FAIR 2024 - Day 9!

Despite our exhaustion – because believe you me, Rob and I are (BUTTERED) TOAST! – we had such a fun fairing day today! The weather was just about perfect, which prompted the anticipated crowds to finally materialize. The parking lots filled up quickly and the evening Grandstands show (more on that in a minute) filled to capacity. Like, the Fire Marshal (I saw him telling people not to sit on stairs) and local law enforcement officially closed the unofficial doors to the Grandstands! I heard that happened last year but I wasn’t there for it. Mr. Google tells me that means about 7,400 people were packed Wrangler to Levi on the metal benches tonight. YOWZA!

Fair in the distance! It is the farthest
out we have had to park all Fair!

We began the day running Life Errands. Gas, the bank, the post office, Walmart. It felt weird to go into a store, with people doing non-fairing things, going about life as if they didn’t know The Fair was happening. What was wrong with those people?! But we needed to make a critical purchase that was entirely Fair-related. We needed a stadium chair.

Totally NOT Fair

Much to my extreme disappointment, frustration, and total annoyance, Fairgoers this year have decided it is entirely reasonable to place blankets, towels, shopping bags, jackets, etc. on prime seats in the Grandstands in the morning and then consider them Their Personal Reserved Seating for the rest of the day. I’ve watched this for days, as the Cheater McCheaterpants saunter in 5-10 minutes before a popular shows start – or even 10 minutes after they begin…or not at all – and smugly take Their Seats. This while the rest of us who want prime seats have arrived early – like 45 minutes – and foregone other fun fairing activities only to find we can’t get a seat with a much-needed backrest because they are all covered in blankets.

This is NOT cool and is totally NOT good fairing. I have been seething about this all Fair.

I spoke to a Fine Fair Person in Charge about the unFair seat grabbing. He agreed it wasn’t Fair, proclaimed it against the (unstated) rules, and suggested I move the offending blankets until The FIne Fair Folks can figure out signage clarifying that seat saving is not allowed. Personally, I think "You must be present to save seats" is perfect, cuz I have no problem with people saving a few seats as long as a representative is there for the duration.

While it would give me immense satisfaction to fold up every single blanket and stack them on an undesirable seat, Rob has been working hard to hold me back. He knows I have been increasingly annoyed, edgy, and feisty, ready to fight for my right for a backrest if I arrived nearly an hour before showtime expressly for that purpose. 

But, while the whole situation isn’t fair, it also isn’t fun. It has detracted me from my love of the Grandstand dirt sports and my fellow Fairgoers. And he's right – I really haven't enjoyed grumbling about people who also love to fair. So Rob did some research, including asking a stranger if I could quickly test out her two versions of stadium chairs. Brand and availability identified, Rob insisted we acquire a chair that would eliminate the need for the backrest Grandstand seats. So off to Walmart we went.

It's actually pretty light! And we have friends 
that run a booth that have graciously agreed
to let us store it with them when our new chair
is not needed. And yep, impulse candy purchase 
because FAIR WEEK!

I sat in my new chair this evening for over 90 minutes – the same length of time that sent my back screaming and spasming last night despite my handy inflatable camp cushion on a backrest Grandstand seat. And you know what? My new chair is better! No back spasms! I was shocked! And grateful – both for the chair and for Rob knowing me so well, simmering me down, and helping me focus on the more important things…like Tuff Trucks. Thank you, dear husband. You are the best friend, hubby, and Fair Buddy ever.

I am still going to lobby hard and loud for
there to be an official, stated, signed rule against
unattended seat saving because it isn't Fair. At all.
But I am so grateful I now have the mental
and physical freedom not to care as much.

 

Note to self

We have no idea who ended up winning the four rounds of Tuff Trucks. If it was announced, we couldn't hear it over the roar of the crowd or engines. But the real winners were the spectators that packed the Grandstands to capacity for tonight's final show. It was pretty epic! 

Cars kept getting rolled, things kept breaking, there was a fire in the pit after a run, the tow truck went through the mud bog, an employee of…something…did a belly flop in the mud bog for no expressed reason, teenagers ran their trucks up a dirt ramp to catch air just to entertain the crowd. It was redneck mayhem and it was SO FUN!! Since tonight was the final run, all the participants have almost a year to work on their rigs to get them ready for next year’s competition. So they sort of didn’t have a lot to lose to let it rip on the dirt track. IT WAS AWESOME!

Note to self: ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS go to the final Tuff Trucks show!

If you want to see a video of a yahoo letting it fly over a dirt ramp, click here!

Fist pumps of health and bragging-
rights victory on top a rolled rig!

Sort of fun

A friend mentioned a few days ago that there was a new event in the Horse Arena this year. Although the correct starting time of the event seemed to be a closely held secret, we hung out in the Horse Arena long enough today to finally watch one round of Team Sorting. Yep, we had never heard of it either.

The basic concept of Team Sorting is for two people on horses to move 10 cows from one pen to another in a very specific order. It is timed – today’s competition allowed just 90 seconds for the sorting. The order of cow moving is determined by numbered collars attached to each cow.

When the round starts, the two people are told which numbered cow to start with – say,  for instance, #6. The horse riders need to move Cow #6 from one pen to another, then Cow #7, then Cow #8, etc. If the wrong numbered cow victoriously trots into the pen ahead of schedule, she is deemed a Dirty Cow and the round is over. 

The announcer clarified periodically that the cow was in fact clean; "Dirty Cow" is just rodeo lingo. Me, I kept thinking the term sounds like it should be an adult beverage. Turns out it is! Thanks, Google! My next cruise with a Drink Package, I shall be ordering a Dirty Cow – Baileys Irish Cream, Kahlua, and cream, stirred and on the rocks. YUM!

Back to the unliquored Horse Arena.

As things got rolling, it looked like Team Sorting could be a very lively, entertaining event. And I think it would be with more experienced Sorters. As it was, I kept wishing for a fast-forward button, as most teams only got 1 or 2 cows properly moved either before the time ran out or a Dirty Cow dashed their dreams. One team got 8 cows sorted and gave us a glimpse of the event’s potential (watch the video here!). So I am hoping it comes back next year after horse folks have had more practice time. Or perhaps get the word out to veteran sorters! (I'm looking at you, Alyssa!)

At a fast clip, this really could be fun!
Instead, I was grateful for the huge fans
they now have in the Horse Arena. It used
to be sweltering in there!

Adding on with gusto!

For years, one of the things Rob and I most enjoy on the second Saturday of the Fair is the Junior Livestock Auction. Tucked on the south side of the Fairgrounds in a relatively small, crowded, usually warm, and VERY lively show ring is where dreams and cash are made. It is where 4-H kids who have spent an entire year dutifully tending to their “market project” come to auction it off to the highest bidder. We’re talking cows, pigs, chickens, turkeys, rabbits. You know, edibles.

I am always so impressed by these kids who spend so much time, effort, money, and emotion taking care of their animals with full knowledge that they will eventually end up in someone’s freezer. Apparently the first year is super rough. But I have been assured that after that first post-auction check arrives, the tears are replaced with plans. Big plans.

Last year, as Rob and I sat there enjoying the auctioneer’s speedy banter and the fun in-crowd vibe of local businesses playfully encouraging each other in support of hardworking kids, we agreed that this year we would figure out a way to get in on the fun. That is how this happened:

All paddled up and no clue what I'm
doing! 

Thanks to a really nice 4-H Pig Mom and an enthusiastic attendant in the JLA Barn, Rob and I eagerly filled out the paperwork to officially get in the system and start spending money! WHOO HOO!

Knowing we have no room nor skills to handle a freezer full of 4-H hopes and dreams, we instead opted to participate in Add-Ons. An Add-On is basically bonus money you donate to a 4-H kid for their specific animal as a way to support them without actually buying anything. But, if done properly, you still get to throw up a paddle during the auction! WHOO HOO!!

When we arrived with our paddle, the steers were being auctioned. One by one, a 4-H kid would enter the auction ring with their animal. The animal’s weight would be announced and then the bidding would start as a price per pound. Most steers were going for $4-$6 per pound (and weighed about 1400lbs). One went for over $13 per pound. WOW! That was one very happy 4-H kid!

I loved that the steer was actually
branded and not just painted!

After the animal was sold per pound, the Add-Ons started. First folks who had already decided prior to the auction to help the kid out got their names read. Then anyone in the stands who wanted to spontaneously add on could raise their paddles high and signal how much they wanted to donate. This is when we got in on the action!

I learned to be super careful not to scratch my nose, wave to Tosha across the arena, or motion for a bottle of water while the per pound bidding was happening. But when it was time for Add-Ons, I had such a blast being part of the supportive in-crowd by waving my I-was-supposed-to-return-it-but-you-know-dang-well-I-kept it “souvenir” paddle around! #396 was in play!

Apparently we could have wandered around the animal barns, chatting up the kids prior to the auction, to figure out who we wanted to raise our paddle for. But we’re clueless newbies. So we approached our bidding Rob and Toni Style. Or, rather, Toni Style since Rob gave me free rein to decide how to spend our designated Add-On Budget.

Using logic similar to how I pick Sweet 16 Teams (I have no clue about college basketball, so I focus on time zones and jet lag), we supported the following 4-Hers for the following reasons:

• Ronix’s steer because the sturdy black cow reminded me of our stocky, beloved cat Zak, may he (and soon the steer) rest in peace.
  
  
• Aiyana’s dark brown steer because Aiyana showed it around the ring like a showman, walking the animal back and forth, tapping its hooves to stay apart, stroking its chest with the pointy thing. Most kids just stood there with the animal as the auctioneer yelled out numbers. Aiyana worked it like it mattered. My paddle agreed.
  
  
• Grayson’s grey steer because the animal was fidgety and Grayson did a fantastic job keeping it in the ring.
  
  
• Gaven’s black and white steer because Gaven works in a food booth at the Fair and has been kindly feeding me all week.
  
  
• Brynlie’s black and white hog because Brynlie smiled BIG and waved to the crowd as she walked her hog around the ring. You work it, girl!
  
  
• Brynlie’s other black and white hog because I was totally taken in by that smile again AND the hog had adorable frilly ears. For now.
  
  
• Taylor’s two hogs because she and her mom chatted with me and my mom earlier in the week and were so dang friendly and helpful!
  
  
• Zoey’s ducks and geese because she was the only one entering those animals. You do you, Zoey!
  
  
• Esther’s turkey because she was the very last kid in the ring and waited MANY hours to be there.

We have no idea what happens now – if anything – that we are in the JLA database and have given them a check in support of 8 hard-working, emotionally-strong 4-H kids. Minimally, we hope we get to paddle again next year, ideally with a bit more research and know-how. Although, I know me. It won’t be long before Brynlie is trying to figure out who this Toni person is who donates to her animals every year. Just keep smiling, Brynlie!

This handmade quilt of 20 years' worth
of JLA Auction t-shirts was donated for
auctioning. Oddly, the quilter was the 
winner. I guess she just couldn't part with it.
Now a 4-H kid would have let it go and
cashed the check!

FAIR FOOD FEAST COLLAGE – DAY 9! 

• Mojito Spindrift in the Walmart parking lot. The lime and mint made me cough, but it was nonetheless refreshing and gone by the time we parked at the Fair.
  
  
• Italian Smashed Potatoes from the Raclette place. Really good but not amazing like it was before –  and Rob agreed that his sandwich wasn't as good as yesterday's. We concluded the difference was the cook. The Raclette owners were at the livestock auction, so they had someone else cooking. We could taste the difference. Not bad, just not as mind-blowingly good.
  
  
• Peach Pear Smasher! Rob's favorite. I was too tired to make any decisions, so I ordered the same flavor for both of us. It was more peachy than peary. I liked it but I also immediately thought it would be even better as a mimosa. Stan, wanna get a liquor license??
  
  
• Chocolate Cookies n Cream milkshake. I love the Strawberry version so I decided to give this one a try. Verdict: a lot of chocolate. I liked it but I like the strawberry version better. Turns out a little fruit is a good thing!
  
  
• Nerd Balls purchased at Walmart with my new chair, enjoyed while sitting on my new chair. I plan to eat the rest tomorrow. Mmmm, candy.
  
  
• Yakisoba noodles from the red booth in the Food Court. Yeah, we planned to go to the green booth this year, but the Mean Lady is back so we are boycotting again. Plus the red booth has Sriracha sauce. Pretty good –  noodles were chewy and there were some crunchy veggies in there. Rob advised me to stay clear of the chicken, so I got the Vegetarian version.