The Illinois State Fair kicks off next month, Aug. 11-21, in Springfield, and state fair manager Rebecca Clark is looking forward to a “more normal” event, with more emphasis on agriculture.
“This will be our first fair where we don’t have active COVID restrictions,” she says. “There’s a lot of excitement and buzz around that from exhibitors, vendors, concert attendees. It’s starting to feel like normal again.”
Clark, a former farm kid from Jasper County, Ill., was appointed state fair manager by Gov. J.B. Pritzker in January — a few months after planning had already begun — but she brings a fresh set of eyes to a reliably experienced staff and a renewed interest in sharing agriculture with fairgoers. And while she’s bringing back ag tours to the barns and making sure folks get a big dose of Illinois ag in the Department of Agriculture tent, she says much of the agriculture story will be told by young livestock exhibitors.
“The true story of Illinois ag lies in the passion and dedication of our youth exhibitors and their families,” Clark says. “That story will be written in the barns, with their hard work and dedication, and triumphs and celebrations — the stories that will be retold in families for generations.”
Those young livestock exhibitors may just be the best ambassadors.
Clark brought her four young children out to a swine show on the fairgrounds earlier this month with the expressed goal of introducing them to livestock. They began walking through the barns, and her daughter was not a fan. “She was deathly afraid of these big pigs,” Clark says.
So Clark walked up to an exhibitor and started asking questions: What’s the pig’s name? How do you take care of it? What does it like? Before long, her daughter was holding out her hand and letting a pig lick it.
“She was so easy to talk to,” Clark says of the exhibitor. “It’s a great way to learn about agriculture.”
What to look for
Still, Clark says they’re actively “trying to weave agriculture into every acre of the fairgrounds.” Fairgoers can learn a lot from the dairy barn and the IDOA tent. Ag tours will leave from the IDOA tent at 10 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. every day, taking visitors to the barns and more. There will be no tours on the first Sunday or the last Saturday and Sunday of the fair. The state fair app also offers a self-guided tour.
Livestock exhibitors will find newly paved roads along the cattle and swine barns and the Avenue of Flags, thanks to a $4.1 million road construction project that IDOA kicked off this past spring.
“There’s a lot that can be said for a nice, paved road,” Clark says, laughing. She adds that years of deferred maintenance will take time to address, but they’re chipping away at it, one road and one building at a time. IDOA recently announced $58 million in repairs that will be made to buildings and barns across the fairgrounds.
Look for the Parade of Champions to be held on Aug. 13 in the Coliseum, following the steer and swine shows. The Sale of Champions will begin at 5 p.m. on Aug. 16. Ag Director Jerry Costello will host the sale event, filling in the gap left following longtime ag broadcaster Orion Samuelson’s retirement three years ago. Clark says they’re making a bigger effort to get non-ag fairgoers into the sale, with more promotion and marketing than in the past. Plus, everyone who attends gets a coupon for free ice cream at the dairy barn, compliments of Midwest Dairy.
“This is such a big event, and there’s so much excitement in the Coliseum that you can feel when you walk in,” Clark says. “I hope everyone comes out to support our kids.”
They’re also trying to make the fair more affordable, given high prices everywhere else. Clark says vendors will offer discounted food prices from 2 to 5 p.m. every day, so people can come out for a late lunch or early supper and save some money. Food vendors in the Village of Cultures will each offer a $3 item, making it easier to try a lot of different foods for less money.
Adult admission on Sunday through Thursday is $5, and on Friday and Saturday is $10. Kids 12 and under are free.
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<p>FINESSE: Curt Lemenager (center) shows his young heifer with precision at the 2021 Illinois State Fair.</p>
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<p>BARNYARD: The FFA Barnyard is a staple stop for many families at the state fair, offering the chance to touch and interact with animals.</p>
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<p>EYE OF THE TIGER: Emma Eathington exhibits her 2021 supreme champion heifer.</p>
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<p>STABLES: Fairgoers check out the horses at the Illinois State Fair.</p>
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<p>THE DADS: Parents and grandparents line the rings and evaluate animals.</p>
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<p>LOVE: McDonough County 4-H’er Peyton McGrew takes a moment with her heifer before they head into the ring.</p>
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<p>TOUCH A PIG: The FFA Barnyard is your best bet to get a hands-on experience with farm animals.</p>
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<p>TRAFFIC: Folks stream in and out of the FFA Barnyard all day long.</p>
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<p>SO BIG: Colleen Callahan, director of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, introduces some young friends to a draft horse, exercising in a ring near the Coliseum.</p>
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<p>WINNER: The Parade of Champions always produces the best handshakes.</p>
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<p>INTENSE: Hunter Shike, Champaign County, awaits the judge’s decision during the Champion Drive in the Coliseum.</p>
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<p>SMILES: Rodney Schilling grins for the camera from ringside at the junior beef show.</p>
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<p>INTENSITY: Young sheep exhibitors show for champion wether during the 2021 Illinois State Fair.</p>
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<p>THIS FOOT, NOT THAT FOOT: The pressure’s on during the Champion Drive, held in the Coliseum, and parents alongside the ring often have advice.</p>
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<p>WINNER: The judge eyes the barrow that would eventually be named champion during the 2021 Illinois State Fair.</p>
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<p>CHAMPIONS: Champion steers line up across the Coliseum following their selection at the 2021 Illinois State Fair.</p>
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<p>HEAD UP: What’s not to love about a show pig?</p>
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<p>CONSERVATION: Fairgoers love coming out to Conservation World, a staple since the ’90s.</p>
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<p>BOUNTY: Over in the Orr Building, 4-H’ers bring projects for state fair exhibition, including this garden produce display.</p>
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<p>SERIOUS TOYS: Among the creative 4-H projects on display in the Orr Building are farmsteads like this one.</p>
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<p>AG DAY: Ag Day at the Illinois State Fair always falls on the last Tuesday of the fair. In 2021, Agriculture Director Jerry Costello greeted folks on the Director’s Lawn.</p>
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<p>OLD FRIENDS: Duane Noland and Kevin Semlow catch up and stop for a photo during the Ag Day events in 2021.</p>
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<p>GOVERNOR: Gov. J.B. Pritzker came by the 2021 Ag Day events to share a few words.</p>
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<p>LEADER: Agriculture Director Jerry Costello directs all the events of Ag Day, shown here in 2021.</p>
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<p>SOLD: Auctioneers are catching bids during the sale of Cole Caldwell’s steer at the 2021 Sale of Champions.</p>
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<p>THAT’S ALL: This heifer’s ready to show during the 2021 open beef show — and may be ready to go home, too.</p>