Seeing as how this is my last blog post, I have decided to end it in the same way that signals the end of every summer in Warren County; with the Warren County Fair.
Now I am not sure whether you have ever been to a county fair before but it’s quite the experience. The rich smells of deep fried oreos and the screams of people on rides that were hastily set up by carnies characterize the area where most teens hang out but I personally prefer touring the barns and viewing the creations such as art and flower arrangements made by the locals. Most of the time this “art” is a lighthearted competition that inspires the community to get creative and involved in the fair such as promoting participation in the potato decorating contest.
As stated earlier I also love to tour the barns and see all of the cows, pigs, sheep, etc that my friends in 4-H have been raising in the hopes of winning best in show. My family raises chickens but we have never entered them into the fair which is something that my brother deeply regrets.
Finally, fair week ends with fireworks and stock car football. Stock car football is a competition that is a mixture of demolition derby, the Super Bowl, and soccer. Every year 4-6 teams of drivers fix up junk cars(4 cars each) and paint them the team color in order to compete in the stock car Super Bowl. The goal is to push a 1 ton soccer ball across the end zone line without getting completely smashed by the other team in order to score a touchdown. It is set up in a bracket style and the winner is largely determined by which cars remain in the end. I understand that in theory this sounds stupid and pointless, which it is, but it is also a ton of fun for everyone of all ages and a great end to the week!
The fair provides opportunities for people of all ages and backgrounds to compete with friends and family in silly competitions and to showcase their talents. This is by far the best week of summer for most people in Warren County and serves as one last gigantic summer party before school begins again.
Nice post- I always love hearing about Warren County’s quirks and interesting traditions! I have been to a few small fairs with rides and a lot of deep fried food, but I certainly have never seen a potato decorating contest or stock car football. I can’t say that I have ever been to a demolition derby, or that the idea sounds like something I’d be interested in, but it sounds like everyone has a lot of fun watching stock car football! And it sounds like the whole fair is a big event that brings the community together, which seems to be a common theme throughout your blog posts. This sounds like so much fun!