What's Happening at the Fair - June 9, 2011

Rainy weather and grass growing what seemed like inches each day was the challenge put before the fairgrounds volunteers last week. We had spent many weeks painting and cleaning inside the buildings, creating new flower beds and cutting up cords of fire wood in the rain. There were acres of grass to mow one more time before the Dollars for Scholars event. We needed the ground to dry so we could finish this task and turn the fairgrounds into a beautiful place for the event. Finally the sun was back in our skies and it was very hot on Friday. We fired up our lawn mower, borrowed lawn sweeper, pressure washer, high pressure power air blower and weed-eaters. We worked daylight until dark grooming the areas where the fancy cars and trucks were going to park. It was done, we were tired, but we had finally completed this big task. Special thanks to Nick King for weed eating the areas that were too rough to drive our lawn mower into and the many fence lines he has cleared over the last few weeks.

If you attended the Dollars for Scholars event you may have noticed the many hanging baskets along the cow barn and fair office porch. My friends wanted to add more color and beauty to the fairgrounds. They surprised me with these hanging baskets full of bright flowers they had planted and donated to the fair. Thank you Ed Stevens, Georgie Billings and Barbara Czarnecki!

The Derby Dollars for Scholars and Rods & Reels Rod Run event was a huge success! The sun was shining, the fairgrounds were filled with hundreds of people looking at flashy cars, enjoying a great meal and deciding which raffle prizes they would like to win. Lots of splashing, laughter and smiles surrounded the portable trout fishing pond for kids 12 and under, the fish were hungry and full of fight! Huge sturgeon were caught in the Columbia River, brought to the Derby and measured. Winning fishermen received fishing poles, other fishermen received a choice of multiple prizes for their efforts. These two events provide many scholarships to our local graduating seniors. It was a fun day for a good cause!

When you have a lot of benches to paint, it’s time to look for local people who like to volunteer as a group. I asked Jerry Ledtke if some of the Wahkiakum Acoustic Guitar Society (WAGS) members could possibly meet at the fairgrounds and paint 18 benches. He replied, “When?” I replied, “Now.”

At 1 p.m. Joyce Orr, Sarah Costa, Evan Dvorsak, Jerry Ledtke, Jim Roberts and his grandson James Roberts Jr. arrived at the fairgrounds and the volunteers started painting. Some hours later the benches were covered with a new coat of green paint and the painters/guitar pickers were headed back home. Thank you, WAGS, for your quick response, the benches look great!

Want to be a vendor at the Wahkiakum County Fair? It’s time to give me a call and secure your space! Please leave your name, phone number and best time to call you back on the recorder.

The Silver Buckle Open Game Show is planned for August 20 during the Wahkiakum County Fair. Registration on the day of the event is from 8:30 to 9:15 a.m. Warm-up in the arena is from 8:30 to 9:45 a.m. The game show starts at 10 a.m. There are three age groups: Junior 12 years & under, Intermediate 13 to 18 years, and Senior 19 & above. Awarded to the High Point competitors in each age group: 1st ribbon & Silver Buckle, 2nd ribbon & prize, 3rd ribbon & prize. A tie breaker event will be set up if there is a tie for the high point silver buckle. Events: Poles, Figure 8, Key Poles, Speed Barrels, International Flags and Texas Barrels. The $25 entry fee includes all events. To pre-register call the fair office at 360-795-3480, leave your name, phone number, a message and the best time to call you back or send an email to wahkiakumfair@centurytel.net to request a pre-registration form.

If you need to gain access to the fairgrounds contact fair manager Becky Ledtke at 360-560-0371 or you can call the fairgrounds office at 1-360-795-3480 and leave a message.

The next Wahkiakum County Fair Board meeting will start at 7 p.m. on June 8, in the T-building at the fairgrounds in Skamokawa. The public is always welcome to attend.