State Fair Hound

An independent view of the New York State Fair

Month: August 2016 (Page 2 of 3)

One Day to Go

The gates open Thursday for the 2016 New York State Fair, NUMBER ONE KIDwith its radically changed landscape, fresh, open look and glorious main gate.

That’s not all that’s new as you’ll find shiny, new rides, including one of the biggest traveling roller coasters in the country and a 70-foot Ferris Wheel. Gather round for first-time animals acts including wild cats and stingrays. Try out one of the 14 new food vendors, including the Fair’s first all-kosher stand, watch a kids sports competition and marvel at Nickelodeon’s PAW Patrol show. Chevy Court improvements will make attending a concert a better experience and a new home for the famous New York baked potato brings that tradition into the 21st century. SPACE ROLLER 15Line the route for the rejuvenated parade, take a free tram ride and inspect infrastructure updates, including better lighting, a new side entrance and the beautification of the Iroquois Village.

There’s never been a State Fair like this year’s. Don’t miss it!

Lotto Luck

The Lottery Pavilion was demolished as part of the Fairgrounds makeover, so the Lottery was relocated to the southeast corner of the Coliseum, across from the dairy cattle building. A mechanical bull BULLRIDING GIRL 15challenged riders to rodeo up in that spot last year.

Lactose Intolerance

The milk bar price increase, announced last week then rescinded, turned controversial after a renowned animal rights activist criticized the state subsidy that averted doubling the cost of a cup of white or chocolate. Customers, who tolerate long lines to get their bargain moo juice, MILK BAR GAL14were howling at the planned increase before Gov. Cuomo stepped in with $90,000 in state money to avert it.

That brought a letter opposing the subsidy—actually opposing human consumption of milk in general—from Gene Baur, an author and the founder of Farm Sanctuary in nearby Watkins Glen. Though Baur’s letter focuses on his contention that dairy products are unhealthy and contribute to heart disease, diabetes and stroke, his organization decries the raising of livestock for meat, milk and eggs as inhumane, even cruel.

In a state as large as New York, with a fair as diverse as ours, there should be room for differing opinions as well as insightful discussion about farming and nutrition. The dairy industry is one of New York’s largest, providing many financial benefits from taxes to employment. But even supporters have to recognize that the COW TRIO 15cows raised to produce the milk often pay a price, though dairy farm conditions vary widely.

The best way for you to decide how you feel about this controversial subject is to examine the issues and weigh the options. At the Fair, look closely at the animals that play a part in our food industries. Ask questions and gather information that’s available. But don’t stop there. After the Fair, take a drive to Watkins Glen to visit the Farm Sanctuary (www.farmsanctuary.org). Get their perspective on the raising of livestock and the food thus produced.

Take a close look at the facts, then decide what to feed your family.

Frequent Flyers

The popular butterfly tent returns to the Horticulture Building at the New York State Fair, this year with more insects including exotic breeds from Africa, Asia and Central America. Past years have included only the familiar monarch butterfly, BFLIES-BABY 15so those fluttering around your head this year will be ones you haven’t seen, unless you have traveled far from New York state.

The SkyRiver Butterfly Exhibit is open daily from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Admission, which includes a feeding stick to attract the butterflies, is $2. Great photo ops abound!

 

Late Gates

One important change for 2016 from previous editions of the New York State Fair concerns the time gates officially open to customers. Opening time has been pushed back from the traditional 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. That decision was centered around safety concerns that arose as visitors wandered the grounds while delivery and maintenance trucks were still cruising the streets to service vendors and businesses. ENT. GATE 4 14

“We have had near misses out here before,” Acting Director Troy Waffner explained. “The goal is to control the pedestrian and vehicular traffic together. So that was the Genesis behind that, to eliminate the pedestrian and vehicle traffic.”

Of course, 10 a.m. has always been the opening time for the Center of Progress, Horticulture and other buildings and that hasn’t changed. State Fair Hound did a little sniffing around and discovered that early arrivals are likely to be allowed in before 10, unofficially. So if you enjoy breakfasting at the Fair, you can still do that. Just watch out for the trucks, OK?

 

Marching Orders

The traditional State Fair parade PARADE 15will be held on six of the 12 days this year, a change from past years when it kicked off daily.

The route will also change, still starting at Chevy Court before taking it the length of the new road the Fair is calling Broadway, pictured below during Syracuse Nationals.

Another new wrinkle calls for a grand marshal to lead to procession of marching bands, emergency vehicles, street performers and animals. BROADWAY NAT 16The parade steps off at 6 p.m. Aug. 26, 29, 30 and 31 and Sep. 1 and 2.

Gallop Over to World of Horses

There have been some improvements to one of the New York State Fair’s best features, known last year as Equine Avenue. The newly-expanded, World of Horses lets visitors get close to horses—as depicted in this photo by State Fair Hound’s Nick LoPresti—PETTING AT EA 15and is a wealth of information and entertainment about them.

This year they’ll be celebrating the success of Olympic equestrians, particularly gold medal winning New Yorkers Beezie Madden of Cazenovia and McLain Ward of Brewster. No appearances by our Olympians have been announced, but that would be a real coup for the Fair, if arranged.

Fairgoers can learn about breeds, care, physiology and all things equine. There will be games, prizes, trivia and photo ops. Best of all, there will be friendly horses within petting range.

 

Flea the Scene

City Market, an antiques and flea market that debuted last year, returns to the back of the Chevy Court area on Aug. 28 from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. FLEA 15Local vendors will again display collectibles, crafts, art and rare pieces not often found at the Fair. It’s definitely worth a visit.

Building Momentum

Most visitors are so focused on enjoying the world of entertainment on display at the New York State Fair that they may not notice that the regal buildings providing a foundation for this fabulous festival have been spruced up. Acting Director Troy Waffner gave State Fair Hound the scoop on the updated buildings.

“At the Center if Progress building, we made the south wing of it, which goes into the restaurant, ADA (American with Disabilities Act) compatible,” Waffner explained. “We replaced the south entrance of the Center of Progress EAVES 15because it was deteriorating. We put in a new ramp there.

We uncovered the old, brick steps on the Dairy Products building and restored them. We did some work on the International Building. The cornice pieces were deteriorating. We replaced those. We brought in a masonry company that specializes in historic masonry and they’ve cleaned the buildings ACROSS TO BLDGS 15so it gives us a really good sense of what’s underneath some of the dirt, where they need to be repointed, whether the seams need to be redone. The plan is to continue that.

The Art and Home Center is an ongoing project. We got the slate roof replaced with another slate roof. We also replaced the main columns on because they were deteriorating. We also washed the art deco tile around the Horticulture. It was repaired where needed. It was actually in very good shape.”

As terrific as the grounds look with the middle opened up, HORT PORTRAIT 14expanding the midway and RV park areas, it’s the century-old buildings than make the New York State Fairgrounds special. “When you walk in you get that sense of the history of the fair,” Waffner said. “It’s what sets us apart from a lot of other fairs. When you go to the Arizona State Fair, they’re really like post-World War II tin buildings. But you come here and you’ve got these gorgeous old buildings.”

Courting Change

Chevy Court itself hasn’t changed much since last year. The stage, backstage building and lawn—amazingly green for our weather conditionsCHEV COURT AUG. 16–lined with metal benches are returning.

What’s not coming back are the hot tubs, food stands and exhibitors that once ringed the court. That purging, suggested by State Fair Hound in our Sep. 22, 2015 post Full Court Pressure, creates more concert fan space with fewer obstructions, something that has been badly needed for years.

Look for the immensely popular Dinosaur Bar-B-Que stand to be relocated next year, opening up more fan space for concerts. DINO AUG.16“We did talk to Steve Davis, the owner of the Dinosuar Bar-B Que Stand,” Acting Director Troy              Waffner revealed. “We’re actually talking to him about relocating off Chevy Court for the 2017 Fair and finding a home equally prominent for him.”

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