“Sesquicentennial celebration of the Utah State Fair”

From flora and farming to clowns and concerts, the 150 Utah State Fair offers the widest variety of entertainment in the state between Sept. 9 and Sept. 18.

The fair, located at the Utah State Fairpark, is filled with many events typical to fairs past including food, amusement park rides, vendors selling diverse and sundry goods and exhibitions of entries from around the state.

The competitions this year come from three categories: Living Arts, Livestock, and Horse. The livestock and horse competitions include contests for the best looking animals in the state, while the living arts category includes everything from fresh-grown garden vegetables to handcrafted works of art.

“Seeing the satisfaction of the people who bring their entries is one of my favorite things about the State Fair.” fairpark assistant general manager Judy Duncombe said.

Beyond the entries, the grandstand entertainment schedule is one of the largest attractions at the fair this year. The schedule includes concerts by everyone from Don Mclean (Sept. 9) and STYX (Sept. 15) to Hoobastank (Sept. 14) and Dierks Bentley (Sept. 16). Fairpark general manager Rick Frenette said he hopes people will enjoy a day at the fair and finish it off with one of the great performances, many of which are free with the price of admission.

“We made a commitment last year to provide quality, diverse, and affordable entertainment at the State Fair. We continue that commitment with seven nights of grandstand entertainment included with gate admission this year,” Frenette said.

Beyond concerts, the entertainment schedule includes the comic styling of Carrot Top (Sept. 13) and the adrenaline pumping action of the Ultimate Combat Experience (Sept. 18) as well as a local talent search (Sept. 17) and the Miss Utah State Fair Scholarship Program (Sept. 8).

Though gate admission prices are $7 for adults and $6 for youth 6-16 and seniors (children under 5 are free), fairgoers can save up to $2 off gate admission prices with $5 tickets available through September 18 at any Smiths Food and Drug Store Checkout stand or Smith’s Tix outlets.

The fair opens at 10 a.m. every day and closes at 10 p.m. Sunday-Thursday and 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. Parking costs $5 per vehicle.

For more information visit www.utah-state-fair.com or call (801)538-8400.

-mattgo@cc.usu.edu