The Fair announced today plans for two new competitions for this year, one for flower arrangement and one for poetry. While these aren’t exactly blockbuster events, that’s fine. What’s a little concerning is the lack of anything new that has that excitement-generating, attention-grabbling potential that you expect every year.
The “attractions and Events” list on the Fair’s website is notably short on new features. As the Hound noted in an earlier post, we’re excited about the new Equine Avenue. The return of the Sea Lions and the circus, both missing last years, are also big additions to the line-up. There are a few other first-time features we’ll cover in future posts.
But we’re not seeing the wow factor for one or two new attractions as there has been in past years with the wolves and dinosaurs last year and debut of the Fair museum and the performing dogs in 2013.
We still yearn for exhibits like the Elvis memorabilia, the Baseball Hall of Fame, Corning Museum of Glass and Toothpick City of years past, all major crowd pleasers. Show biz being what it is, you can’t always get marquee attractions like those. And in all fairness, some of yesterday’s new features are now annual favorites—the Fair museum, the butterflies and the cow birthing center come to mind.
Ironically, this year’s biggest story is the debut of the amphitheater, which regular readers know has us concerned about its effect on the Fair. Stay tuned for more on that.
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