As you read this on Friday morning, thousands of people are standing in line for free pancakes at the Clark County Fair.
The pancake breakfast from 8 to 11 a.m. includes admission to the fairgrounds. The whole thing is free, but requires a coupon available beforehand at sponsor Fred Meyer’s local stores. Clark County people know this. Some of them have been going to this breakfast for years, standing in a line that wraps its way nearly around the entire fairgrounds.
And why, you ask, do they do this? Because it’s a tradition inside a tradition. In our community, few traditions are as powerful as the Clark County Fair.
The fair bills itself as “Summer’s Best Party” and somehow has continued to be just that, even as the county around it grows more populous, more urban, and more wired. We honestly can’t tell a prime beef from a bum steer, but we still want to see the cows. And the rabbits. And the hypnotist. And eat a hamburger slathered with fried onions. And a funnel cake.
Even as it stays amazingly the same, the fair has changed. A large building that was vacated by the opening of the exhibition hall now houses themed exhibits tailored to modern tastes. This year’s theme is “Superhero Adventure,” billed as “an interactive exhibit featuring all manner of men and women with capes, Spandex and special powers.” To attract those more familiar with Comic-Cons than fairs, there will be FairCon, featuring cosplay contests, and Magic the Gathering card games. No, we don’t know what those are, either.
We do know that the Clark County Fair is a big business. Last year, 272,896 people passed through the gates. Ticket sales were an all-time high at $835,986. The carnival netted $1.37 million, and food sales totaled $1.63 million, both records.
The fair can be expensive. Parking costs $6, and admission runs as much as $11 for an adult, although pre-fair discount tickets were available. The food costs money, of course, and carnival ride bracelets don’t come free.
But the grandstand shows are free with fair admission. So are the many traditional exhibits of agricultural and domestic prowess. That’s why you’ll find us looking at the 4-H youth exhibits, the home arts, gardening, and photography. The people-watching is the best in Southwest Washington.
And, of course, we’ll wind through the commercial exhibits to get our free ice water from Clark Public Utilities. Sometimes it seems like we come out of there with a bag of saltwater taffy, though, or one of those amazing floor squeegee things.
Behind the scenes there’s a hidden fair. Hundreds of local children, most of them members of 4-H, compete in dozens of contests. They cook meals and serve them family-style to adults whom they don’t know. They participate in a fashion revue, modeling clothes they’ve either made or selected. They show cats, dogs, cavies, rabbits, poultry, goats, sheep, hogs, cows, and horses.
Ribbons, trophies, and often a trip to the state finals are on the line. And there’s money to be made. Exhibitors are paid for the premium points they collect. There’s a junior livestock auction on the second Saturday of the fair. The owner of a grand champion animal can expect to earn hundreds or even thousands of dollars, which can be banked for college.
There’s always something interesting happening at the fair. No wonder we’re glad it’s time for summer’s best party, a tradition we hope continues for many more years.
