Look around: 2022 Illinois State Fair

<p>BRACED: Maddox Horner braces his reserve champion crossbred lamb during the Champion Drive in the Coliseum. Maddox is the son of Brad and Sarah Horner, Newton, Ill.</p>

<p>LEARNING: Maylen Kramper gets a lesson on shearing her lamb from Tyler Jones. Maylen is a first-year Washington County 4-H member from Okawville, Ill. Her lamb’s name? Dwight.</p>

<p>WELCOME: Illinois Director of Agriculture Jerry Costello welcomes the crowd to the Champion Drive at the 2022 Illinois State Fair, held in the Coliseum on Aug. 20.</p>

<p>COLISEUM: Junior hog exhibitors drive their breed champions one last time before the judges select the grand champion.</p>

<p>HEADS UP: This show pig struts his stuff during the Champion Drive.</p>

<p>VISIT: Over in the junior sheep barn, visitors stop to check out the animals.</p>

<p>CONSERVE: Conservation World has been a popular stop at the Illinois State Fair since its inception.&nbsp;</p>

<p>HARDWARE: Illinois State Fair Manager Rebecca Clark presents the reserve champion market lamb banner and plaque to Sheridan Hank, Aledo, Ill.</p>

<p>ANTICIPATION: Cattle line up as junior exhibitors bring them into the Coliseum for the Champion Drive.</p>

<p>CHARACTERS: Brad Schumacher and Chuck Lemenager brought the color commentary — and color shirts — to the Champion Drive steer show for Walton Webcasting.</p>

<p>TOUGH WIN: Angie Barnard wraps her arms around son Alex after he won third overall Land of Lincoln steer. Alex’s steer became ill right before the Champion Drive, but won the award based on its performance earlier in the day.</p>

<p>PIVOT: Over in the Orion Samuelson Junior Livestock Building, leaky pipes at the start of the fair forced the 4-H Food Stand outside into a tent for the duration of the fair. Exhibitors throughout the building noted structural and electrical deficiencies during the week.</p>

<p>BLUE: This backdrop next to the junior cattle ring paid homage to <strong><a href="https://www.farmprogress.com/commentary/pat-back" target="_blank">Jim Bloomberg</a></strong>, a prominent Illinois cattle breeder and judge who was killed earlier in the summer. Jim was famous for his pageboy cap, shown here above the O in Illinois.</p>

<p>SPECTATORS: State fair visitors stopped to watch and marvel as the Shike family pictured their champion Chester White barrow. Getting hog pictures isn’t easy — this time, it even involved a marshmallow or two.</p>

<p>4-H: Throughout the week, 4-H’ers from across Illinois brought in their state fair-qualifying projects to the Orr Building to compete against the best in the state.</p>

<p>STATE FAIR STILL LIFE: Mini donuts, Tiki tea and a crockpot? You must be in a junior livestock building.</p>

<p>EQUIPPED: Hardworking livestock exhibitors start early in the morning and stay late at night.</p>

<p>LEARNING: State fair manager Rebecca Clark shared earlier this month how <strong><a href="https://www.farmprogress.com/farm-life/state-fairs-story-its-written-barns" target="_blank">junior livestock exhibitors</a></strong> are the best ag ambassadors because they can share their story with non-farm visitors — and sure enough, those folks flocked to the barns to pet animals and learn more.</p>

<p>COOL: These pigs are staying cool, thanks to plenty of fan power brought along by their owners.</p>

<p>COME ON IN: The Illinois FFA Barnyard is a classic stop at the Illinois State Fair, allowing visitors to pet animals and talk with FFA members.</p>

<p>WE’RE HERE: The first weekend of the 2022 Illinois State Fair featured huge crowds, thanks in part to beautiful weather.</p>

<p>ACT NOW: Illinois Soybean Association CEO John Lumpe shows off the “Act now for atrazine” stickers that commodity folks were handing out during the Ag Day breakfast.</p>

<p>CAMPAIGNING: Gubernatorial candidate and Xenia, Ill., farmer Darren Bailey and his wife greet folks in line for breakfast at Ag Day, including Brian Duncan, Polo, Ill., farmer and Illinois Farm Bureau vice president.</p>

<p>POWER TRIO: Illinois Rep. Norine Hammond, Macomb, and Wayne Rosenthal — a former state representative and Illinois Department of Natural Resources director who’s running again for the state Legislature from Morrisonville — visit with Charlie Meier, state representative from Okawville, Ill.</p>

<p>THANKS: During the Ag Day breakfast program, Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton introduces five students from the Chicago School for Agricultural Sciences, who each offered up thanks for the work of Illinois farmers.</p>

<p>ON AIR: RFD Radio Network’s DeLoss Jahnke gets the story during the Ag Day breakfast.</p>

<p>FARM BILL: Rep. Cheri Bustos held a farm bill listening session during the 2022 Illinois State Fair, along with Sen. Patrick Joyce. Representatives from Illinois Corn (including Rod Weinzierl, pictured here), Illinois Soybean Association, Illinois Pork Producers Association, Illinois Beef Association, Illinois Farm Bureau and Illinois Department of Agriculture shared their thoughts about different portions of the current farm bill and what changes they believe should be made in the next federal farm bill, set to be filed and discussed in 2023.</p>

<p>SALE: Nalaney Guyer, Robinson, Ill., gets her Land of Lincoln champion market lamb ready to sell during the Sale of Champions, held Aug. 16. The Land of Lincoln designation signifies a purebred animal bred and raised in the state of Illinois. Pivot Bio and Springfield Plastics bought her lamb for $5,000.</p>

<p>MAKE IT HAPPEN: During the Sale of Champions, John Slayton was honored for more than three decades of work organizing buyers and bidders for the Sale of Champions. Usually found behind the scenes and rarely upfront, Slayton has often become close friends with the families he’s worked with.</p>

<p>HELP: These two had a job during the sale — hold the banner — but they made it fun, too.</p>

<p>HELLO: Gov. J.B. Pritzker arrived just before the final animal sold at the Sale of Champions, sharing a few thoughts with the slim crowd that turned out for the annual sale in the Coliseum.</p>

<p>SOLD: Menard County, Ill., junior exhibitor Drake Fletcher looks back as his grand champion market barrow sells for $25,000 to the CME Group.</p>

<p>WINNER: Gubernatorial candidate Darren Bailey helped buy the champion rabbit market pen for $7,600 from Piatt County’s Chesney Thorton, along with Robert Nelson/AgriVest Farm Management and George Obernagel. The bid set a record for the market rabbits.</p>

<p>BACK: Cole Caldwell returned to the Sale of Champions once again with his Land of Lincoln champion steer, which sold to Brandt for $30,000.</p>

<p>CONTENDING BIDDER: Gov. Pritzker bids against his wife, MK Pritzker, for Ashtin Guyer’s champion steer. MK would ultimately pay $105,000 for the champion steer, tying the record she set last year.</p>

<p>YES: Cheered on by state fair manager Rebecca Clark, MK Pritzker bids against her husband for the champion steer.</p>

<p>ALL SMILES: The Pritzker bidding war may have been staged, but it brought in $105,000 for Ashtin Guyer of Crawford County, Ill., for her grand champion steer. This is the same price MK Pritzker paid for the 2021 grand champion steer.</p>

<p>MORE SMILES: Following the sale, Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton grabs a selfie with MK Pritzker and Rebecca Clark.</p>