July 31, 2025 • 27 mins
On this episode of ACF 411, Russ Decker is joined by Fair Director Troy Elwer to preview the 175th Allen County Fair!
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome back to another edition of ACF four one one,
the official podcast of the Allen County Fair. It's powered
by Nutrient and hosted on the iHeart platform and knew
this year also will be on YouTube, so check that out.
I'm Rostecker, your host and joining me and is the
Allen County Fair Manager Troy el Or Troy Welcome.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
Hey, thanks for having me on today, Russ, and we're.
Speaker 3 (00:22):
Going to have you on throughout the fair.
Speaker 1 (00:24):
But this is kind of it's kind of the kickoff
actually of our second season a podcast.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
It's really exciting, it is.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
It is, and I know there's a lot of exciting
things going on at the fairgrounds as well. So before
we actually get into the physical fare that's coming up,
let's talk about improvements people might notice at the fair grounds.
And you can't miss it when you're coming in off
of Harding Highway there. Maurice is like what one hundred
feet talls. I'm like, I don't think he's huge.
Speaker 3 (00:50):
He's huge.
Speaker 4 (00:51):
It's a big it's a big cow, right, Yeah, it's
a big deal. Yeah, No, it's Maurice.
Speaker 3 (00:56):
Uh.
Speaker 4 (00:56):
It was a really neat project that was a partnership
between us Visit Greater Lima and the Bear Hollowood Carvers.
We were really trying to brainstorm a project that was
going to be a neat celebratory piece for this year's
one hundred and seventy fifth anniversary, but we also wanted
to align with Visit Greater Lima's morals and values and goals,
(01:18):
which are trying to drive tourism to our community. And
so far since he's been built, he gets visitors on
a daily basis, people pulling off the roads, getting out
of their vehicles, kids going up to them, interacting with them,
getting pictures with them. It's great exposure for us, but
it's also great exposure for Lima. And we're hoping that
he kind of develops himself into a landmark for this community,
(01:41):
a travel destination point, and that intern is hopefully going
to help boost the local economy and drive more dollars
into Lima, Allen County. And I noticed he just got
a cow bell he did, yes, Yes, the Union across
the road actually and Decker helped us out with that
making that connection, and they just called that yesterday. That
cow bell is made out of stainless steel. It is
(02:03):
three foot tall and almost two feet wide, and it
is fully functional.
Speaker 3 (02:08):
It's a big bell.
Speaker 2 (02:09):
It is. It's very cool.
Speaker 4 (02:10):
And they actually rubber coated the inside of the bell,
the ballpart with a truck liner truck bedliner, to try
to help I guess, not beat up the inside of
the bell, but they said, once that rubber wears off,
it's really gonna sound like a cowbell.
Speaker 3 (02:25):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (02:25):
So, and it's much bigger than the one we have
in our podcast studio at the fair because you know,
we're in the dairy for folks that don't know, we
have a studio at the Fair in the dairy, in
the building where the old milking parlor used to be,
and so we have things in the studio like cow
bell and so.
Speaker 3 (02:42):
But it's not that big.
Speaker 2 (02:43):
Yeah, not quite that big.
Speaker 3 (02:45):
Three feet.
Speaker 1 (02:48):
So, you know, one of the other improvements I know
is going on. It really it's not too sexy, but
it's a it's a major improvement.
Speaker 3 (02:55):
Tell me about the water line and a new water line.
Speaker 4 (02:57):
Yes, so, over the last several years the fair Grounds
has been battling and chasing water leaks across our property.
That's on that city main that we have. It's eight inch. Anyways,
the Allen County Commissioners graciously donated or gave the fair
Grounds in the Agricultural Society three hundred thousand dollars to
(03:17):
put towards the installation of a new main water line
on the property. So this is going to do a
couple things. It's going to help increase our water pressure
for our vendors in our buildings, which is a great thing.
But it's also going to actually help save the fair
grounds money over time because with those leaks being fixed
and repaired, we're not going to be charged and seeing
that on our water bill.
Speaker 2 (03:37):
Each month excellent.
Speaker 1 (03:39):
And I'm glad to see the cooperation there between the
a Society and the commissioners, and that is a good thing.
Speaker 3 (03:45):
One thing people will notice.
Speaker 1 (03:46):
You might not notice the water pressure change, but you
will notice.
Speaker 3 (03:50):
It's incredible. I've seen it.
Speaker 1 (03:52):
So the Union Bank Show Arena looks almost like a
brand new arena.
Speaker 4 (03:56):
Yes, that particular project has really been on my docket
since I started as fair manager. And I'm going to
be a little bit biased for a second, but I
grew up showing in that facility showing my swine projects
starting at the age of three, and that facility twenty
two years ago to now and even before that really
hasn't changed at all, with the exception of maybe some paint.
(04:19):
But we did a full renovation of that entire facility.
We installed a new telescopic gymnasium style bleacher seating that
all has handicap accessible rows in the first row of
every section. We repainted the facility, We gave it a
new ceiling, we gave it forty new high bay led lights,
It has a new sound system, it's going to have
new fencing, and it has a brand new renovated restroom
(04:42):
facility that doubled in size, and you're going to be
able to access it from the inside of the facility, yeah.
Speaker 1 (04:47):
Because it used to be you had to go outside
it and try to kind of squeeze yourself around the
cattleman's to get to find.
Speaker 2 (04:53):
The restroom exactly.
Speaker 4 (04:54):
And speaking of the cattleman, the reason that that restroom
renovation project was possible is because they made an eighty
five thousand dollars donation towards the renovation of that restroom project.
So we want to thank them for their support on
that particular aspect.
Speaker 1 (05:08):
All right, So when you go out there and you're
enjoying the new Union Bank show Reno. Make sure you
go over and get a ribbio a sandwich at the
Catalans at the same time.
Speaker 2 (05:14):
Right, absolutely, I'll do that.
Speaker 3 (05:16):
I promise I will do.
Speaker 1 (05:17):
That me too, sandwiches, any other projects like that before
we get into the fair that you want to make.
Speaker 3 (05:24):
Sure you highlight.
Speaker 4 (05:25):
There's some other minor improvements that you may or may
not notice. Across the property. We are up at our
north buildings, we're getting some handicapped door openers installed on
those new glass doors that we put on those facilities
last year, so that'll be new for this year. And
then across the property we've had lots of other entry
and exit doors that have just taken a beating over
(05:47):
the years. We're getting lots of those replaced too, So overall,
aesthetics accessibility in general should really be improved for this
year's fair.
Speaker 1 (05:54):
You know, one of the neat things too that's you're
fair that a lot of other fares don't have, is
all four of those buildings now in the North end
our air conditioned. That's so if we get some of
those ninety degree days which are possible during the fair,
at least you know you have a.
Speaker 3 (06:07):
Safe, cool haven that you can go to and cool down.
Speaker 1 (06:10):
A little bit and then go back out in place more.
Speaker 4 (06:12):
Right, absolutely, and I encourage people if you've never gone
through those buildings before, please take the opportunity to do
so during those nine days because there's a lot of
really neat projects in those buildings, specifically in the Fine
Arts building as well as the Youth Activities building. And
then obviously our Merchant's building is full of some incredible
businesses in the community selling product. And then the Youth
(06:35):
Exhibits building has some awesome four h and FFA projects,
that's right.
Speaker 1 (06:39):
And they'll be having an auction this throughout the week
of the fair that in that in the project room there,
so yep, yeah, we want to plug that as well
for the I think it's Owly County four h that
does that.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
One right, that's correct.
Speaker 3 (06:51):
Yep. So let's talk about the fair. I know it's
coming up.
Speaker 4 (06:55):
You're going to have one again, I know, surprisingly enough,
Like I told you before we started today, I finally
start my full time job August first.
Speaker 2 (07:03):
Well, that's good.
Speaker 3 (07:04):
That's glad to.
Speaker 1 (07:05):
See you're working and you guys have had some practice
because this is your one hundred and seventy fifth Allen
County Fairs.
Speaker 3 (07:11):
It's not your first rodeo.
Speaker 4 (07:13):
It's not my first rodeo. It's my personal fourth rodeo
as fair manager. But we've done this a time or two.
Speaker 1 (07:20):
Wow, seventy it doesn't seem like it's your fourth either,
but one hundred and seventy five, So I know there's
some really cool things. You're going to have some under
the grand standard believe there's going to be some historic
displays and tell, let's talk a little bit about the
one seventy fifth.
Speaker 4 (07:35):
Yeah, so we've got lots of neat things planned for
this year to kind of make this year feel a
little bit more special than just any other year. I mean,
every every fair is special, but this one, this one's
just a got that got that little touch of extra.
So under the grand stands, we're going to have what
we're calling the museum, sticking on the theme of ma
(07:56):
Ree And yes, we'll have lots of historical art facts
in display cases and on the wall that will be
centralized in the grand stands between the men's restroom and
the four h office that open area there. And then
we're also going to actually have a flat screen TV
in the museum that's going to be airing our documentary
(08:17):
on a loop for people to watch. And then in
one of the corners, we're going to have select dates
and times where MoU Ree will be doing pop up
meet and greet opportunities with kids.
Speaker 3 (08:27):
Wow, so you can actually meet Marie.
Speaker 4 (08:29):
Yes, Yes, it's funny, we have people. That's probably the
question that we get asked the most throughout the nine days.
Speaker 2 (08:35):
Where's Maurice.
Speaker 4 (08:36):
I want to get a picture with him? And we've
never really had a structured schedule of hey, here's where
he's going to be and when, So we're kind of
trying to meet that demand a little bit and give
the kids the opportunity to make sure they can interact
with him.
Speaker 1 (08:49):
That's very cool, And you will talked about the documentary
and I know you're going to debut it at your
kickoff dinner coming up here shortly. But let's give a
plug to the hometown stations. They're actually going to air
it on the NBC.
Speaker 2 (09:02):
Station, right they are.
Speaker 4 (09:03):
Yes, we are very grateful for that partnership we have
with hometown stations. It is going to air live on
NBC Lima Monday, August eleventh, at seven PM, so make
sure you tune in that night to watch it live,
but then set your DVR to that way. If you
want to go back and watch it again, you can
do so. And then we are going to be actually
selling a limited number of hard disk copies of this documentary.
Speaker 2 (09:27):
We're going to have one hundred and.
Speaker 4 (09:29):
Seventy five no pun intended on sale and you better
get those while they last, because I think they're going
to go pretty quick.
Speaker 3 (09:36):
Yeah, that sounds very cool, So let's get right into it.
Speaker 1 (09:39):
Your headliner this year, a whole new genre of music,
a whole new audience of fans coming to the Fairgrounds
to see Lauren Diggle and Franny Cash.
Speaker 3 (09:48):
Let's talk about that.
Speaker 4 (09:49):
Yes, And I tell you what, when we've been asked
about this before, I've been asked about this before, they're like, man,
this is very non traditional for what you guys are
used to bringing for your big concert to the graend stands.
And I absolutely agreed. I mean, we're predominantly accustomed to
bringing either country or rock into our grand stands. But
one big thing that we focus on is we really
(10:10):
do listen to the public. When we get feedback on
what the public wants to see and with this year
being a celebratory year, there has been a strong demand
for a large Christian contemporary act. So I want to
say at first we felt like we were taking a
gamble a little bit just because it was so new.
But ticket sales are going really well for this event.
We're a little over sixty one hundred sold. If you
(10:32):
wanted tickets in the grand stands, bleachers or track section,
they're almost gone, so so hop on and get your
tickets before they are gone.
Speaker 1 (10:40):
So people who are trying to visualize sixty one hundred people,
that's not quite but almost double what we had in
the grand stand last year exactly. Yeah, that's a lot
of people, and it don't really get better. We'll have
a lot of usually have a pretty active walk up
the week of the.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
Fair, especially if the weather's nice.
Speaker 1 (10:59):
And you know, a lot of people know Lauren Diegel
and my gosh, she's saying at the super Bowl this year.
She just she opened up the fourth of July celebration
in Washington on the ball, so a lot of people
have had a chance to maybe see and hear her
who weren't familiar with her.
Speaker 3 (11:16):
But who's Franny Cash?
Speaker 4 (11:17):
Yeah, Frandy cash. A lot of people don't know about
our opener, but if you are a follower of Christian
contemporary music, you may know her as the lead vocalist
for the very popular group We the Kingdom. So she
just recently, I don't think that they've actually broken apart,
but she's just kind of trying to do her own
solo thing a little bit, and she's on some of
(11:39):
Lauren's tickets at some other venues. But yeah, I've seen
some video of her perform and she has one heck
of a voice, So I think all around, you're getting
a lot of value for that ticket that you're purchasing
for this event.
Speaker 1 (11:51):
Cool, And of course that's the first Saturday night the fair.
Fair opens on Friday, and we have more of a
traditional Friday.
Speaker 3 (11:57):
Night show in the grand stand this year, Yes, we do.
Speaker 2 (12:00):
Opening night.
Speaker 4 (12:01):
Friday Night is the QP showcase of bands, and that
one is one of my personal favorites because I feel like,
not only the partnership with QP and we're so grateful
for the support that they give us, but really our
mission at the Fairgrounds is promoting youth through agriculture. I
realized that bands are not agriculture, but we get to
promote youth by allowing them to showcase their talents at
(12:24):
this high school band show, and it's always one of
the heaviest attended events. In the grandstands. You see mom, dad,
grandma and grandpa, siblings. It's just a really neat event
all the way around, you know.
Speaker 1 (12:34):
And I think it's kind of neat because for years
that was always opening night at the Allen County Fair
was the Qpie Band Show, And then when.
Speaker 3 (12:40):
They started moving up the date for football season.
Speaker 2 (12:44):
We had to adjust.
Speaker 1 (12:44):
Yeah, the high school bands are busy on Friday night,
so you end up going to a Sunday typically now.
Speaker 3 (12:49):
But so it's kind of.
Speaker 1 (12:50):
Neat to like bring that back to your having the
big anniversary, and it's kind of neat that we're doing
things the way we used to back in the in
the dates that'll be fun. So we've covered Fridays Sunday Now,
this doesn't happen very often at all at the Allen
County Fair, but free grand stand I mean on Sunday,
there's going to be car shows, oldie performers.
Speaker 3 (13:11):
Let's talk about Sunday.
Speaker 4 (13:12):
Yeah, so we're super excited about this one, and this
one's presented by Nutrient. So thanks Nutrient for your support
on this event day in general, and then for dmaging
on the car show side of things. But yes, completely free.
We're looking at this event as a gift to the
community that has supported us over so many years. I mean,
we have people ask us each year, why doesn't my
(13:34):
gate admission include all of your grand stand events. Well,
our grand stand events are some of the top tier
events in the state, and those cost us money to do,
so that's why we've historically charged. But we have one
heck of a lineup for Sunday kicking things off. We
start the car show at one pm. And during the
car show you're actually going to be able to listen
(13:55):
to Direct Energy out of Columbus, which some line of
locals may recognize that name because they played the Pengo
Pavilion I believe last year they did. Yes, So they'll
play one to four during the car show. The OSU
Alumni band will hop on the Nutrient Plaza stage right
after that to play basically forty five minutes. Then at
(14:16):
five you hop back in the grand stands and the
Circle Out of Chicago will perform for about forty five
minutes to an hour and then our headliner for that
night is Mickey Dolans from the Monkeys.
Speaker 3 (14:27):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (14:28):
So let's so back up a little bit when we're
talking about Direct Energy that are known as the as
the premiere classic rock band in Ohio. Very high into
band band across the state, but they're based out of Columbus.
I think people will really enjoy them. They're like a
large band. It's twelve people in their band and an
entire horn section, and so they play a lot of
(14:48):
music that has horned, so a lot of Chicago and
earth Wind and Fire and Blit's weet in Tears and
things like that. So very very very good band. And
then of course the alumni band. You can't see them
about it.
Speaker 2 (15:00):
Oh h yeah, I oh, there we go.
Speaker 3 (15:02):
We got that one covered.
Speaker 1 (15:03):
And then the Circle people will remember there a couple
of their hits, red rubber Ball and Turned Down Day,
a couple of a couple of their big hits and
is tuning enough. You know when you look at the Circle,
it's spelled weird.
Speaker 3 (15:16):
It's see why r k Ellie.
Speaker 1 (15:19):
So this, you know, being an oldies guy, this is
just it's cool. But John Lennon is the one from
the Beatles. John Lennon is the one who came up
with their name and how to spell it, No.
Speaker 3 (15:29):
Kidding, they did.
Speaker 2 (15:30):
I learned something new today, so that's.
Speaker 1 (15:32):
That's how they got it. And then the big headliner,
of course, Mickey Dolan's from the Monkeys from Last Tran Clarksville,
Pleasant Valley Sunday. I'm a believer of fame. I mean,
he's just just an incredible artist. First time he's been
to Limah. You know, I keep telling friends that are
into oldies like I am, that if you're going to
go see one oldie show this year and come see
the free one, right, you know, you can walk in
(15:54):
and see artists Circle and and Mickey Dolan's have never
been to Limah, So you're gonna get a chance to
see two acts that haven't been here before.
Speaker 3 (16:01):
And it doesn't cost you a dime.
Speaker 1 (16:03):
Come on in, enjoy the fair, stop over in the
grand stand, get some free entertainment, some great entertainment, and
it should be a great, great Sunday.
Speaker 4 (16:11):
Absolutely, And if you are an avid follower of either
of those groups or all of those groups, and you
really want the best seat in the house for this one,
we do have a limited number of blue ribbon stage
front tickets available for purchase now online or in the
Fair Administration office.
Speaker 2 (16:28):
Those are fifty dollars apiece.
Speaker 4 (16:30):
They are general admission, but there will be a physical
seat up there for you to sit in front of
the stage now.
Speaker 1 (16:35):
So those people who want to get so close to
Mickey they can see them sweat exactly, they can do that.
That'll be fun. And really it's just going to be
a fun day. And you know, I'm just hoping it's good.
You know, it's free, so bring the whole family out
and watch the car show because it's going to be
in the grandstand as well. It had been over by
the pond, but you know, trying to put all the
(16:57):
oldie stuff together, so the car show is going to
be right there as well. So you can walk around,
listen direct energy. You see some very cool cars. And
I won't be surprised as some of those cars just
stay there through the concert because their owners may just
hang out for the music as well.
Speaker 2 (17:11):
We hope that they do.
Speaker 4 (17:12):
I think all around this day just ties itself together
so nicely.
Speaker 3 (17:17):
So what else you're going to do in anything else? Oh?
Speaker 1 (17:19):
I know you do have a there is another free
day at the in the grand stand right, you're ending
with the free.
Speaker 4 (17:25):
Day, Yes, absolutely, we are going out with a bang
no pun intended. But on the last Saturday, Saturday, August
twenty third, we're going to have another free event. The
Lima Area Concert Band is going to be performing a
show on the track. Tickets there are no tickets. You
can make your way into the grand stands or the
bleachers right in front of that general admission free. They'll
(17:48):
play a show for roughly forty five minutes to an hour,
and then that will segue right into a celebratory anniversary
fireworks show put on by the American Fireworks Company.
Speaker 1 (17:58):
So that's just well, I can't remember the last time
we had fireworks at the fair of it. I mean
it's happened before, but it's been a long time since
we did that.
Speaker 2 (18:07):
It has been a long time.
Speaker 4 (18:08):
And you know, we were timid about fireworks because we
first and foremost were thinking about not only the public safety,
but animal safety. And that's why we opted to do
the last Saturday, because that's when most of the animals
are off the property and the company we're working with.
I want to share this with you because I think
it's pretty cool. The company that we're working with is
(18:29):
world renowned and they advised us that that day, starting
in the morning, we need to play music in all
of our livestock farms at a barns at a low volume.
Then right before the show starts, we need to kick
that music up. And apparently it will deafen the fireworks
sound to any of the animals that are left and
probably won't get them as worked up as what it
(18:50):
would be if they just all of a sudden you
have fireworks going off.
Speaker 3 (18:53):
So good to know.
Speaker 2 (18:55):
Yeah, absolutely, So.
Speaker 1 (18:58):
You know, the fair is not the fair without the
gun fair. So I do want to make sure we
spend some time on this episode and talk about the
Junior Fair. We're going to talk a lot about them
during the fair. But you're an old Junior Fair guy.
For the folks that are out there and are like,
what is the difference between the fair and the Junior Fair?
Speaker 4 (19:14):
Here you go, Yeah, Russ, I'm so glad that you
brought up the Junior Fair because I speak to our
mission a lot, and our Junior Fair encompasses what our
mission is. It's promoting you through safe, fun and healthy
agricultural experiences. Learning experiences and the nine days of the
fair is the showcase for those over fourteen hundred Junior
(19:37):
Fair kids that put in countless hours and work throughout
the winter and summer to get their projects to twelve
o'clock for show day for their respective exhibitions during the
nine days of the fair. So I encourage anyone who
maybe doesn't know a Junior Fair kid or hasn't been
involved in the Junior Fair. If you're out at the fair,
take the opportunity to go and watch one of those exhibitions,
(19:58):
or at least walk up to one of the kids
in the barnes and ask them about their projects, because
they are very knowledgeable. In my opinion, our four h
and FFA programs here in Allen County are top tier
in the state of Ohio. The program and the kids
that they output are just unreal. I mean, I know
that you work for Nutrient and you guys are hiring
(20:18):
folks all the time. I'm going to assume that when
you look at resumes, if you see that they were
a Junior Fair kid, they're probably sorting themselves to the
top of the list.
Speaker 1 (20:25):
Well, you know what it tells us is that they
understand work and responsibility because you know, you talk about
these fourteen hundred kids, think about that fourteen hundred kids.
They've got these projects that they're working on it for
twelve months. I mean, this is a year long project.
They have to take care of that animal. If it's
a hog, for instance, you know, you've got to take
care of it.
Speaker 4 (20:44):
Every day, every day, twice a day, sometimes three times
a day.
Speaker 3 (20:48):
Yep.
Speaker 1 (20:49):
Yeah, you can't take a day off because it needs water,
it needs food, it needs to be kept clean, and
things like that. So this is really neat, and the
kids want to talk about their projects.
Speaker 3 (20:59):
So I'm with you.
Speaker 1 (21:00):
I mean, if you're out and you're visiting the fair,
and maybe it's a sunny day, so here's a chance
to go get some shade, walk through one of the barns,
and then just find a kid that's got the program
a project there, whether it's a rabbit or it's a
steer or I mean, everything's out there. Have them tell
you about so what makes this duck different than this duck.
They'll answer the questions. They know what makes that duck different,
(21:21):
Yes they will.
Speaker 4 (21:22):
And while we're on the topic of Junior Fair US,
I feel like it's appropriate to highlight and invite people
to the livestock auction, which is on Thursday and Friday,
the second Friday of the fair. That event has really
grown over the last several years, and that's thanks to
the overwhelming community support from businesses and families. Just last year,
(21:45):
we broke another auction record and grossed over eight hundred
and seventy two thousand dollars in total moneys brought in
and the smallest check cut to a junior fair kid
premium check was four hundred and seventy five dollars, most
likely for a chicken or a rabbit.
Speaker 1 (22:02):
And so, you know, for people who aren't aware, you're
not actually you know, I've actually talked to people say, well,
you know, I think it's really neat, and I get
that it's the kid's one paycheck a year, but I
don't want to hog or I don't want to steer,
and I don't want to have to You're not getting
the animal.
Speaker 3 (22:18):
These are premiums.
Speaker 1 (22:19):
So what you're paying is this is kind of the
reward for taking care of that animal for the last
year and getting it to score as well as it
does in.
Speaker 3 (22:28):
The judging and things. If you want to purchase that
animal that can be a range, then.
Speaker 1 (22:32):
You can buy that at market price, but that would
be above the premium. So the premium is what you're
bidding on, and it's it's exciting. And again you're going
to see fourteen hundred faces out there that you know,
on Thursday night and then all day on Friday that
are waiting.
Speaker 3 (22:46):
To see what their paycheck is going to because they.
Speaker 1 (22:48):
Don't know until the auction, and it can be a
moving experience if you've never been in. So I got
to tell you the personal story is I think it
was last year there was a girl and it was
their first time selling those first time with the steer
in the arena, and they were bidding on it and
she starts crying because she doesn't want to give up
(23:09):
the steer, and of course, you know, everybody's heart just
went out to her that like she doesn't want to
give up her steer.
Speaker 3 (23:14):
Now, but I think you just done.
Speaker 1 (23:17):
That really drives home the fact like how hard they worked,
how attached they became to their project over the last year.
But it's also a very good life lesson about you
know what about farm animals and that they're you know,
terminal animals and those kinds of things.
Speaker 3 (23:32):
So but a great great I mean, I love the
Junior Fair.
Speaker 1 (23:37):
I mean it's the best part of the fair and
we'll talk a lot about that here on the podcast.
For all nine days of the fair, we'll have some
really cool interviews with the kids talking about their projects.
Looking forward to.
Speaker 4 (23:49):
That absolutely, and I know, just from the feedback that
I received personally last year, the kids just absolutely ate
up these podcasts. They loved it, and even if they
weren't the one that was getting interviewed by you. It's
kind of nice how that podcast parlors set up with
those big glass windows. There's always a congregation of kids
or family or friends that kind of like to pick
(24:10):
on the person being interviewed. It's just all the way around,
a really neat experience.
Speaker 3 (24:14):
It is.
Speaker 1 (24:14):
There's big glass windows there so you can come over
and you know, you can be having an ice cream
cone or a pop or something and to watch your
friends being recorded for their podcast. And yeah, there's a
lot of waving and trying to get them to laugh and.
Speaker 3 (24:29):
Things going on on the other side of the class.
Speaker 1 (24:31):
That's fun and I think, you know, it's just one
more thing at the fair.
Speaker 3 (24:35):
Right, fair is all about fun.
Speaker 1 (24:37):
We got about two minutes some up why somebody should
come out to the Allen County Fair, And of course
they should come like nine times.
Speaker 4 (24:44):
Right, Actually nine times would be great. Yeah, no, but
why should somebody come to the Allen County Fair. So
I think fairs sometimes have a van vendetta or an
asterisk next to them that, oh it's a fair.
Speaker 2 (24:59):
I'm not a.
Speaker 4 (24:59):
Farm kid, it's agriculture. I've never been involved in that.
I'm a city kid, like I mean, like you said before,
the Junior Fair is what we are and that's what
we stand for.
Speaker 2 (25:10):
That's what our mission is.
Speaker 4 (25:11):
But there are so many opportunities for any name and
likeness of individual, regardless of what your interests are, regardless
of what your age is. Really what this is, it's
an event that we can bring the entire community together
in fellowship, enjoy some fun and entertainment, being able to
watch livestock exhibitions, eat great food, Sea World renown entertainment,
(25:35):
ride incredible rides at Poor Jacks. It's the one place
where you, in my opinion, reach the amount of demographics
that we're able to reach over a nine day period.
During that nine days of the Fair. We almost bring
in a little over two hundred thousand people in nine days,
so we're one of the biggest events in the region.
(25:56):
And that support that we've seen over the number of
the years and the growth that we've made has really
brought us to that label of one of the biggest
events in the region. So if you haven't taken the
opportunity to come out and enjoy one of these experiences
at the nine days of the Fair, our one hundred
and seventy fifth anniversary is definitely going to be the
year to do it.
Speaker 3 (26:16):
That's right.
Speaker 1 (26:17):
You can come out there and be with two hundred
thousand of your friends and neighbors.
Speaker 3 (26:21):
At the fair.
Speaker 1 (26:22):
You'll see people that you haven't seen since last year
at the fair, which is always fun as well.
Speaker 3 (26:26):
So again, the fair opens.
Speaker 4 (26:28):
When August fifteenth. The official opening and ribbon cutting is
on the Nutrient Plaza stage at.
Speaker 3 (26:34):
Four pm and it runs through.
Speaker 2 (26:37):
Saturday, August twenty third.
Speaker 1 (26:38):
All right, so come on out see us all at
the Allen County Fair, the one hundred and seventy fifth
Allen County Fair, and when you're there, also stop by
the podcast studio. We're right there in the old milking
parlor part of the dairy barn there and you know.
Speaker 3 (26:54):
Just stop buying you. We have big windows.
Speaker 1 (26:55):
We'll be able to watch the kids as they're being
interviewed and it's a lot of fun. We want to
thank Olexwelfair engineer for making this sound good, and the
and Decker, our videographer, for making us look.
Speaker 3 (27:04):
Good, which is new this year because of YouTube.
Speaker 2 (27:07):
We've got to like look look good.
Speaker 4 (27:09):
Might be a stretch. She might have to do some
doctoring afterwards.
Speaker 1 (27:12):
Yeah, it's called photoshopping, right, all right, So we'll see
you with the fair. Come out and see us, have
a great time, and uh we'll see you next time
at the Allen County Fair.
Welcome back to another edition of ACF four one one,
the official podcast of the Allen County Fair. It's powered
by Nutrient and hosted on the iHeart platform and knew
this year also will be on YouTube, so check that out.
I'm Rostecker, your host and joining me and is the
Allen County Fair Manager Troy el Or Troy Welcome.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
Hey, thanks for having me on today, Russ, and we're.
Speaker 3 (00:22):
Going to have you on throughout the fair.
Speaker 1 (00:24):
But this is kind of it's kind of the kickoff
actually of our second season a podcast.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
It's really exciting, it is.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
It is, and I know there's a lot of exciting
things going on at the fairgrounds as well. So before
we actually get into the physical fare that's coming up,
let's talk about improvements people might notice at the fair grounds.
And you can't miss it when you're coming in off
of Harding Highway there. Maurice is like what one hundred
feet talls. I'm like, I don't think he's huge.
Speaker 3 (00:50):
He's huge.
Speaker 4 (00:51):
It's a big it's a big cow, right, Yeah, it's
a big deal. Yeah, No, it's Maurice.
Speaker 3 (00:56):
Uh.
Speaker 4 (00:56):
It was a really neat project that was a partnership
between us Visit Greater Lima and the Bear Hollowood Carvers.
We were really trying to brainstorm a project that was
going to be a neat celebratory piece for this year's
one hundred and seventy fifth anniversary, but we also wanted
to align with Visit Greater Lima's morals and values and goals,
(01:18):
which are trying to drive tourism to our community. And
so far since he's been built, he gets visitors on
a daily basis, people pulling off the roads, getting out
of their vehicles, kids going up to them, interacting with them,
getting pictures with them. It's great exposure for us, but
it's also great exposure for Lima. And we're hoping that
he kind of develops himself into a landmark for this community,
(01:41):
a travel destination point, and that intern is hopefully going
to help boost the local economy and drive more dollars
into Lima, Allen County. And I noticed he just got
a cow bell he did, yes, Yes, the Union across
the road actually and Decker helped us out with that
making that connection, and they just called that yesterday. That
cow bell is made out of stainless steel. It is
(02:03):
three foot tall and almost two feet wide, and it
is fully functional.
Speaker 3 (02:08):
It's a big bell.
Speaker 2 (02:09):
It is. It's very cool.
Speaker 4 (02:10):
And they actually rubber coated the inside of the bell,
the ballpart with a truck liner truck bedliner, to try
to help I guess, not beat up the inside of
the bell, but they said, once that rubber wears off,
it's really gonna sound like a cowbell.
Speaker 3 (02:25):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (02:25):
So, and it's much bigger than the one we have
in our podcast studio at the fair because you know,
we're in the dairy for folks that don't know, we
have a studio at the Fair in the dairy, in
the building where the old milking parlor used to be,
and so we have things in the studio like cow
bell and so.
Speaker 3 (02:42):
But it's not that big.
Speaker 2 (02:43):
Yeah, not quite that big.
Speaker 3 (02:45):
Three feet.
Speaker 1 (02:48):
So, you know, one of the other improvements I know
is going on. It really it's not too sexy, but
it's a it's a major improvement.
Speaker 3 (02:55):
Tell me about the water line and a new water line.
Speaker 4 (02:57):
Yes, so, over the last several years the fair Grounds
has been battling and chasing water leaks across our property.
That's on that city main that we have. It's eight inch. Anyways,
the Allen County Commissioners graciously donated or gave the fair
Grounds in the Agricultural Society three hundred thousand dollars to
(03:17):
put towards the installation of a new main water line
on the property. So this is going to do a
couple things. It's going to help increase our water pressure
for our vendors in our buildings, which is a great thing.
But it's also going to actually help save the fair
grounds money over time because with those leaks being fixed
and repaired, we're not going to be charged and seeing
that on our water bill.
Speaker 2 (03:37):
Each month excellent.
Speaker 1 (03:39):
And I'm glad to see the cooperation there between the
a Society and the commissioners, and that is a good thing.
Speaker 3 (03:45):
One thing people will notice.
Speaker 1 (03:46):
You might not notice the water pressure change, but you
will notice.
Speaker 3 (03:50):
It's incredible. I've seen it.
Speaker 1 (03:52):
So the Union Bank Show Arena looks almost like a
brand new arena.
Speaker 4 (03:56):
Yes, that particular project has really been on my docket
since I started as fair manager. And I'm going to
be a little bit biased for a second, but I
grew up showing in that facility showing my swine projects
starting at the age of three, and that facility twenty
two years ago to now and even before that really
hasn't changed at all, with the exception of maybe some paint.
(04:19):
But we did a full renovation of that entire facility.
We installed a new telescopic gymnasium style bleacher seating that
all has handicap accessible rows in the first row of
every section. We repainted the facility, We gave it a
new ceiling, we gave it forty new high bay led lights,
It has a new sound system, it's going to have
new fencing, and it has a brand new renovated restroom
(04:42):
facility that doubled in size, and you're going to be
able to access it from the inside of the facility, yeah.
Speaker 1 (04:47):
Because it used to be you had to go outside
it and try to kind of squeeze yourself around the
cattleman's to get to find.
Speaker 2 (04:53):
The restroom exactly.
Speaker 4 (04:54):
And speaking of the cattleman, the reason that that restroom
renovation project was possible is because they made an eighty
five thousand dollars donation towards the renovation of that restroom project.
So we want to thank them for their support on
that particular aspect.
Speaker 1 (05:08):
All right, So when you go out there and you're
enjoying the new Union Bank show Reno. Make sure you
go over and get a ribbio a sandwich at the
Catalans at the same time.
Speaker 2 (05:14):
Right, absolutely, I'll do that.
Speaker 3 (05:16):
I promise I will do.
Speaker 1 (05:17):
That me too, sandwiches, any other projects like that before
we get into the fair that you want to make.
Speaker 3 (05:24):
Sure you highlight.
Speaker 4 (05:25):
There's some other minor improvements that you may or may
not notice. Across the property. We are up at our
north buildings, we're getting some handicapped door openers installed on
those new glass doors that we put on those facilities
last year, so that'll be new for this year. And
then across the property we've had lots of other entry
and exit doors that have just taken a beating over
(05:47):
the years. We're getting lots of those replaced too, So overall,
aesthetics accessibility in general should really be improved for this
year's fair.
Speaker 1 (05:54):
You know, one of the neat things too that's you're
fair that a lot of other fares don't have, is
all four of those buildings now in the North end
our air conditioned. That's so if we get some of
those ninety degree days which are possible during the fair,
at least you know you have a.
Speaker 3 (06:07):
Safe, cool haven that you can go to and cool down.
Speaker 1 (06:10):
A little bit and then go back out in place more.
Speaker 4 (06:12):
Right, absolutely, and I encourage people if you've never gone
through those buildings before, please take the opportunity to do
so during those nine days because there's a lot of
really neat projects in those buildings, specifically in the Fine
Arts building as well as the Youth Activities building. And
then obviously our Merchant's building is full of some incredible
businesses in the community selling product. And then the Youth
(06:35):
Exhibits building has some awesome four h and FFA projects,
that's right.
Speaker 1 (06:39):
And they'll be having an auction this throughout the week
of the fair that in that in the project room there,
so yep, yeah, we want to plug that as well
for the I think it's Owly County four h that
does that.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
One right, that's correct.
Speaker 3 (06:51):
Yep. So let's talk about the fair. I know it's
coming up.
Speaker 4 (06:55):
You're going to have one again, I know, surprisingly enough,
Like I told you before we started today, I finally
start my full time job August first.
Speaker 2 (07:03):
Well, that's good.
Speaker 3 (07:04):
That's glad to.
Speaker 1 (07:05):
See you're working and you guys have had some practice
because this is your one hundred and seventy fifth Allen
County Fairs.
Speaker 3 (07:11):
It's not your first rodeo.
Speaker 4 (07:13):
It's not my first rodeo. It's my personal fourth rodeo
as fair manager. But we've done this a time or two.
Speaker 1 (07:20):
Wow, seventy it doesn't seem like it's your fourth either,
but one hundred and seventy five, So I know there's
some really cool things. You're going to have some under
the grand standard believe there's going to be some historic
displays and tell, let's talk a little bit about the
one seventy fifth.
Speaker 4 (07:35):
Yeah, so we've got lots of neat things planned for
this year to kind of make this year feel a
little bit more special than just any other year. I mean,
every every fair is special, but this one, this one's
just a got that got that little touch of extra.
So under the grand stands, we're going to have what
we're calling the museum, sticking on the theme of ma
(07:56):
Ree And yes, we'll have lots of historical art facts
in display cases and on the wall that will be
centralized in the grand stands between the men's restroom and
the four h office that open area there. And then
we're also going to actually have a flat screen TV
in the museum that's going to be airing our documentary
(08:17):
on a loop for people to watch. And then in
one of the corners, we're going to have select dates
and times where MoU Ree will be doing pop up
meet and greet opportunities with kids.
Speaker 3 (08:27):
Wow, so you can actually meet Marie.
Speaker 4 (08:29):
Yes, Yes, it's funny, we have people. That's probably the
question that we get asked the most throughout the nine days.
Speaker 2 (08:35):
Where's Maurice.
Speaker 4 (08:36):
I want to get a picture with him? And we've
never really had a structured schedule of hey, here's where
he's going to be and when, So we're kind of
trying to meet that demand a little bit and give
the kids the opportunity to make sure they can interact
with him.
Speaker 1 (08:49):
That's very cool, And you will talked about the documentary
and I know you're going to debut it at your
kickoff dinner coming up here shortly. But let's give a
plug to the hometown stations. They're actually going to air
it on the NBC.
Speaker 2 (09:02):
Station, right they are.
Speaker 4 (09:03):
Yes, we are very grateful for that partnership we have
with hometown stations. It is going to air live on
NBC Lima Monday, August eleventh, at seven PM, so make
sure you tune in that night to watch it live,
but then set your DVR to that way. If you
want to go back and watch it again, you can
do so. And then we are going to be actually
selling a limited number of hard disk copies of this documentary.
Speaker 2 (09:27):
We're going to have one hundred and.
Speaker 4 (09:29):
Seventy five no pun intended on sale and you better
get those while they last, because I think they're going
to go pretty quick.
Speaker 3 (09:36):
Yeah, that sounds very cool, So let's get right into it.
Speaker 1 (09:39):
Your headliner this year, a whole new genre of music,
a whole new audience of fans coming to the Fairgrounds
to see Lauren Diggle and Franny Cash.
Speaker 3 (09:48):
Let's talk about that.
Speaker 4 (09:49):
Yes, And I tell you what, when we've been asked
about this before, I've been asked about this before, they're like, man,
this is very non traditional for what you guys are
used to bringing for your big concert to the graend stands.
And I absolutely agreed. I mean, we're predominantly accustomed to
bringing either country or rock into our grand stands. But
one big thing that we focus on is we really
(10:10):
do listen to the public. When we get feedback on
what the public wants to see and with this year
being a celebratory year, there has been a strong demand
for a large Christian contemporary act. So I want to
say at first we felt like we were taking a
gamble a little bit just because it was so new.
But ticket sales are going really well for this event.
We're a little over sixty one hundred sold. If you
(10:32):
wanted tickets in the grand stands, bleachers or track section,
they're almost gone, so so hop on and get your
tickets before they are gone.
Speaker 1 (10:40):
So people who are trying to visualize sixty one hundred people,
that's not quite but almost double what we had in
the grand stand last year exactly. Yeah, that's a lot
of people, and it don't really get better. We'll have
a lot of usually have a pretty active walk up
the week of the.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
Fair, especially if the weather's nice.
Speaker 1 (10:59):
And you know, a lot of people know Lauren Diegel
and my gosh, she's saying at the super Bowl this year.
She just she opened up the fourth of July celebration
in Washington on the ball, so a lot of people
have had a chance to maybe see and hear her
who weren't familiar with her.
Speaker 3 (11:16):
But who's Franny Cash?
Speaker 4 (11:17):
Yeah, Frandy cash. A lot of people don't know about
our opener, but if you are a follower of Christian
contemporary music, you may know her as the lead vocalist
for the very popular group We the Kingdom. So she
just recently, I don't think that they've actually broken apart,
but she's just kind of trying to do her own
solo thing a little bit, and she's on some of
(11:39):
Lauren's tickets at some other venues. But yeah, I've seen
some video of her perform and she has one heck
of a voice, So I think all around, you're getting
a lot of value for that ticket that you're purchasing
for this event.
Speaker 1 (11:51):
Cool, And of course that's the first Saturday night the fair.
Fair opens on Friday, and we have more of a
traditional Friday.
Speaker 3 (11:57):
Night show in the grand stand this year, Yes, we do.
Speaker 2 (12:00):
Opening night.
Speaker 4 (12:01):
Friday Night is the QP showcase of bands, and that
one is one of my personal favorites because I feel like,
not only the partnership with QP and we're so grateful
for the support that they give us, but really our
mission at the Fairgrounds is promoting youth through agriculture. I
realized that bands are not agriculture, but we get to
promote youth by allowing them to showcase their talents at
(12:24):
this high school band show, and it's always one of
the heaviest attended events. In the grandstands. You see mom, dad,
grandma and grandpa, siblings. It's just a really neat event
all the way around, you know.
Speaker 1 (12:34):
And I think it's kind of neat because for years
that was always opening night at the Allen County Fair
was the Qpie Band Show, And then when.
Speaker 3 (12:40):
They started moving up the date for football season.
Speaker 2 (12:44):
We had to adjust.
Speaker 1 (12:44):
Yeah, the high school bands are busy on Friday night,
so you end up going to a Sunday typically now.
Speaker 3 (12:49):
But so it's kind of.
Speaker 1 (12:50):
Neat to like bring that back to your having the
big anniversary, and it's kind of neat that we're doing
things the way we used to back in the in
the dates that'll be fun. So we've covered Fridays Sunday Now,
this doesn't happen very often at all at the Allen
County Fair, but free grand stand I mean on Sunday,
there's going to be car shows, oldie performers.
Speaker 3 (13:11):
Let's talk about Sunday.
Speaker 4 (13:12):
Yeah, so we're super excited about this one, and this
one's presented by Nutrient. So thanks Nutrient for your support
on this event day in general, and then for dmaging
on the car show side of things. But yes, completely free.
We're looking at this event as a gift to the
community that has supported us over so many years. I mean,
we have people ask us each year, why doesn't my
(13:34):
gate admission include all of your grand stand events. Well,
our grand stand events are some of the top tier
events in the state, and those cost us money to do,
so that's why we've historically charged. But we have one
heck of a lineup for Sunday kicking things off. We
start the car show at one pm. And during the
car show you're actually going to be able to listen
(13:55):
to Direct Energy out of Columbus, which some line of
locals may recognize that name because they played the Pengo
Pavilion I believe last year they did. Yes, So they'll
play one to four during the car show. The OSU
Alumni band will hop on the Nutrient Plaza stage right
after that to play basically forty five minutes. Then at
(14:16):
five you hop back in the grand stands and the
Circle Out of Chicago will perform for about forty five
minutes to an hour and then our headliner for that
night is Mickey Dolans from the Monkeys.
Speaker 3 (14:27):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (14:28):
So let's so back up a little bit when we're
talking about Direct Energy that are known as the as
the premiere classic rock band in Ohio. Very high into
band band across the state, but they're based out of Columbus.
I think people will really enjoy them. They're like a
large band. It's twelve people in their band and an
entire horn section, and so they play a lot of
(14:48):
music that has horned, so a lot of Chicago and
earth Wind and Fire and Blit's weet in Tears and
things like that. So very very very good band. And
then of course the alumni band. You can't see them
about it.
Speaker 2 (15:00):
Oh h yeah, I oh, there we go.
Speaker 3 (15:02):
We got that one covered.
Speaker 1 (15:03):
And then the Circle people will remember there a couple
of their hits, red rubber Ball and Turned Down Day,
a couple of a couple of their big hits and
is tuning enough. You know when you look at the Circle,
it's spelled weird.
Speaker 3 (15:16):
It's see why r k Ellie.
Speaker 1 (15:19):
So this, you know, being an oldies guy, this is
just it's cool. But John Lennon is the one from
the Beatles. John Lennon is the one who came up
with their name and how to spell it, No.
Speaker 3 (15:29):
Kidding, they did.
Speaker 2 (15:30):
I learned something new today, so that's.
Speaker 1 (15:32):
That's how they got it. And then the big headliner,
of course, Mickey Dolan's from the Monkeys from Last Tran Clarksville,
Pleasant Valley Sunday. I'm a believer of fame. I mean,
he's just just an incredible artist. First time he's been
to Limah. You know, I keep telling friends that are
into oldies like I am, that if you're going to
go see one oldie show this year and come see
the free one, right, you know, you can walk in
(15:54):
and see artists Circle and and Mickey Dolan's have never
been to Limah, So you're gonna get a chance to
see two acts that haven't been here before.
Speaker 3 (16:01):
And it doesn't cost you a dime.
Speaker 1 (16:03):
Come on in, enjoy the fair, stop over in the
grand stand, get some free entertainment, some great entertainment, and
it should be a great, great Sunday.
Speaker 4 (16:11):
Absolutely, And if you are an avid follower of either
of those groups or all of those groups, and you
really want the best seat in the house for this one,
we do have a limited number of blue ribbon stage
front tickets available for purchase now online or in the
Fair Administration office.
Speaker 2 (16:28):
Those are fifty dollars apiece.
Speaker 4 (16:30):
They are general admission, but there will be a physical
seat up there for you to sit in front of
the stage now.
Speaker 1 (16:35):
So those people who want to get so close to
Mickey they can see them sweat exactly, they can do that.
That'll be fun. And really it's just going to be
a fun day. And you know, I'm just hoping it's good.
You know, it's free, so bring the whole family out
and watch the car show because it's going to be
in the grandstand as well. It had been over by
the pond, but you know, trying to put all the
(16:57):
oldie stuff together, so the car show is going to
be right there as well. So you can walk around,
listen direct energy. You see some very cool cars. And
I won't be surprised as some of those cars just
stay there through the concert because their owners may just
hang out for the music as well.
Speaker 2 (17:11):
We hope that they do.
Speaker 4 (17:12):
I think all around this day just ties itself together
so nicely.
Speaker 3 (17:17):
So what else you're going to do in anything else? Oh?
Speaker 1 (17:19):
I know you do have a there is another free
day at the in the grand stand right, you're ending
with the free.
Speaker 4 (17:25):
Day, Yes, absolutely, we are going out with a bang
no pun intended. But on the last Saturday, Saturday, August
twenty third, we're going to have another free event. The
Lima Area Concert Band is going to be performing a
show on the track. Tickets there are no tickets. You
can make your way into the grand stands or the
bleachers right in front of that general admission free. They'll
(17:48):
play a show for roughly forty five minutes to an hour,
and then that will segue right into a celebratory anniversary
fireworks show put on by the American Fireworks Company.
Speaker 1 (17:58):
So that's just well, I can't remember the last time
we had fireworks at the fair of it. I mean
it's happened before, but it's been a long time since
we did that.
Speaker 2 (18:07):
It has been a long time.
Speaker 4 (18:08):
And you know, we were timid about fireworks because we
first and foremost were thinking about not only the public safety,
but animal safety. And that's why we opted to do
the last Saturday, because that's when most of the animals
are off the property and the company we're working with.
I want to share this with you because I think
it's pretty cool. The company that we're working with is
(18:29):
world renowned and they advised us that that day, starting
in the morning, we need to play music in all
of our livestock farms at a barns at a low volume.
Then right before the show starts, we need to kick
that music up. And apparently it will deafen the fireworks
sound to any of the animals that are left and
probably won't get them as worked up as what it
(18:50):
would be if they just all of a sudden you
have fireworks going off.
Speaker 3 (18:53):
So good to know.
Speaker 2 (18:55):
Yeah, absolutely, So.
Speaker 1 (18:58):
You know, the fair is not the fair without the
gun fair. So I do want to make sure we
spend some time on this episode and talk about the
Junior Fair. We're going to talk a lot about them
during the fair. But you're an old Junior Fair guy.
For the folks that are out there and are like,
what is the difference between the fair and the Junior Fair?
Speaker 4 (19:14):
Here you go, Yeah, Russ, I'm so glad that you
brought up the Junior Fair because I speak to our
mission a lot, and our Junior Fair encompasses what our
mission is. It's promoting you through safe, fun and healthy
agricultural experiences. Learning experiences and the nine days of the
fair is the showcase for those over fourteen hundred Junior
(19:37):
Fair kids that put in countless hours and work throughout
the winter and summer to get their projects to twelve
o'clock for show day for their respective exhibitions during the
nine days of the fair. So I encourage anyone who
maybe doesn't know a Junior Fair kid or hasn't been
involved in the Junior Fair. If you're out at the fair,
take the opportunity to go and watch one of those exhibitions,
(19:58):
or at least walk up to one of the kids
in the barnes and ask them about their projects, because
they are very knowledgeable. In my opinion, our four h
and FFA programs here in Allen County are top tier
in the state of Ohio. The program and the kids
that they output are just unreal. I mean, I know
that you work for Nutrient and you guys are hiring
(20:18):
folks all the time. I'm going to assume that when
you look at resumes, if you see that they were
a Junior Fair kid, they're probably sorting themselves to the
top of the list.
Speaker 1 (20:25):
Well, you know what it tells us is that they
understand work and responsibility because you know, you talk about
these fourteen hundred kids, think about that fourteen hundred kids.
They've got these projects that they're working on it for
twelve months. I mean, this is a year long project.
They have to take care of that animal. If it's
a hog, for instance, you know, you've got to take
care of it.
Speaker 4 (20:44):
Every day, every day, twice a day, sometimes three times
a day.
Speaker 3 (20:48):
Yep.
Speaker 1 (20:49):
Yeah, you can't take a day off because it needs water,
it needs food, it needs to be kept clean, and
things like that. So this is really neat, and the
kids want to talk about their projects.
Speaker 3 (20:59):
So I'm with you.
Speaker 1 (21:00):
I mean, if you're out and you're visiting the fair,
and maybe it's a sunny day, so here's a chance
to go get some shade, walk through one of the barns,
and then just find a kid that's got the program
a project there, whether it's a rabbit or it's a
steer or I mean, everything's out there. Have them tell
you about so what makes this duck different than this duck.
They'll answer the questions. They know what makes that duck different,
(21:21):
Yes they will.
Speaker 4 (21:22):
And while we're on the topic of Junior Fair US,
I feel like it's appropriate to highlight and invite people
to the livestock auction, which is on Thursday and Friday,
the second Friday of the fair. That event has really
grown over the last several years, and that's thanks to
the overwhelming community support from businesses and families. Just last year,
(21:45):
we broke another auction record and grossed over eight hundred
and seventy two thousand dollars in total moneys brought in
and the smallest check cut to a junior fair kid
premium check was four hundred and seventy five dollars, most
likely for a chicken or a rabbit.
Speaker 1 (22:02):
And so, you know, for people who aren't aware, you're
not actually you know, I've actually talked to people say, well,
you know, I think it's really neat, and I get
that it's the kid's one paycheck a year, but I
don't want to hog or I don't want to steer,
and I don't want to have to You're not getting
the animal.
Speaker 3 (22:18):
These are premiums.
Speaker 1 (22:19):
So what you're paying is this is kind of the
reward for taking care of that animal for the last
year and getting it to score as well as it
does in.
Speaker 3 (22:28):
The judging and things. If you want to purchase that
animal that can be a range, then.
Speaker 1 (22:32):
You can buy that at market price, but that would
be above the premium. So the premium is what you're
bidding on, and it's it's exciting. And again you're going
to see fourteen hundred faces out there that you know,
on Thursday night and then all day on Friday that
are waiting.
Speaker 3 (22:46):
To see what their paycheck is going to because they.
Speaker 1 (22:48):
Don't know until the auction, and it can be a
moving experience if you've never been in. So I got
to tell you the personal story is I think it
was last year there was a girl and it was
their first time selling those first time with the steer
in the arena, and they were bidding on it and
she starts crying because she doesn't want to give up
(23:09):
the steer, and of course, you know, everybody's heart just
went out to her that like she doesn't want to
give up her steer.
Speaker 3 (23:14):
Now, but I think you just done.
Speaker 1 (23:17):
That really drives home the fact like how hard they worked,
how attached they became to their project over the last year.
But it's also a very good life lesson about you
know what about farm animals and that they're you know,
terminal animals and those kinds of things.
Speaker 3 (23:32):
So but a great great I mean, I love the
Junior Fair.
Speaker 1 (23:37):
I mean it's the best part of the fair and
we'll talk a lot about that here on the podcast.
For all nine days of the fair, we'll have some
really cool interviews with the kids talking about their projects.
Looking forward to.
Speaker 4 (23:49):
That absolutely, and I know, just from the feedback that
I received personally last year, the kids just absolutely ate
up these podcasts. They loved it, and even if they
weren't the one that was getting interviewed by you. It's
kind of nice how that podcast parlors set up with
those big glass windows. There's always a congregation of kids
or family or friends that kind of like to pick
(24:10):
on the person being interviewed. It's just all the way around,
a really neat experience.
Speaker 3 (24:14):
It is.
Speaker 1 (24:14):
There's big glass windows there so you can come over
and you know, you can be having an ice cream
cone or a pop or something and to watch your
friends being recorded for their podcast. And yeah, there's a
lot of waving and trying to get them to laugh and.
Speaker 3 (24:29):
Things going on on the other side of the class.
Speaker 1 (24:31):
That's fun and I think, you know, it's just one
more thing at the fair.
Speaker 3 (24:35):
Right, fair is all about fun.
Speaker 1 (24:37):
We got about two minutes some up why somebody should
come out to the Allen County Fair, And of course
they should come like nine times.
Speaker 4 (24:44):
Right, Actually nine times would be great. Yeah, no, but
why should somebody come to the Allen County Fair. So
I think fairs sometimes have a van vendetta or an
asterisk next to them that, oh it's a fair.
Speaker 2 (24:59):
I'm not a.
Speaker 4 (24:59):
Farm kid, it's agriculture. I've never been involved in that.
I'm a city kid, like I mean, like you said before,
the Junior Fair is what we are and that's what
we stand for.
Speaker 2 (25:10):
That's what our mission is.
Speaker 4 (25:11):
But there are so many opportunities for any name and
likeness of individual, regardless of what your interests are, regardless
of what your age is. Really what this is, it's
an event that we can bring the entire community together
in fellowship, enjoy some fun and entertainment, being able to
watch livestock exhibitions, eat great food, Sea World renown entertainment,
(25:35):
ride incredible rides at Poor Jacks. It's the one place
where you, in my opinion, reach the amount of demographics
that we're able to reach over a nine day period.
During that nine days of the Fair. We almost bring
in a little over two hundred thousand people in nine days,
so we're one of the biggest events in the region.
(25:56):
And that support that we've seen over the number of
the years and the growth that we've made has really
brought us to that label of one of the biggest
events in the region. So if you haven't taken the
opportunity to come out and enjoy one of these experiences
at the nine days of the Fair, our one hundred
and seventy fifth anniversary is definitely going to be the
year to do it.
Speaker 3 (26:16):
That's right.
Speaker 1 (26:17):
You can come out there and be with two hundred
thousand of your friends and neighbors.
Speaker 3 (26:21):
At the fair.
Speaker 1 (26:22):
You'll see people that you haven't seen since last year
at the fair, which is always fun as well.
Speaker 3 (26:26):
So again, the fair opens.
Speaker 4 (26:28):
When August fifteenth. The official opening and ribbon cutting is
on the Nutrient Plaza stage at.
Speaker 3 (26:34):
Four pm and it runs through.
Speaker 2 (26:37):
Saturday, August twenty third.
Speaker 1 (26:38):
All right, so come on out see us all at
the Allen County Fair, the one hundred and seventy fifth
Allen County Fair, and when you're there, also stop by
the podcast studio. We're right there in the old milking
parlor part of the dairy barn there and you know.
Speaker 3 (26:54):
Just stop buying you. We have big windows.
Speaker 1 (26:55):
We'll be able to watch the kids as they're being
interviewed and it's a lot of fun. We want to
thank Olexwelfair engineer for making this sound good, and the
and Decker, our videographer, for making us look.
Speaker 3 (27:04):
Good, which is new this year because of YouTube.
Speaker 2 (27:07):
We've got to like look look good.
Speaker 4 (27:09):
Might be a stretch. She might have to do some
doctoring afterwards.
Speaker 1 (27:12):
Yeah, it's called photoshopping, right, all right, So we'll see
you with the fair. Come out and see us, have
a great time, and uh we'll see you next time
at the Allen County Fair.
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