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Independence, MO —
The Missouri State Fair opened this week in Sedalia, Mo., and runs through Aug. 19. It is a showcase of the best of Missouri, and the highlights are almost countless.
1. Tradition. Sit in on judging everything from hogs and horses to fine art and potted plants. There’s the Governor’s Ham Breakfast (8 a.m., Aug. 16, director’s tent, $20). Take in the Sale of Champions, with 4-H amd FFA winning steers, barrows, lambs, goats, rabbits and chickens (3 p.m. Aug 18, Lowell Mohler Assembly Hall). Watch the Antique, Classic & Farm Tractor Pull (10 a.m., 6 p.m. Aug. 15, State Fair Arena, $8 for an all-day ticket, less for seniors, kids or one show). There’s the Missouri First Lady’s Pie Contest followed by “The Art of Pie Making” (10 a.m. to noon, Aug. 16, Consumer Showcase).
2. Newer stuff. Can you strum, pick or fiddle? This year the fair has its second annual Show-Me Bluegrass Festival. It’s Wednesday, and performances are at a variety of locations. More than 10 bands are playing, including Charlie and the Girls (3 p.m., Budweiser Stage), Misty Mountain, Whetstone and Bluegrass Missourians. Amateur musicians are invited to a 4 p.m. jam session in the Show-Me Tent (bring your own instrument), and then there’s a banjo contest at 6 p.m. at the Touchstone Energy Stage. That evening, the Country Gold Tour takes the grandstand stage and will feature The Quebe Sisters with their Texas-style fiddling and three-part harmonies. Also on stage: Bobby Bare, Leroy Van Dyke and the Auctioneers, Lynn Anderson and others. $20 for seats on the track, $10 in the grandstand.
3. Learn something. The Consumer Showcase Stage has presentations on everything from quilting, sewing and scrapbooking to planting and pruning trees and dealing with weeds, not to mention “What’s New with Tupperware.” You can take Wine 101 (noon today) and Wine 202 (1 p.m. today) at the wine tent. There are demonstrations at the Conservation Building on everything from cleaning fish to why feral hogs are a problem in Missouri. Learn how bees make honey (Ag Building). Why did the bald eagle make a comeback (Conservation, 11 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. Aug. 16)? Learn how to use a Dutch oven (9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Aug. 16 at the Women’s Building). The Boy Scouts will demonstrate solar cooking (9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Aug. 18, Women’s Building).
4. Just take it all in. Go see the 169-pound pumpkin (Ag Building). Go see the huge catfish and the slithering reptiles (Conservation). Eat a corndog or a steak dinner. See the racing pigs. Sit in the shade of the MoDOT Gardens or steal away to the air-conditioning in the Agriculture Building and elsewhere. Stroll through the barns and other buildings with some of the state’s finest cattle, horses, mules, hogs, sheep, rabbits and poultry. (Yes, this week the federal Centers for Disease Control said there’s been an increase – not a pandemic – in hog-to-human transmission of swine flu. Fairgoers should wash their hands and avoid taking food and drinks into livestock barns, the Associated Press quotes officials as saying, while pregnant women, young children, the elderly and people with weakened immune systems should be particularly careful.)
The Missouri State Fair opened this week in Sedalia, Mo., and runs through Aug. 19. It is a showcase of the best of Missouri, and the highlights are almost countless.
1. Tradition. Sit in on judging everything from hogs and horses to fine art and potted plants. There’s the Governor’s Ham Breakfast (8 a.m., Aug. 16, director’s tent, $20). Take in the Sale of Champions, with 4-H amd FFA winning steers, barrows, lambs, goats, rabbits and chickens (3 p.m. Aug 18, Lowell Mohler Assembly Hall). Watch the Antique, Classic & Farm Tractor Pull (10 a.m., 6 p.m. Aug. 15, State Fair Arena, $8 for an all-day ticket, less for seniors, kids or one show). There’s the Missouri First Lady’s Pie Contest followed by “The Art of Pie Making” (10 a.m. to noon, Aug. 16, Consumer Showcase).
2. Newer stuff. Can you strum, pick or fiddle? This year the fair has its second annual Show-Me Bluegrass Festival. It’s Wednesday, and performances are at a variety of locations. More than 10 bands are playing, including Charlie and the Girls (3 p.m., Budweiser Stage), Misty Mountain, Whetstone and Bluegrass Missourians. Amateur musicians are invited to a 4 p.m. jam session in the Show-Me Tent (bring your own instrument), and then there’s a banjo contest at 6 p.m. at the Touchstone Energy Stage. That evening, the Country Gold Tour takes the grandstand stage and will feature The Quebe Sisters with their Texas-style fiddling and three-part harmonies. Also on stage: Bobby Bare, Leroy Van Dyke and the Auctioneers, Lynn Anderson and others. $20 for seats on the track, $10 in the grandstand.
3. Learn something. The Consumer Showcase Stage has presentations on everything from quilting, sewing and scrapbooking to planting and pruning trees and dealing with weeds, not to mention “What’s New with Tupperware.” You can take Wine 101 (noon today) and Wine 202 (1 p.m. today) at the wine tent. There are demonstrations at the Conservation Building on everything from cleaning fish to why feral hogs are a problem in Missouri. Learn how bees make honey (Ag Building). Why did the bald eagle make a comeback (Conservation, 11 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. Aug. 16)? Learn how to use a Dutch oven (9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Aug. 16 at the Women’s Building). The Boy Scouts will demonstrate solar cooking (9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Aug. 18, Women’s Building).
4. Just take it all in. Go see the 169-pound pumpkin (Ag Building). Go see the huge catfish and the slithering reptiles (Conservation). Eat a corndog or a steak dinner. See the racing pigs. Sit in the shade of the MoDOT Gardens or steal away to the air-conditioning in the Agriculture Building and elsewhere. Stroll through the barns and other buildings with some of the state’s finest cattle, horses, mules, hogs, sheep, rabbits and poultry. (Yes, this week the federal Centers for Disease Control said there’s been an increase – not a pandemic – in hog-to-human transmission of swine flu. Fairgoers should wash their hands and avoid taking food and drinks into livestock barns, the Associated Press quotes officials as saying, while pregnant women, young children, the elderly and people with weakened immune systems should be particularly careful.)
5. If you go ... Two ways to drive there. The more scenic route is U.S. 50 east to Sedalia. In Sedalia, either take a right at the sign for a fair entrance, or go to U.S. 65, turn right and go south to the signs for the main entrance. Otherwise, take Interstate 70 to U.S. 65, and then head south into Sedalia. Gates to the fair are open 7:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Most exhibit buildings are open 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Admission is $8 for adults, $6 for seniors (60 and older), $2 for children 6 to 12, and free for 5 and younger. The midway opens at 11 a.m. on weekends and noon weekdays, weather permitting, and it closes between 11:30 p.m. and 1:30 a.m. depending on weather and at the carnival company’s discretion.
Parking is free. There is a $5 VIP parking area. There are two handicap-accessible parking lots available through the main gate, gate 11 and the centennial gate off U.S. 65. A wheelchair can be rented all day for $10. Electric mobility carts are $25 for four hours, $40 for eight hours and $50 for all day.
Also, Aug. 16 is Thrifty Thursday: $4 for 13 and older, $1 for ages 6 to 12. Those lower prices also apply on the last day of the fair, Aug. 19. Admission is $5 after 5 p.m. Aug. 12 to 15.
Get daily updates – lots of them – on by following the fair on Twitter @MoStateFair.
