BY PENNY LEUTHARD, STAFF WRITER
The Wright Co. Fair, held in Howard Lake, is a week earlier than usual this year, starting next week on July 18 and going through the 22nd. With some new additions and the return of attendee favorites, including the lumberjack championships, it promises to be a fun-filled event for all ages.
“We’re still going to be running the same schedules and promotions,” said Troy Biese, fair board director. “However, due to scheduling conflicts Merriam’s Midway will be our carnival this year. They’ll be an excellent midway provider.”
A new show that promises to be fun is the Banana Derby, which features monkeys in jockey costumes riding dogs in a race to the finish line. Multiple shows are being offered daily.
On the west end of the fairgrounds there’s new entertainment being offered this year.
“We’ve got two great bands in one night with no cover charge,” said Biese. “Def Legend is a tribute band to Def Leppard, and Zed Leppelin is a tribute band to Led Zeppelin.”
Due to scheduling conflicts, a couple of events had to be moved around. The first three nights of the fair are the same as previous years, however, this year the truck and tractor pull has been moved to Sunday, while the demolition derby has been moved to Saturday.
“The classic car show will be going on all day Saturday,” said Biese. “And for the second year we’re hosting a motorcycle show, which is free to both spectators and participants. It’s on Sunday, and everyone is welcome.”
“There’s also many kids’ events,” He said. “Like pedal tractors, the kids coin scramble and derby car races, and for the second year in a row there are helicopter rides being offered.”
The day before the fair opens, July 17, general and 4-H entries need to be submitted, and area residents have been working hard to get their projects completed.
Northern Peak 4-H members, Macie and Eli Groth, are wrapping up their projects and preparing for the question and answer sessions that take place during judging. This is their second year in 4-H.
Macie Groth chose four categories to enter this year, water/wetlands, health, exploring animals and photography. For the first category, she’s demonstrating how much water by the gallon it takes to make a 6” pizza.
“We went on a field trip in school and viewed a presentation about how much water it takes to create food products,” she said. “I thought it was interesting and decided to create a project on it.”
She created a first aid kit for her health project and is talking about the irukandji jellyfish, which she read a book about, for her exploring animals entry.
Eli Groth chose crafts and food and nutrition for his 4-H projects. He made a stepping stone for his craft entry.
“I received a stepping stone kit as a gift and thought it would be a fun project,” he said.
He’s making homemade protein bars for his food and nutrition project, which he says are both healthy and nutritious. His sister found the recipe for them on the internet.
Kickin’ Clovers 4-H member Kallie Sylvester will be competing in the horse events once again, and Cloverbud Ethan Walker has been working with Zeus, a Miniature American Shepard, in order to participate in the dog show on July 29, which is being held after the fair ends. This is his second year in 4-H.
For complete information on everything happening at the Wright Co. Fair, visit wrightcountyfair.org.
