July 30, 2014 at 4:28 p.m.
2014 Oneida County Fair opens today
2014 Oneida County Fair opens today
By Kayla Thomason-
The 2014 event will kick off at 5 p.m Thursday with an opening ceremony at Pioneer Park and the fun won't end until 6 p.m. Sunday.
Fair hours are 5 to 11 p.m. Thursday, 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. Admission is free.
People often attend county fairs for the classic attractions like carnival rides, games and food (funnel cakes, anyone?) but the fair is an educational event as well.
On Sunday the Oneida County 4-H Club will celebrates 100 years of organized 4-H in Wisconsin.
Club members will hand out 100th anniversary buttons and the public will be invited to enjoy a piece of anniversary cake. The cake, a replica of the organization's float in the Rhinelander Fourth of July parade, will be served at 10 a.m.
The members of the 4-H club have been working hard on their projects and are excited to display them for everyone, according to 4-H Youth Development Agent Lynn Feldman.
"[The fair is] a real highlight for [the 4-H children] because they've done all this work during the year and now they get a chance to show it off and the fair becomes their home for those few days," Feldman said.
Approximately 400 entries have been submitted in such categories as photography, cultural art and mechanical sciences.
The club is also planning dog agility demonstrations at Animal Alley. The children will show off the skills of their four-legged friends.
The Cloverbud judging - for kids in kindergarten through second grade - will be held at 12:30 p.m. Friday. Youth will be presented with participation awards and receive feedback on their projects.
"People are just welcome to come out and take a look at what youth have created throughout the year," Feldman said.
In addition to 4-H and other student projects, the fair is a showcase for projects completed by adults. Many of the projects focus on some aspect of Northwoods living.
"Anyone in the community could put in a project, anything they'd like to show," said fair coordinator Nancy Gehrig.
The projects are judged and winners will receive ribbons.
No trip to the fair is complete without a visit to the amusement park. Fair rides will be provided by K & M Amusement.
Dave Sixel's Mixed Martial Arts will also offer sumo wrestling and demonstrations.
Families can wander over to the Family Land Area, where kids can get up on stage, play instruments and sing with U-B the Band.
Kids can also make their own natural version of Mr. Potato Head.
"There's vegetables and all different plastic items that they can decorate with," Gehrig said. "It's almost like a Mr. Potato Head type thing they can do, they decorate it like that."
Children can also grab rubber ducks out of the duck pond. Each duck has a letter on the bottom and children have to try to spell the word "fair."
There will also be face painting, a clown that makes animal balloons and a ring toss.
At Animal Alley people can pet Casady's Critters' adorable goats, velvet soft rabbits and many other animals. Capuchin and squirrel monkeys will be available for photo opportunities and children can take a ride on a pony or a camel.
The Pat Dineen Memorial Doxie Dash is set for 11 a.m. Sunday. The low-slung hounds will tear up the ground in a race that has to be seen to believed.
Doxie mixes will also be allowed in the race, so long as their appearance sways more toward the dachshund side.
TLC Training will demonstrate dog agility and the Hodag Equestrian Drill Team will entertain people throughout the weekend with barrel racing, horse soccer and other activities.
"You know those big rubber balls that they use in physical therapy, they use one of those big balls and the horses actually kick it and they're playing soccer," Gehrig said.
For the fair's older attendees, bingo and bridge will be available in the Senior Pavilion.
Also back this year is a taste of Rhinelander history in the form of presentations by Gene Shepard impersonator Jerry Shidell. Shepard created the iconic Rhinelander Hodag. The presentations are a great opportunity to learn more about the creature's origin and the history of Rhinelander.
Another popular attraction is the Ugly Lamp Contest. There are three categories in which lamps can be submitted - most unique, best decorated and just plain ugly.
"I've been hearing tons of people say that they're bringing in lamps this year, it sounds like it's going to be a big thing," Gehrig said.
Lamps were to be dropped off at the fairgrounds, with a registration form, between 4 and 7 p.m. today.
Judging is scheduled for 4 p.m. Saturday. State Sen. Tom Tiffany (R-Hazelhurst) and a media representative will do the honors.
Don't forget to stop at the Rhinelander Logging Museum which will be open for tours. The museum will be selling monkey tails - frozen bananas dipped in chocolate - to raise money to keep the railroad display running.
When it's time for a break, good food and good music will be easy to find.
There will be live music on the Village Green Thursday through Sunday and entertainment on the main stage every evening.
No one will go hungry at the Oneida County Fair. Vendors will be serving such unique dishes as Indian tacos and burgers wrapped in fry bread, along with traditional fair food like hamburgers, cheeseburgers, brats, hot dogs and hot beef. A fish fry is planned from 4 to 7 p.m. Friday. Fishers Resort will prepare the food.
Everyone wants a souvenir from the fair and a few lucky people will take some home in the form of raffle prizes.
Raffle tickets will be sold for $5 a ticket or five for $20. To purchase a ticket, see a fair committee member.
There will be 10 prizes including a large flatscreen television donated by Walmart, a three-burner patio gas grill from Sears, a scenic flight for two from the Rhinelander Flying Service, a pizza every month for a year from Dominos, a one-night stay in a suit for two with breakfast at the Claridge Days Inn, a half day of fishing with fishing guide Lee Bastian, a $150 gift certificate at Trig's donated by Cirilli Law Office, four rounds of golf with a cart donated by the Rhinelander Country Club, a shaker table made at McNaughton Correctional Center, and a swivel book rack also made at McNaughton Correctional Center.
Parking for the fair is free. People can go to 1020 Kabel Ave., the old Ministry St. Mary's Hospital parking lot. A shuttle bus will take people back and forth to the fair. There is handicapped parking on Oneida Avenue and a courtesy cart will be available for disabled people.
"This is our fair, we could not have done it without all of the community support that we got this last year," Gehrig said.
Kayla Breese may be reached at [email protected].
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