[Update Sept. 16] – In the wake of Monday’s explosion at the intersection of Farmington Falls Road and High Street, several changes have been made to the schedule listed below.
- Drag Your Neighbor will now take place Tuesday evening at 6:30 p.m.
- The Firemen’s Muster has been cancelled.
- A ride special will be held on Thursday, Sept. 19: from 5 to 10 p.m., all rides will be $15.
FARMINGTON – The 179th annual Farmington Fair arrives this Sunday, bringing a week of agricultural and historic-minded events, as well as rides, games and food to the fairgrounds from Sept. 15 through Sept. 21.
This year’s fair will bring in a new company to provide the fair’s rides and other midway attractions, as Cushing Amusements of Wilmington, Mass. has been contracted for the first time. Other children-focused events include the return of last year’s nightly bike raffles at the gazebo at 5 p.m. during weekend evenings and 6 p.m. during the weekdays; a country-themed costume contest on Sunday at 2:30 p.m. for ages 3 and 4; Sunday’s pie-eating contest for ages 5 through 8 at 4 p.m.; and the popular Mutton Bustin’ sheep-riding event for ages 7 and 8 at noon on Saturday in the Pulling Ring.
It is the 20th anniversary for the Miss Farmington Fair pageant, which was started by Lisa Bird back in 1999. The pageant is geared toward the talents of the contestants, with attendees enjoying singing, dancing, Karate demonstrations, stand-up comedy and poetry readings over the years. The pageant will be held Sunday, Sept. 15 at 6:30 p.m.
Monday is Agriculture Education Day, where nearly 700 local-area school students, plus another 200 teachers and volunteer chaperones, are expected to spend the morning learning about everything from beekeeping to apple cider, as well as touring the animal barns and viewing demonstrations from a number of local agencies. Later that day, Drag Your Neighbor will be held at 6:30 p.m., offering a chance for participants to show off their drag racing skills.
Tuesday brings a $4 admission special, plus a $2 ride special, as well as a host of steer and ox pulls. 4-H will be putting on a nuder of shows all afternoon, including the Swine, Baby Beef, Heifer and Sheep shows. The annual Firemen’s Muster will be held that night at 6:30 p.m., followed by two hours of wrestling by the North Atlantic Wrestling Association.
Wednesday offers more specials on rides, plus horse pulls and the Youth Market Lamb, Steer, Hog & Poultry Shows and Sales. Thursday has the Sheep Show, beef and dairy demonstrations, as well as the truck and tractor pulls. Also new this year is the ugly produce contest, with misshaped, imperfect and downright ugly produce accepted starting at 10:30 a.m. at the Worthley Show Arena until noon, with judging at 1 p.m. The 4-H Dairy Goat Show and more truck pulls are Friday, while Saturday brings the Heart of Maine Dairy Goat Show and the Demolition Derby at 7 p.m., which is always a crowd favorite.
A complete schedule can be seen here:
Amazing to see what greed will do. Senior Citizen special days admission to the grounds used to be free!!
Bud,
I missed it – what is the admission price for seniors?
Thanks
I don’t believe it’s greed bud.,it’s because cost of minimum wage keeps going up as well as insurances etc.
If labor was still at 4 an hour then I’m sure seniors would be free.
For my family of 5 to enter the fair it is $40 plus parking. Then you pay for rides, drinks, food…..Have to wonder if it is even worth it anymore!! Too bad. I used to look forward to it :(
If labor was still $4 an hour there’d be more homeless people than people in homes.
One way to look at it is, the people who work their animals all year and people who grow their crops all summer to show them at the fair , is a great reason for the rates. This is not a free world anymore and everyone should enjoy the fair because as .people grow older ,and the younger generation don’t step up and keep it going there may not be a fair. Also you need to realize all the work that is done before hand. I pitched too about the price before, but if I don’t want to pay it I can stay away. That’s my opinion.
Farmington has free parking and still one of the cheapest in the state for
Admission. Kudos to all of the fair directors for all of their dedication to keep the fair going .
Apparently those who are complaining about the prices, haven’t been to any of the fairs in a long time! Fryberg is my favorite, and it cost a fortune to go there. BUT, the way I see it, it’s only once a year, I enjoy it a lot when I go, and when I do go, it’s cause I have saved up to go. So, if Farmington Fair is the only one you want to go to, save a little money up, ( you know it is in Sept. every year!) and just GO! Parking is free on the street, pay the admission fee, stroll around the grounds, check out all the barns, watch some pulls, have some treat to eat..and just enjoy it! It’s only once a year!
Live Harness racing at 2pm everyday.
Is there still family passes?