Senior Citizens, ages 60 and over, are admitted free on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday at the New York State Fair.
Vendors and exhibitors will gear up to serve a tidal wave of mature visitors for those three days, now that senior days have been expanded from the previous two-day schedule.
Entertainment at Chevy Court will include British Invasion stars Herman’s Hermits, featuring the ever-charming Peter Noone.
It’s sometimes difficult to get a close-up visit with horses at the New York State Fair, although they are ever-present as participants in the International Horse Show, staged in the Coliseum. State Fair Hound always tries to get into the main horse barn, but it’s usually closed to the general public, we’re told due to liability concerns.
One effective workaround on this ban is to make a trip to the 4H stables and show rings at the western end of the grounds. There seems to be a less restricted, more visitor-friendly vibe there, so horse fans can get some good photos and an occasional pat on the neck as a reward for making the trek.
The youthful riders bring great enthusiasm and commitment to their competition, so the 4H area is an all-around positive experience.
The exercise ring next to the Coliseum also provides close-up views as the horses are led in from nearby stalls, allowing the equine paparazzi some access.
Petting the soft fleece of curly-headed sheep is a favorite activity at the new York State Fair. For decades, the wooly ones have inhabited pens under a roof outside the western entrance to the goat barn.
But this year that bleating you hear on the grounds this year may be in protest of the primitive conditions of the large tents that are now housing sheep at the Fair. 
They had to be relocated after their former home was demolished due to storm damage (Barn Razing, May 12, 2019). They are currently receiving guests in their new, albeit temporary, home further west, next to the cow birthing center.
Plans are in the works for a nicer, permanent building to be in place for next Fair.
The largest indoor venue for chowing down at the New York State Fair has a new name. 
The International Pavilion has been re-born as the Eatery, hoping to attract visitors who didn’t know the place is filled with food stands.
The name isn’t the only new feature as several new vendors have set up shop, trying to break through with traditionally skeptical Fair diners.
Ironically, the new joints represent several ethnic cuisines, so maybe International wasn’t such as bad moniker after all. Among the rookies are Vietnamese, Mexican, Polish and Canadian fare, along with a sandwich shop. 
Name aside, a sturdy, air-conditioned building full of picnic tables can be a good alternative to outdoor eating.
A popular strolling entertainer is making his return to the New York State Fair this year.
Wandering musician Bandoloni will be stomping to the oldies in various locations after a one-year absence on the grounds.
The colorfully-dressed one-man band always seems to draw a crowd wherever he starts his show, singing and playing classic rock favorites.
He had been an every-year attraction until last year, when he was inexplicably missing from the Fair itinerary.
Look and listen for his return around the Restaurant Row neighborhood daily at Noon, 4 and 6:30 p.m.
No big-name country stars will be playing on New York State Fair stages again this year, but at least fans can see a boat once owned by country Hall of Fame member Alan Jackson. 
The craft, a 1955 Cruiser called Flat Top is one of over a dozen antique boats that make up a dazzling new exhibit called the Mini-NYS Fair Maritime Museum, sponsored by New York Sea Grant, the Great New York State Fair, Boating Industries Association of Upstate New York, and H. Lee White Maritime Museum.
Among the rare crafts on display on the shore of the NY Experience pond are:
a 1913 Matthews High-Speed Runabout: Skanendowa renamed Golden Years, with original lights, instruments, hardware, copper gas tank, and Scripps 4 Cylinder engine still intact
a 1929 Chris-Craft Sedan: Topper, with a limousine top, likely displayed at the 1929 San Francisco Boat Show
a 1942 Mullins Steel Sea Eagle runabout: Steel Away, designed by Julias T. Herbst, with 5 floatation tanks that made it unsinkable
a 1948 Thompson TVT Lake Boat: Keuka Dew II, with a 1949 Evinrude Speedtwin motor
a 1950 Penn Yan Clipper: Challenger, with mahogany hull, oak gunwales and trim, spruce cockpit lining, bronze stem band; fully upholstered in Chinese Red Russialoid
a 1957 Penn Yan Swift: 12-foot wooden hull vessel built in Penn Yan, N.Y.
a 1965 McPherson Comet: 16-foot molded fiberglass sailboat built in Ithaca, N.Y.
a 1967 Evinrude Playmate runabout: donated by the family of the late Robert H. Wood, a World War II veteran and career education in New York State, for use as the New York Sea Grant Discover Clean and Safe Boating educational vessel
There will also be current-model boats representing modern hull and propulsion design, electric and propane-powered vessels, stern drive, traditional outboard motor drive, and a sailboat.
The boats are part of free exhibit that also features maritime artifacts and boating history displays. Check the Fair website for special events being held throughout the run of the Fair.
Sharp-eyed customers of the New York State Fair may have noticed a subtle change in the short row of food stands between the poultry barn and the dairy cattle building.
As State Fair Hound reported in July (Another One Bites the Dust, July 18, 2019), a stand has been demolished near the Grange Ox Roast, the spot now filled with a tent.
The gap has been filled by the relocated King David’s and a glazed doughnut stand. The Ox Roast returns to the row for its second season in that spot.
You heard that right–you can take paddleboard yoga classes at the New York State Fair. Sign up from the Fair website for a class on the reflecting pool each Saturday or Sunday morning ( 8, 9 or 10 a.m.) for a $25 fee
Animals from local shelters will be visiting the New York State Fair on Saturday and Sunday, looking for adoptive homes. Why take home a stuffed animal when you can change your life for the better by taking home a real cat or dog? 
If you can’t adopt, at least stop by to pet and maybe make a contribution to the organizations devoted to homeless animals.
This adorable canine was roaming near the Chevy Court pavilion at last year’s adoption event.
Most adults make food their priority at the New York State Fair. That’s no surprise, but with all of the mouthwatering chow available, many Fair patrons miss out by following annual traditions that lead them to the same food they ate the previous year–and the year before that and the year before that and–well, you get the idea. 
It’s time for Fair food lovers to expand their horizons by opening their minds and their mouths to newcomers on the grounds. There are about 50 new food stands in business this year, but rookie vendors often find it a daunting challenge to break in and make a buck when customers won’t give them a chance.
For instance, last year Grandma’s Cookies (Cookie Monster, Sep. 1, 2018) baked up terrific chocolate chip discs, but struggled to turn a profit. 
Their location was OK, not far from a King David’s location that enabled them to win raves from Gyro master Nader Hatem. But they were unfamiliar to Fair regulars and that made it tough, even with a great product.
Not far away, business was picking up for Toss’n’Fire in a new location, near the Coliseum. Their wood-fired ovens produced mouthwatering pizzas that were being discovered by hungry customers, so they may have turned the corner.
Remember, all of those established stands were once newcomers, so look around for a new vendor who looks promising and spend a few bucks trying something new. It could become your next favorite.
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