NORWICH – The carnival rides laid still and wet as the last of the morning dew began to fade. In the distance the roar of some great beast called “Tractor” rang out as it competed for dominance with others of its species. A few lone figures stirred in the corners of the scenery preparing for the days events. It was 10 a.m. and I was at the fair.
I had heard tales of magic, courage and even that the dead roamed the grounds of the fair, my job was to see what truth, if any, could be found in any of these fairy tales.
I followed my gut to Wambold’s circus. Upon my arrival a man stepped forth. Chris Sellars is a knight. He travels from fairs and festivals around the East coast participating in renaissance festivals featuring as a joust and mock combat expert. “I cold pound my own armor and have a sword, horse and everything,” said Sellars. He travels with a troop during the early summer season. “It hurts when you have to fall off a horse, there really isn’t any good way to do it but hopefully after you hit the ground you won’t be too hurt to keep fighting with your sword,” said Sellars. Sellars has been traveling with the circus for the last few months doing odd jobs. “I’ll sell cotton candy, drinks, help move things in and out, whatever they really need me to do,” he said.
“Would you ever get in a cage with a tiger?” I asked the hero. “What are you crazy, they’re tigers. They’re trained, not tamed,” said Sellars. I retired from the circus with plans to return and speak with the man who had enough courage to step into the ring with these predators, but for now he was asleep.
I left the company of the cotton candy knight and walked away inspired, but insecure of being a brave man. I walked across the grounds crossing the ever dangerous midway games and the taunts of the gamers. One even made a crack about me being a Jehovah’s witness, because I was wearing a suit.
I reached the exhibit hall and before me stood the dead ex-police officer’s horse named Moses. Moses was one of two complete real horse skeletons pieced back together by Walter F. Varcoe, a retired corrections officer. Walter’s son and daughter, Doug and Melissa met with me to tell me about their father’s work. Doug who followed in his father’s footsteps was also a corrections officer and said it takes about two weeks for his dad to put the bones together.
“It’s a lot of work, gather the skeleton, decomposing the remains, then boiling the bones before have to piece it all back together,” said Doug. Walter has been creating free standing skeletons, mostly horses and selling them to customers out of Orange county. “They can be a little spooky at first but it’s so interesting to see you have to come closer to check it out,” said Melissa.
I left the hall and went over to the fair stables to check out reports of a giant hog living in the area. I discovered Wildcat, a 451 pound hog, owned by Kristie Abrams, a 90 pound eleven year-old-girl. The Abrams family raises a number of animals mostly on a “hobby farm” with rabbits, goats, hogs, cows and cats in New Berlin, said Alisa Abrams. I watch as this eleven year-old-girl and her mother herded this quarter-ton animal into a stall, after much effort, and wash it. “They can be stubborn but they are completely harmless,” said Alisa.
I returned to the circus and got my chance to meet with the man who actually does step into the lions (tigers) den. Robert Morey. Wambold’s circus employs a host of kangaroos and three big cats, a Siberian Tiger, a royal orange and white Bengal tiger. “People get scared when they hear all these stories about tigers attacking but you have to remember they’re tigers not puppies and people who treat them like they are the ones that get hurt,” said Morey.
Wambold’s once had an entire circus with elephants and many other attractions but the group was forced to down size because of a loss of patronage. “After September 11 we really saw a difference, we went from a show of a few thousand to a few dozen,” said Morey. Morey is very active in his belief in preserving the tiger and says it’s a tragedy that the animal has been treated so badly by man. I left the circus feeling more afraid for the beast than for the man in their cage. “There are only a few thousand left in the wild and not a single animal you se in a zoo, circus or any where else was captured in the wild they are all captive bred,” said Morey.
Of the eight tiger subspecies known to exist since at the turn of 19th century, only five remain. Three branches from the evolutionary tree of life have been severed and tossed into the fires of time. What many fail to understand is that the permanent disappearance of these animals rests solely on the shoulders of mankind and our modern civilization.
On my exodus from the grounds I watch the show of Virgil the Magician as he perform before a crowd of mostly children. Virgil has been doing magic since he was 16 when he became “obsessed with it” he said. I just started having people ask me to perform for them and it just took off from there. Virgil is from the Syracuse area but has travel to Europe and Mexico to participate in magical events.
I left the fair exhausted, enlightened and unable to organize a comprehensible way to include all my adventures which also including visiting the EMS medical tent, hanging out a pair Environmental Conservationist and helping a lost little girl find her mother... oh and I almost forgot about setting myself on fire at the beer tent, but those are tales for another time.

e-mail: tmurphy@evesun.com