Allen County Fair to pack grandstand with events throughout run

Aug. 6—LIMA — Country star Hardy will headline the events at the grandstand at this year's Allen County Fair, but the sold-out show is just one part of the excitement at the venue.

Micro wrestling, harness racing and band and cheer showcases will take center stage and they will be joined by the Smash It Demolition Derby.

"Our biggest event to look forward to is the concert that we will be having featuring Hardy on Saturday, Aug. 19," Promotion and Operational Manager for the fair Troy Elwer said. "It's really highly anticipated, but unfortunately the show is already sold out. However, I strongly encourage the general public that maybe missed out to still come out that day and enjoy the atmosphere because I promise that if you're on the grounds while it is happening you will get a similar feel and experience as if you were inside of a concert venue."

Elwer said that aside from the concert, which starts at 8 p.m. with opening act Ella Langley, the fair is expecting a lot out of micro wrestling, which starts at 6 p.m. Friday, Aug. 18.

"We're very excited about this new event that we've never had out here at the fairgrounds before," he said. "They've been gaining a following on a national scale and we thought that it would be a great fit for out demographic at the fairgrounds and it's a cool opportunity for families to gather and watch a family-friendly WWE-style wrestling show."

And after that, a familiar favorite will take over at 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 25.

"There will be big cars and little cars and they run a heat," Smash It Event Manager Tim Clark said. "They'll all get trophies and money for finishing in the top three."

Clark said that the demolition derby is action-packed and set to keep the audience on the edge of their seats.

"It's probably one of the biggest events at the fair," he added. "A lot of people come out to see it because everybody likes to see a crash or a fire and usually you will see cars getting torn up or catching on fire for some hard-hitting action. It really makes people excited to see it in person."

Elwer said that fairgoers will also enjoy harness racing at 6:30 p.m. Monday, Aug. 21 and Tuesday, Aug. 22.

"We'll have two days of harness racing and I know the general public really enjoys that because we have the parimutuel opened up where you can actually place bets on your favorite horses," he said. "That adds a little bit of competitiveness to the experience."

But one returning event will have the fair workers excited in particular.

"It hasn't been here for a couple of years, but the livestock scramble will be back Thursday, Aug. 25," Elwer said. "That's a really enjoyable event that really gets to give the opportunity to kids in Allen County to have a little bit of fun. They have to be able to safely restrain different types of livestock animals and then there are prizes to go to the winners who do it fastest."

Elwer said that it is important to put on the events, not just for the entertainment they provide for fairgoers, but also for what it means to the community.

"The reason we put the amount of events in the grandstands that we do is that it's a way for the fairgrounds to give back to the community and show our appreciation for all the support they give us by providing them with the highest quality entertainment that we're able to," he said. "But we also like to create quite a bit of diversity within the different events we have. That way, it reaches all the different types of demographics across the community and there's something for everybody to enjoy throughout the nine days of the fair."

Elwer said that if anyone is preparing to come to any of the grandstand events, they should look to come early to purchase tickets at the box office early.

"Sometimes we tend to see right before events start, lengthy lines develop and that makes it difficult to get everybody into the venue," he said. "So the sooner you can come out, the better. We'll definitely give you the best experience when it comes to these grandstand events."

For more information on grandstand events at this year's Allen County Fair, visit the fairgrounds website and Facebook page.

Reach Jacob Espinosa at 567-242-0399.