphone says, I like your shirt. How about doing some spitting for us?” Tilley said, “So I waited in line, let the kids go first, and I lucked out. I spit one, I guess 26 feet.”
Ironically, the shirt responsible for Tilley’s entry and ultimate victory in the seed-spitting contest was the same reason he decided not to try his luck in the watermelon eating contest that followed: “I don’t want to get my shirt all dirty.”
While he attributed his victory to luck, Tilley couldn’t help but enjoy his accomplishment. “I’m usually not a winner, but that was good…we’ll be back next year,” he said.
Along with seed-spitting, the stage also saw watermelon, pie, and hot wing-eating contests.
Zach Evans, Chairman of the Wicomico County Fair, said there’s something special about these classic fair competitions: “We’re celebrating local food. We’re giving people a chance to eat some of their favorites and they get to compete against their neighbors and their friends. Of course, it’s free to enter like a lot of what we do. So I think when you combine all of those factors, it really attracts a great audience.”
Former Maryland Governor Larry Hogan stopped by to show his support, and even he wanted to get in on the action. Addressing the crowd, he said, “I’m sorry I missed the watermelon contest. I wish I could stay for the wing-eating contest. I’m pretty sure I can win that one. But I just want to say thank you all very much. I hope you have a great fair.”
For Evans, the visit from the former governor put things in perspective well beyond the food-eating contests. “To see Governor Hogan come back to this event to talk about all the memories that he’s had visiting here over the years, it lets me know that one, we’re doing something right. But two, it reminds me that it is critical that we have the support of our elected officials and to be able to highlight all of these amazing people in our community, we need to get them here.”
