This is the weekend when everything is Fair
Wendy Alexander/The Madera Tribune
Madison Tatro of Dixieland 4-H shows her hog Dotty at the Madera District Fair this week.
The weather has cooled just in time for the Madera District Fair. Opening ceremonies were on Thursday, and the fair will run through Sunday. Go see the exhibits created by our friends and neighbors. Painting, photography, baking, canning and the salsa-making contest win cash prizes, not to mention those ever-important bragging rights.
And where else can a family get those adorable — if slightly cheesy — photos dressed as cowboys or gangsters from a bygone era?
The carnival, run by the Midway of Fun, operates rides for the big kids and ones for the little ones too.
Unlimited-ride wristbands are available with a two-for-the-price-of-one deal on Sunday. Visit the fair office just inside the main gate for details.
You’ll also enjoy the skills of professional entertainers performing on the midway.
Promise yourself you will go back to eating healthily next week as you enjoy the corn dogs, cotton candy cinnamon rolls, kettle corn, giant pretzels, funnel cakes, ice cream and roasted corn on the cob at the Fair.
The 20-30 Club is back this year with its tri-tip, beer and wine, and the Pan American Club with its authentic Mexican cuisine.
Make sure and drop by The Madera Tribune booth in Hatfield Hall. Sign up for a free, four-week subscription, courtesy of Tribbie the News Hound, who believes you’re not a Maderan unless you regularly read the Trib.
Celebrating its 80th anniversary, the Madera Fair has put together a historical display telling its story from 1937 to today.
The junior livestock sale on Saturday will offer the 4-H Clubs and FFA students an opportunity to sell the project animals they raise from birth to ready-for-market. Support the next generation of ranchers at the auction.
While not the biggest fair in the area, the Madera District Fair offers plenty of attractions to satisfy your fun quotient. The true fun of the Madera Fair is always the opportunity to see our friends whose paths we rarely cross.
The Madera Fair’s Table Mountain Concert Series, presented by Tecate Light beer, stages two free concerts a night.
On Friday, see Kool and the Gang, who’ve performed continuously for the past 43 years. After the show, over on the 20-30 Stage, the tribute band Foreigner Unauthorized will perform.
At 8 p.m. on Saturday the incomparable Eddie Money will entertain with his usual flair. The late concert on the 20-30 Stage features country performer Jackson Michelson and starts at 9 p.m.
Sunday closes out the headliner concert series with two bands. Hear the Latino sounds of Banda Carnaval with the rhythm of its Sinaloense music followed by Conjunto Primavera with pop ballads in the cumbia norte style. The final show at the Madera Fair in the after-the-show concert series features the sounds of Fresh.
Festival seating, bleachers and standing room ring-side is on a first-come-first-served basis. All concerts are free with paid Fair admission. If you want to sit, however, camp chairs are available for rent at $5 per night.
Support Madera, go to the Fair.