Rain or swine
COEUR d’ALENE — A sprinkling of rain began to fall as folks lined up to see the All-Alaskan Racing Pigs Monday afternoon at the North Idaho State Fair.
The cloudy skies did nothing to dampen spirits. Rain or swine, the show goes on.
“It’s a really fun family show,” pig racer Zaden Unger said before Monday’s races began. “Most kids come back for another show — or their parents do.”
Unger has been raising — and racing — pigs for most of his life. But he only recently took the show on the road. For the eight pigs racing at the fairgrounds, this is their first time in front of a crowd.
It’s a lot of pressure for some little pigs. But Kootenai County has turned out to be a great spot for their debut.
“It’s been one of the cutest fairs and one of the best layouts we’ve seen so far,” Unger said.
North Idahoans have given the porcine professionals a warm welcome, too. More than 100 people of all ages gathered around the track Monday afternoon for the first race of the day.
The crowd went hog wild as the black-and-white pigs flew around the track and jumped over hurdles.
One of the spectators, Coeur d’Alene resident Sarah Dickey, had the honor of opening the gate to set the pigs running.
“They were adorable,” Dickey said with a smile after a pig named Bob won the top spot. “Some of them were a little grumpy, but that’s OK.”
The four-legged athletes are Gloucestershire Old Spots, an English breed of pig that can grow to up to 600 pounds at maturity. The breed is known for docility, intelligence and hardiness, according to to the British Pig Association. Once popular for small family farms, English folklore claims the distinctive black spots were caused by apples falling onto them as they foraged in orchards.
The breed fell out of favor in the U.S. and dwindled to as few as 22 pigs in the nation, according to the Livestock Conservancy, a nonprofit focused on preserving and promoting “heritage breeds” of livestock.
Gloucestershire Old Spots remain threatened, but preservation efforts in England and the U.S. have been promising. Unger said All-Alaskan Racing Pigs has worked with U.S. breeders and the Livestock Conservancy to help rebuild their numbers.
“We’re trying to bring awareness to this breed,” he said.
Putting smiles on the faces of hundreds of people is a great way to do it.
“If you ever have a bad day, come down to the pig show and they’ll turn it around,” Unger said.
The North Idaho State Fair at the Kootenai County Fairgrounds continues daily through Aug. 27. The All-Alaskan Racing Pigs take to the track four times a day on the lawn west of Building 7.
