Living life and time at the Iowa State Fair

        I grew up attending the Tulsa State Fair.
      I always looked forward to the fair as a youngster because I got a free day out of school and a ticket to attend the fair. The Tulsa State Fair opens on the fourth Thursday following Labor Day and runs for 11 days.
     I usually went once with a friend or by myself and a second time with my family. We enjoyed touring the animal barns and I liked walking through the midway. The Tulsa fair features the IPE (International Petroleum Expo) Building on the fairgrounds. It is more than eight acres under one roof. During the fair, the building is filled with vendors, food and fair contests. You can spend an entire day in that building.
      I grew up about two miles from the fairgrounds and on any given fall evening, I could open my bedroom windows and hear the noise from the fair.
      I had never heard of a butter sculptor or the famous Butter Cow at the Iowa State Fair until I moved to this fine state and attended my first fair in 1998.
     And the campground is like a small city with transportation, a grocery store and electric and sewer hookups. I enjoy being in the campground where I get a chance to renew old friendships and make new ones.
      During my first year at the fair, I got on the wrong tram and ended up in the campground by mistake. I was trying to get to the parking lot and ended up getting more than I bargained for.
      I failed to have my hand stamped at the gate as I thought I was going to the parking lot. I almost had to buy a ticket to get back into the fair to get out of the fair. The ticket taker let me in after a little persuasion. 
      Once back on the fairgrounds, I ended up hitching a ride on a golf cart with two policeman after asking for directions. They were nice fellows, but the one cop must have been having life problems of some sort because he was talking about it as I hung on to the back of the golf cart for my dear life.
      It was quite an ordeal and made for a great newspaper column. It was also a precursor to being in the campground five years later in 2003 where I would met Debbie, who would be become my wife just more than a year later. It’s a match made in Heaven, via the Iowa State Fair Campground.
     My favorite things about the fair are people watching, visiting with total strangers, taking naps on fair benches, spending time in Pioneer Hall where I enter antiques each year, staying in the air conditioned buildings as much as possible and eating at Beattie’s, better known as the watermelon stand. They serve tasty tenderloin sandwiches as well as beef and ham sandwiches. They are a great family.
     There’s also a family-owned polish sausage stand behind the Varied Industries Building that makes the best polish sausage sandwiches. Toss in a glass of ice cold tea and all is good with the world. Last year, Debbie and I purchased large drink glasses for $10 each from Hardenbrook Concessions. They have two food stands on the fairgrounds. We get free refills of ice tea for the entire fair. A fun fair fact, Hardenbrook Concessions also sets up at the Tulsa State Fair.
     I enjoy eating at the Iowa Pork Producers tent and a trip to the Cattleman’s is a good choice. And I tried the pizza last year and plan to eat a slice or two again this year.
     Here are some things you may not know about the Iowa State Fair. The Pork Producers serve approximately 48,000 pork chops during the fair. I wonder how many pigs it takes to have that many pork chops?
     Also, more than 40,000 ribbons, rosettes and banners are awarded annually at the Iowa State Fair. I have a tough enough time sorting out the awards and honors at the Poweshiek County Fair. I can’t image sorting out that many awards and honors.
      The heaviest pigeon on record at the fair weighed in at two pounds, 7 ounces in 2014. The biggest Big Boar was 1,335 pounds in 2012. The World Super Bull chimed in at 3,404 pounds in 2009. The Giant Ram weighed in at 507.5 pounds in 2014. And the Largest Rabbit was 22 pounds, 5.5 Ounces in 2012.
      About 1,600 tons of animal bedding is hauled away each year from the state fair barns.
Approximately 500 exhibitors and concessions operate daily at the Iowa State Fair. This includes food (cotton candy to corndogs), merchandise (T-shirts to tools), craft and exhibit vendors (farm machinery to hot tubs).
      The first Hog Calling competition was held in 1926. Check out the Pioneer Hall for a long-list of competitions from cow chips to fiddling.
      And the toilet paper used each year at the fair stretches 1,818 miles. That is five trips from Des Moines to Chicago or one trip from Des Moines to Los Angeles.
       That’s a lot of miles and a lot of toilet paper!
    And lastly, here are the lyrics to the song, “Our State Fair,” from the Rodgers and Hammerstein music titled, “State Fair.”
       “Our State Fair is a great State Fair,
       Don’t miss it, don’t even be late.
       It’s dollars to doughnuts that our State Fair,
       Is the best State Fair in our state!”
      Life is about living and making memories with family and friends. If you have a little extra time, take a trip Des Moines and enjoy the Iowa State Fair, Aug. 11 – 21.
     Have a great week and always remember that “Good Things are Happening,” every day and always.