Juggler extraordinaire Hilby will be a featured performer at this weekend’s Winter Fair at the New York State Fairgrounds.
This will be the first such event, made possible by last year’s opening of the massive Exposition Center.
Check the Fair’s website for details and tickets to enjoy rides, music, exhibits and fabulous Fair food starting Friday.
Category: New favorites (Page 2 of 4)
Did you see the drone light show over the New York Experience area at the New York State Fair? It was a little like star-gazing.
For the first time at the New York State Fair, patrons enjoyed ice skating this year. In an interview on Channel 9, Director (take that, Cuomo) Troy Waffner clarified that the rink in the new Exposition Center is temporary and the Fair braintrust is hard at work coming up with ideas for a different use of the massive building next year. In the meantime, the center will host large events during the off-season.
Major changes continue at the western end of the New York State Fairgrounds, at the far end from the main gate. This year, visitors are getting their first looks at the Exposition Center, a state-of-the-art venue for indoor shows, conventions and performances. 
Just outside its doors, the New York Experience area takes a step toward prominence with national acts on the outdoor stage, festivals on the grassy grounds, lighted drone performances and exhibitions on the pond.
The balance of entertainment presented in that area strengthens the character of a Fair that truly has something for everyone, especially when you consider that just a short walk from these two new features, traditional favorites in the form of livestock barns and midway rides attract large crowds as they always have.
While Chevrolet Court hogs most of the attention as a concert venue, the second year of music on the Experience Stage is catching fire. 
The stage has moved slightly from last year, but it remains a focus of western attention, standing prominently on the grassy ground between the midway, the RV park and the racing stables. It’s location near the New York Experience pond gives it a beachfront feel.
The Experience Stage will be front and center for the Latino Festival and the Pride Day festivities and will host four national acts. It’s a big year there for classic rock with shows by Steppenwolf, Foghat and Eddie Money.Each evening show will close with the new drone light show taking flight over the area.
The new development spreads out the crowds and creates better traffic and increased opportunity for vendors far from Chevy Court, contributing to the New York Experience/Expo Center area taking a giant step forward. It still faces an issue that doomed programming in the old infield area, back before the 2016 makeover. It was hard to get people there because it was seen as too remote and difficult to access.
But the current western end has more appeal, new and different features and–this is big–it isn’t separated from the midway by fencing as the infield was. The trams stop there or you could glide in on the Broadway Skyliner, but more dependable and easier transportation would close the deal.
The 2018 New York State Fair opened under overcast skies Wednesday with unusually high expectations. As always, the well-prepared operation got an excitement boost as the first patrons surged through the gates and onto the vast landscape packed with perennial favorites and first-time surprises.
The sparkling new $62 million Exposition Center was the marquee attraction as the hulking exhibit hall changed the skyline, welcoming its first visitors. For year one, the Expo Center is dominated by an ice rink that is being used for various sports and the Fair’s first-ever wedding on ice.
The non-frozen areas of the massive EC feature two exhibits relocated from the Center of Progress Building, 
the sand sculpture, a longstanding perennial favorite, and the I Love New York tourism area which debuted in 2017 with photo backdrops of popular vacation spots around the state.
Just outside the Expo Center, the New York Experience grounds is ready for its breakout year with the picturesque pond surrounded by landscaping. The enlarged stage will host several national acts and the observation tower ride will give fair riders a birds-eye view of the whole area. Watch State Fair Hound over the new few days for more on what’s new this year and everything that’s happening at the Fair.
OK, critics of the New York State Fair, you asked for it. If there’s anyone left complaining that it’s always the same old thing, the addition of a full-sized ice rink in the new Exposition Center should put that criticism to rest.
You would be hard-pressed to find someone who asked for an ice rink during the end-of-summer extravaganza, but the one guy who did want it often gets his way. 
“The Governor wanted something new and different and we’ve never ice skated at the Fair,” explained Acting Director Troy Waffner in a recent chat with State Fair Hound. “So we’re putting in an NHL-sized rink just for the 13 days of the Fair. We’re going to have a hockey tournament, figure skating, curling, a broomball tournament, speed skating, sled hockey, a silent disco and and a wedding on ice. We’re also going to have open skating. We have 600 pairs of skates for people to use.”
A rink in the Coliseum provided a winter home for many a youth and recreational hockey game in years past, but a Fair-time ice surface will make frigid history. It may be an off-the-wall idea, but it sure ain’t the “same old Fair.”
Workers have made substantial progress toward completion of the new Exposition Center on the New York State Fairgrounds. This view of the new structure on July 14 seems to indicate that an all-out push to opening day is on. When Fair patrons get their first look, they may be surprised at the size of the sprawling new center.
The new stage in the New York Experience area didn’t generally attract big crowds in its first year, but look for a better flow to the western end of the grounds in 2018 as the new events center building and such established favorites as the Cow Birthing Center and the Talent Showcase draw fans. Readily accessible transportation along Broadway could give it a major boost, so State Fair Hound hopes to see that as well.
The expanded and relocated State Police exhibit area at the 2017 New York State Fair attraction featured appearances by mounted troopers. 
The horses were an exciting addition to an already popular exhibition. When dismounted, officers chatted with visitors and allowed petting of their steeds. The horses took their place alongside police dogs in promoting good community relations for troopers at the Fair. Look forward to a return engagement next year.
A graffiti artist seems like an odd attraction for the New York State Fair, but the elongated canvas splashed by Arcy during the baker’s dozen of Fair days was more than a colorful wall. 
His New York-themed panorama was a collage of people and places, bisecting Times Square and dressing up the entertainment lawn.