After being rained out three out of four nights last year, Daviess County Lion’s Club Fair organizers are really hoping for a strong turnout this year. Owensboro Parent is doing our best to get the word out and encourage families to enjoy our county fair.
Here are eight great reasons to spend an evening (or several) at the county fair this year July 19-22, 2017.
It’s easy to find
The Daviess County Fairgrounds are conveniently located at 6191 Highway 54 in Philpot, approximately six miles outside Owensboro city limits. If you are driving from Owensboro it will be on your left.
Carnival rides included with admission
Rather than having to buy additional tickets or armbands for carnival rides, the $10 admission includes all events and carnival rides for children. Once your child’s hand is stamped, they can ride as many rides as they want. The fair board decided seve
ral years ago to structure the pricing that way to make the fair more affordable for parents. Debra Green, owner of Casey’s Rides, says “It’s a great deal. I think that was a good decision and people seem to like it. We love to play the county fair because it’s a local event for us and we like to do things like this in our own community.” Green says we can expect plenty of their most popular thrill rides such as the Ferris Wheel, Tilt-a-Whirl, Space Sled, and many more.
Casey’s also provides Midway games and concessions, which are not included with the hand stamp.
In addition to carnival rides, Casey’s Rides is also providing midway games like balloon darts, cork gun shooters, and water gun race cars this year at the Daviess County Fair. All games are cash only but there is a winner every time.
Other fun activities at the fair i
nclude laser tag, petting zoo, and pony rides, which are also included with fair admission.
Accessibility
Thanks to a grant from the Kentucky Department of Agriculture Show and Fair Promotion, the fairgrounds were paved with blacktop surfacing around both arenas, which makes the Daviess County Lion’s Club Fair much more accessible for wheelchairs and strollers. For those who need assistance, the fair board provides golf carts to help shuttle people from the parking area to the arenas.
Exhibits
If your kids love farm animals, the Tom Curtsinger Ag Building is where the livestock will be on display, giving little ones an up-close view of chickens, ducks, rabbits, goats, sheep, pigs, cows, and more.
If you’d like to see the livestock judging, the cattle show is Wednesday night, the hog show is Thursday night, and the rabbit, poultry, lamb and goat show is Friday night.
To spark some more curiosity, 4H and FFA projects and exhibits will be in the East Exhibit Building
The Firefighters Challenge
Another event kids may find interesting is the Firefighters Challenge on Wednesday night, where local firemen compete in obstacle courses and timed events like carrying a fire hose and climbing a ladder. “It’s just a friendly competition for bragging rights,” explains fair organizer Joan Hayden. “They have fun with it. Family and friends from each of the community fire stations come to cheer on their firefighters, so it’s also a lot of fun to watch.”
Food
After you’ve worked up an appetite having fun and walking through exhibits, head on over to the food court where vendors serve everything from fair favorites like fried Oreos, slushies, and corn on the cob to burgers and drinks. Some of the more popular booths include the Daviess County Cattlemen booth, which serves ribeye steak sandwiches; the fair board booth, which serves lemon shake-ups; the Lion’s Club booth, which serves porkburgers and hamburgers; and of course Casey’s Rides will have their midway food booths, which serve classics like cotton candy, corn dogs, and funnel cakes. As a side note, Casey’s food stands now accept cash and debit cards.
Mud Events & Tractor Pulls
How could these events not be fun for the whole family? The ATV Mud Bogg (just for all-terrain vehicles) and the 4 Wheel Drive Truck Mud (just for trucks) is a community event. Anyone with an ATV or 4WD truck can register the night of the event for the time and distance competition – how fast can the vehicle get through the mud before it gets bogged down! The tractor pull will feature both professional pullers and a community open event, where a large weight is pulled behind the tractor, a competition measured in both the fastest time and furthest distance.
Admission
July 19/20
Ages 2+ = $10
(2 and under FREE)
July 21/22
Ages 6+ = $14
Ages 2-5 = $10
(2 and under FREE)