Unifour Show attracts travelers near and far

Rocky Hughey judges an Old English Red Pyle. Photo by Shelley Smith, Salisbury Post.

Rocky Hughey judges a chicken while Tom Shepherd, Lamar Sheriff, Rick Murphy and Russell Stovall, all chicken farmers, wait for the results. Shepherd is from Portsmith, OH, Sheriff from Fairplace, SC, Murphy from Walhalla, SC, and Stovall from Anderson, SC. Photo by Shelley Smith, Salisbury Post.

Dark Cornish Hen. Photo by Shelley Smith, Salisbury Post.

Jacky and Annette Whitaker of Smyrna, SC, look for Old English Bantams. Photo by Shelley Smith, Salisbury Post.

A Modern Birchen Hen waits to be judged. Photo by Shelley Smith, Salisbury Post.

Two White Faced Black Spanish hens are ready to go home. Photo by Shelley Smith, Salisbury Post.

A Splash Old English Cockerel trots around his crate. Photo by Shelley Smith, Salisbury Post.

Bria Brade, from Buffalo, NY, enters her chickens and Brown African Goose into competitions across the nation. She purchased two Buff ducks at the show Saturday, and plans to show those, too. Photo by Shelley Smith, Salisbury Post.

Jack Cook and Dave McCoy, best friends from Monroe, have been raising chickens their entire lives. Photo by Shelley Smith, Salisbury Post.

White Cornish Hen. Photo by Shelley Smith, Salisbury Post.

By Shelley Smithssmith@salisburypost.com

Why did the chicken cross the road? To get to the 2010 Unifour Show in Salisbury, of course.

Chickens crossed many, many roads, coming from as far as Buffalo, N.Y., Floral City, Fla. and Three Rivers, Mich. for the 2010 Unifour Show at the fairgrounds Saturday.

Jacky and Annette Whitaker came to the show for the first time from Smyrna, S.C.

"We came looking for some Old English Bantams to take home," Annette Whitaker said.

"We came looking for something new and something different," Jacky Whitaker said.

Bria Brade, 11, travelled all the way from Buffalo, N.Y., a 12-hour ride, with chickens. Brade showed her Belgian D'Uccles and a very loud Brown African Goose.

"We were in Massachusetts in January for a show, and go to Ohio for shows, too," Bria's mother Ann Marie Brade said. "We've had a blast."

Bud Rogers, of Rockwell, didn't have such a long drive.

"I come every year," he said. "I've been raising them for 43 years. It's a hobby."

Dave McCoy, of Monroe, comes to the show every year with his best friend Jack Cook, also from Monroe. They brought Sunday pygmy goats, Old English hens and cockerels and other feathered friends.

"We come spend the day here and like to just sit around and cut up with everyone," Cook said.

McCoy said that he's seen a drop in sales due to the economy.

"This year with the economy being bad, people aren't buying them like they used to," McCoy said. "The economy has put a hurt on everyone. Some people have even gotten out of it (raising chickens) because of the economy."

Rocky Hughey, one of the judges for the show, is from Gaffney, S.C., and has been judging since 1986.

"I raised Bantams all my life," he said. Of judging, he said it gets tiring sometimes.

"Everyone wants to win but everyone can't win," he said. The three main things he looks for when judging are color, condition and type. Hughey started showing chickens himself in 1970.

David Hager helped out with Saturday's event, and raises chickens of his own.

"I've been showing chickens for about 40 years," he said. "It's like playing golf, showing dogs, or horses — it's a hobby."

Hager's the only one in his family who raises and shows chickens.

"I guess I'm the only one crazy enough," he said.

Ken Deal, longtime supporter of the Unifour show, said he thought this year's show was one of the best.

"I think we had more people here looking than we've ever had," he said. "People lined up (to buy) chickens, ducks and turkeys. And a lot of people came with their kids, just to look."

Deal said he loves coming to the shows, and seeing everyone he knows.

"You learn to know these folks and see them at every chicken show," Deal said. "When they're gone you really miss them."

Deal said he was shocked at how far people came for Saturday's show.

"It's amazing to think that some of these guys haul the chickens as far as they do," he said.

Deal said there were over 1,200 chickens in the show this year, including his own Lemon Blues.

"You could see by looking around, they all (chickens) looked pretty sharp," he said.