FARMINGTON – Although the Farmington Fair ran well all week, attendance overall was down “by quite a lot,” a fair official reported on Saturday.
The 176th annual fair ends tonight with the popular demolition derby held at 7 p.m. in front of the grand stand at the race track.
Attendance was lower than in past years on opening day, Sunday, Sept. 18 and on Monday, Sept. 19, “by quite a lot and we haven’t been able make that up,” during the remainder of the week, said Neal Yeaton, Franklin County Agricultural Society’s secretary.
Rain on Sunday morning may have kept attendees away on the first day, he said. The weather was unseasonably warm through the week with highs reaching 80 degrees on some of the days.
The Drag Your Neighbor event moved to Wednesday night from Monday because track conditions were too wet after the rain, proved very successful with lots of spectators.
“That went over really well,” Yeaton said. It was the third year the drag races have been held with fair officials possibly moving it permanently to Wednesday nights because of the great midweek turn out.
This year’s displays at the Exhibition Hall were the rave by those attending, as was the the cattle area maintenance.
“People seemed pleased with what we had to offer,” Yeaton said. “We had a very good week.”
Among the blue ribbons at the Farmington Fair for excellence in growing fruits and vegetables was the display from the students’ garden at Cape Cod Hill School in New Sharon. The “Save Our Seeds” garden, under the direction of Crystal Oliver, a Mt. Blue RSD employee and Janet Plouffe, a retired art teacher and master gardener, won a first place ribbon for its display of vegetables in the school category.
Vegetables harvested through the fall at the school will continue to feed the school’s students and staff at lunch. Dave Fuller of the University of Maine Extension Service, will be on hand next month at the school to help plant garlic, as part of the ongoing garden effort, said Lisa Panori, school secretary.
By midday on the final day Saturday, Yeaton reported there was a steady stream of fairgoers coming through the gates.
“The sun’s out,” he said and the cooler temperatures “make for better fair weather,” he added.
money is tight
The fair is not as good as it was 20 years ago. Fewer events, less emphasis on agriculture and animals, some groups dying off (New Sharon Methodist Church for one was a stalwart for years) and maybe a time for new leadership. Some other fairs are growing. I used to drive 2 hours to get there but went last year and was disappointed plus the seniors used to get in free on Wednesday now you wack them $2.00. Some of those folks are already struggling. It’s been going downhill for years.
there was no reason to go to the fair on many days no entertainment at night and the same old schedule as many years past . they need to try some new ideas or try to get some bigger names .
One reason for decreased attendance could be due to concerns regarding the safety of carnival rides.
The fair is nothing more than the same old thing. If they really are concerned about attendance they need to bring in more entertainment. Sunday might be a good night for a battle of the bands just as soon as the horse races end that day and start the races earlier that day so you have some extra time for the bands to play. Maybe a regular concert can be scheduled as the last act that night. If a podunk 3 or 4 day fair can bring in a “B” list music star the farmington fair can easily!!! Maybe its time to part ways with Smokey’s greater shows if they are not willing to provide a better variety of games and rides plus bring in food vendors that are cheaper. There is no reason for some of the food to cost so much. I’m sure Fiesta shows would love to take the farmington fair over!
Maybe more live music in the evenings. I thought everything seemed smaller this year, but I’m getting older too.
It must be hard for parents to take their kids to the fair because September is the same month school clothes and supplies are needed. Also, people are expecting the oil bills and house taxes. Maybe August would be a better month?
The Farmington Fair isn’t what it used to be at all. It is time for a change if you want to increase attendance. The exhibits are mediocre, the fair food is good but expensive, the rides are ridiculously expensive and families just can’t afford to attend any longer. Even on ride bracelet days, the lines are so long you barely get the worth of the bracelet. Let’s go back to a reasonably priced bracelet every day for rides and more evening entertainment. It needs to change or it will fade out and be gone forever.
Perhaps you folks could brainstorm together with a Fair associate to see what you can come up with? I would like to see the games etc. be less expensive too, and the food prices are out of sight. It appears that some of the food vendors don’t care what the product looks like or taste like, and of course the fried hot dogs and sausages, the smell gets to you every year, and of course you just have to get one! It is a struggle to make the public happy. Oh, and they need to get George Barker back in there! Nuf said.
Smoking in designated areas only… fair association…it’s about time…
I used to really love this fair. However, the lack of rides for adults is disappointing.
There are less rides every year when there’s so much space! As well as the fact that bracelets are ONLY available two days out of the week, guaranteeing a waste of time. You can either spend $100 on tickets and ride maybe 10 times, or pay $20 for a bracelet, which gets you unlimited rides, BUT, you have to wait in line for over an hour per ride. Since the bracelets only run for about 5 hours, you get about 5 rides. I think there should be an entry fee of the $6, AND a $20 option (or whatevwr amount is reasonable) every day, which includes a bracelet, just like all of the other fairs.
I think there are a few reasons attendance is down. Prices are going up, but money is getting tight. The recent poor reputation of the company running the rides is probably a deterrent, and almost nothing changes… It’s the same rides, the same games, the same vendors, and food booths that have been there since before a lot of us can even remember. It’s really sad, the Fair could really be something great, if it changed a few things. The organizers and volunteers put so much good work in, I wish the rest of the Fair would match up to that.
Maybe we need some sort of public meeting with fair officials to see what changes can be made. I know those running our fair work very hard every year getting things ready. I, personally, would like to thank them for all they do on a volunteer basis. We could probably make some changes, but we need to know what the fair can afford to do, cost wise, as far as entertainment, rides, and food prices. I am sure they would love more volunteers each year to help make all the changes possible.
Thank you, fair organizers and volunteers for all you do. It is not an easy task, and keeping if fresh is always
a struggle. I agree that perhaps a concert like they do over in Skowhegan would be a fun event, and perhaps
one evening, the bingo tent could be used for a barn dance and maybe a local talent contest/show would be
a fun thing. always a struggle keeping costs down. researching some new vendors for food and games may
be in order. most of it is very good, but some need to improve or change. The current events, tractor pull, truck
pulls, demolition derby are always lots of fun as well as the agriculture events. horse racing too!
just a few thoughts,
Carol
We stopped going to the fair years ago because of cost and safety concerns with the rides and it’s operators. Everyone local was always great, the AG aspect and events were fun but everything else got out of hand price wise and for those of us with large families even gate admission was getting to be too much for us.
I have noticed the improvement in the staff running the rides. I witnessed a woman giving the merry go round guy a bunch of crap because he “noticed” that she left a tiny tot unattended on top of one of those horses.. He politely informed her she needed to be with the toddler before he could start the ride moving.. She acted like an “AXX”. Good for him,,he was doing his job safely.
Some of you have mentioned the “locals” that used to run the rides. Honestly what I remember about them is that they seemed whacked out of it and reckless.
Seems much safer now.
Now,,,we paid to see the Demo derby Sat night. Paid full price at 6PM just to see the Derby.
.. WOW what a crowd. We could not find ANY WAY to actually see what was going on. So we left.
They should have let people know “AT THE GATE” the Derby was “SOLD OUT”…because it was.
Love the Horse and Oxen Pulls !!!
And all the weird looking birds in the barn..
See ya next year.
I haven’t been to Farmington fair in I can’t remember how long. Too much of a carnival for kids than a fair. A focus on more AG would be good. And as @confused suggested, a battle of the bands would be nice. If there were more focus on AG and a battle of the bands, I’d make the 20 minute drive to go
With major business closed/closing (and or relocating out of State) jobs with decent wages and benefits are rare so the attendance level is bound to continue on a decline if more cost effective ideas can’t be found and implemented.
The good news is that the agricultural side of the fair should be on the rise as farming is becoming more popular (back to the beginning of the reason for the fairs). Perhaps interactive activities for school groups; “Alpaca – from birth to sweater” could be added to weekdays, and students rewarded for attending with a fair related item to prompt them to return for the rest of the fair offerings.
The carney games/rides are old, expensive and most games fixed to keep winners to a minimum and income to a maximum – they can no longer fool everyone! The grounds are filthy, it appears no one cleans up until the fair is over and a week of trash build up is unsightly and unsanitary.
These thoughts may be at least a starting point in discussing how to improve and grow this very special tradition.
A huge shout out to everyone who volunteers to make the annual Farmington Fair happen. It takes a lot of time, energy, and dedication to implement such a large event. I agree with some of the others, that bringing more attractive events to the fair is a great idea! As the article states, the Drag Your Neighbor event has took off in just the three years that its been going on – other events might too! The mud racing trucks made a brief appearance at Drag Your Neighbor but also put on a fabulous show earlier this year at Skowhegan Fair and in Bangor – since they are locals, lets give them the chance to give us a show here! They have a lot of cool tricks up their sleeve and might be a great show option on a kids bracelet night because they are nearly monster trucks – what kid doesn’t love monster trucks? I love the idea of a concert or battle of the bands. Windsor Fair seems to have the concert thing down pretty well. It was great hearing the distances traveled by some competing in the events – I heard someone from New Brunswick in the truck pulls and someone from Vermont in the derby. I also thought the Smokey’s staff was better than they have been in the past. As far as the prices, I don’t think people understand how much costs are associated with putting on such an event but also believe that there are other ways to go about charging. Since there is already heavy staffing at the gates, would it be too much to do some sort of stamp or punch card and every day that someone comes, their admission fee is less? This way the fair association is still getting something but people are also getting a discount for being a more frequent visitor. Also, I don’t know that I agree with charging admission to your pullers, derby drivers, etc., because they are the ones putting on the show for the crowd that evening. Just a few thoughts.. Again, thank you to everyone who pulls together to make this happen!
I agree with having bracelet night every night or more than just Monday and Wednesday. We would’ve bought at least two more bracelets for each kid but wasn’t about to pay 5 dollars a ride for two kids after already spending 15 to get in and more on food and games. It did seem like they had a better setup this year with the rides. It also appeared to have a good selection of “big kid” rides.
Thank you everyone who put time and effort into the fair. I would love to see Drag your neighbor stay on Wednesdays as it gives adults something to do during bracelet night. I noticed less animals in the barns this year which was a big disappointment. There seemed to be less rides, games & vendors this year and I am not sure the reason for that. I can say the grandstand were more than half full for the 7pm derby by 5:30pm. Friday night there was a varsity home football game which may have affected the numbers that night and of course Saturday there was the annual Apple-Pumpkin Festival happening in the next towns over. I am curious about why we have the bumper cars as they had 5 cars running and 7 out of commission. Saturday the derby was over before 10pm and when we started walking around rides were being packed, food vendors picking up and even a big rig for King & Queen on the midway while many fair goers were walking around seeing what was open. When we asked why people were packing up early several said they had to get to the Cumberland Fair to set up. Very disappointing as many like to go on rides one last time, but hot food and shop after the derby. Don’t get me wrong, I am thankful we have the fair as I myself love the animals, the derby and now drag your neighbor event.
I for one did not attend the fair this year. But loved reading all of the comments on ways to improve. I for one would love to know how to get onto the Farmington Fair Committee, it would be great to see some of our younger generation of Franklin county getting involved in these sorts of things, if we want to see change and improvement , then why not get involved. If someone knows who to contact or how to join the committee, please let me know.
Thanks :-)
Maybe a “for adults only” could be a Chip & Dale show. (The ladies might like it) And for the men, there used to be what they called a “hootchie coochie” show (women wearing hardly nothing. This hootchie coochie show used to happen about 40 or 50 years ago (might have been at a different fair.) I was only a little kid back then but I remember a big old tent where we kids weren’t allowed to enter.
I love the derby, truck/tractor pulls and animals, but I agree that, in general, the fair is WAY too expensive!
$12 for a couple to get in is $24 for only going twice. That’s without food, rides or hitting the vendor tents. We didn’t even go on any rides or buy anything from vendors (other than food) because it was just too pricey.
Every week night should be $2 entry.
There should be bracelets every day…the wait won’t be as long if bracelet day isn’t confined to one day only.
People can’t spend money at the fair if they’re being asked to pay $6 per person. And if they can’t DO ANYTHING while they’re there, they won’t keep coming back…plain and simple.