Fair here again

• Payne County Fair officially opens Wednesday at Expo Center

Jessica Jackson

County residents, organizations and Payne County Expo Center employees have been working hard this summer to prepare for the annual Payne County Fair, which officially opens Wednesday morning.

Expo Center Manager Michael Benson said they start working the first of May. He said he will work more than 12 hours every day of the fair.

Home and Community Education members spent Tuesday night and Wednesday preparing pies to bake and sell at the fair. The group will make about 170 fruit pies and 234 cream pies.

The pies, along with stew, corn bread and chili, serve as HCE’s biggest fundraiser, member Rayora Moore said. Proceeds go to help 4-H and give scholarships to graduates.

“I think we enjoy it, or we would just absolutely say no,” said member Emma Lou Hardin. “People keep coming out here and requesting cream pies.”

In addition to homemade pies, more vendors than usual will greet the thousands of people each day of the fair.

Benson said the fair will have 55 exhibits and vendors indoors and 21 outside, plus several food concessions this year.

New to the fair this year is Payne County Got Talent, a talent show anyone can enter. Each contestant will get four minutes to perform. The show starts at 7 p.m. Saturday.

Benson said he was not sure how many contestants they would have because they have no background with it.

Barnyard Olympics, a combination of fair-related games and competitions like sack races, is also new this year. Games will begin at 7:45 p.m. Wednesday for ages 5 and up at the McVey Arena. Sign-up has begun, but entrants can sign up Wednesday as well, Benson said. A registration form is on the Expo Center’s Web site, www.PayneCountyExpoCenter.com.

“We’re hoping to have at least a dozen teams for each category,” he said.

The fair usually brings about 5,000 people a night, Benson said. Admission is free.