The 162nd Ohio State Fair opens Wednesday in a ceremony presided over by Gov. John Kasich, back from his first tour as an official candidate for president.
Midway rides have been under construction for a week, and last minute preps go on up until the fair opens. In other parts of the 360-acre fairgrounds, livestock shows are underway as more animals and their exhibitors are coming in. Food vendors are setting up – this year featuring something called deep fried cake balls.
The Department of Natural Resources has installed a new 14-foot-tall animatronic Smokey the Bear in its fairgrounds park. Fair General Manager Virgil Strickler said all this shows why Ohio’s fair ranks in the top five state fairs in the nation.
“People quit looking at how many people you actually have coming. They actually started looking at the quality of your fair,” Strickler said.
The Ohio State Fair set an attendance record last year with nearly 917,000 visitors in 12 days. This year’s fair runs through August 9.