JEFFERSON - - The week prior to the Ashtabula County Fair is always a bit harried, and Tuesday was no different.
Organizers, volunteers, vendors and exhibitors bustled throughout the fairgrounds Tuesday, getting ready for the fair.
"We're staking out where the vendors will go," said Bob Jones of the fair board, as he worked in the hot noontime sun. "We're counting on hot weather. ... We're putting up rest tents for shade."
The fair opens at 9 a.m. Tuesday with a flag raising in front of the grandstand. This is the 161st edition of the Ashtabula County Fair.
In preparation for the big event, tractor-trailers bearing the name Lisko Amusements arrived Tuesday, hauling thrill rides.
Horses trotted around the race track, preparing for next week's harness racing.
A tractor pulling antique farm machinery drove through the west-end gate before noon, as a steady line of people went in and out of the fair office under the grandstand. That's because Tuesday was the last day for folks to enter their photographs, artwork, canned goods, flowers, crafts, hay and animals in the agricultural fair.
A few country music fans were buying tickets for the Rodney Atkins' concert, set for 8 p.m. Aug. 11 in front of the grandstand.
The fair is a high point of the year for Ashtabula County residents and has been for many generations, Darla Vargo, secretary-treasurer of the fair board, has said.
Potential fair-goers picked up programs and perused next week's schedule of events. Opening day includes a draft-horse class, a fancy poultry show, a miniature-horse show, bicycle decorating and races, a frog-jumping contest for the children, a youth parade and motocross.
National Weather Service forecasters predict fair week will be the hottest week of the summer. But, that doesn't seem to bother Jones.
"Good," he said. "We're putting up rest tents. And it's better than mud."
Local News
Related Photos
-
BILL WEST
Discussion
Getting ready for the fair
- Local News
-
-
Sports, academics to come together
SPIRE Institute will expand its educational base and accept international students into its sports performance programs through a partnership with the Andrews Osborne Academy, Ted Meekma, SPIRE management team member, announced Wednesday.
-
Grand Valley sixth grader wins Ashtabula County Spelling Bee
James Elliott, a sixth grader at Grand Valley Middle School, clinched his win of the 29th annual Ashtabula County Area V Spelling Bee by successfully spelling the words “physique” and “daffodil.”
-
Conneaut Chamber lauds top citizen, ‘Champions’
Nicholas Iarocci, Conneaut’s 2011 Citizen of the Year, needed plenty of gulps of water to complete his acceptance speech Tuesday night.
-
Conneaut’s unpaved roads will get priority status in 2012
Secondary roads in Conneaut will get the lion’s share of attention from the Public Works’ Department this year, said City Manager Tim Eggleston.
-
Felony charge filed in robbery
An Ashtabula woman who police said grabbed a woman’s purse inside a Conneaut supermarket late Monday afternoon faces a felony charge in Conneaut Municipal Court, according to reports.
-
Ashtabula County building projects readied for bids
Up to four improvement projects for county-owned buildings are being lined up for bids in the next month.
-
City of Ashtabula looking for new auditor
Six candidates have applied for city auditor, which City Council President J.P. Ducro IV says he hopes to fill by the end of March.
-
Red Cross holding breakfast for ‘Community Heroes’
The Red Cross Community Heroes Breakfast will honor 12 county residents March 3 at the Bernard Vacca Community Center.
-
New film showcases county’s scenic rivers
Ohio’s Scenic Rivers program, which protects stretches of 14 waterways — including three in Ashtabula County — is the focus of a new movie by a Dayton-based independent filmmaker.
-
Students can donate clothing to Goodwill
Many Ashtabula Area City Schools students will find themselves cleaning out their closets this week.
- More Local News Headlines
-
Sports, academics to come together
