Bayfield County Fair finds new ways to bring in people | FOX21Online.com.
RON RIVER, Wis. - Fairs fight back to thrive in the tough economy. For more than a century, the Bayfield County Fair has been going strong. But this year, they came up with new ideas to bring in more people to indulge in fair food, carnival rides and entertainment. The Bayfield County Fair Committee is working hard to keep numbers up. "We do need more people with the prices of everything going up, we want to keep it running," said Bayfield County Fair Secretary Theresa Kummerow. She says traditionally they see 10,000 to 11,000 people over 3 days of ticketing but that number has stayed steady for the past few years. "So as the farm population shrinks, there is less kids in 4–H, then less people think that a county fair is for them," said Kummerow. Kummerow says the Bayfield County Fair is not struggling to survive, nor is it in danger of shutting down. "But we like to keep things fresh and interesting and educate people and entertain them at the same time," said Kummerow. To help bring in more people this year, the fair committee added and extra day of activities along with a grandstand show on Thursday, an amateur karaoke contest, big name music on Friday and a pay–one–price. "It’s absolutely fabulous the way the fair was run this year and the price structure for the families," said Michelle Drougas of Oulu. For the first time, $10 got you into the fair and included grandstand shows and as many carnival rides as you can handle. But you can't have the Bayfield County Fair without the "Dirt Dash." "It’s become one of our most popular shows," said Kummerow. This crowd favorite brings in hundreds to the fair every year. "It’s been our mainstay for quite a few years, there are a lot of them that just show up for the dirt dash," said Race Director Robert Janigo. He says in the "Dirt Dash," almost anything is legal. "Lot of paint scraping, lot of spin outs, pushing, shoving, we call it rubbing and racing," said Janigo. "Anything can happen out there, you never know what's going to happen," said "Dirt Dash" driver Scott Shober. More than 40 local drivers race 4 heats in this action packed event. "It’s just 3 laps, a couple minutes of just a pure adrenaline rush," said Janigo. And they don't have any trouble filling the grandstand with an energized crowd of dirt racing fans. "It’s just fun, it's the only race that's like this on a 4 wheeler track and it's just fun," said Shober. "Just something about seeing those cars smash and tip over," said Kummerow. The Bayfield County Fair wrapped up Sunday evening with the Demolition Derby.
