Fair attendance could hinge on weather, other factors

Pete Poe has been with the SEMO District Fair for more than 30 years.

During that time, he's seen every kind of outcome, from masses of people flooding the entry gates to the lackluster years with lower attendance.

"It's hard to say [what makes a good year] -- weather, temperature, rain, people's schedules -- all kinds of things have a play on it," he said.

One of the most successful years was when former first lady Barbara Bush came to visit in 1992. Poe remembered it was a Wednesday, and total attendance reached a record of 112,000. Poe said attendance on that particular day was four times higher than average.

Since then, numbers have fluctuated, with 89,479 guests in 2011, 89,855 in 2012 and 93,500 in 2013. Poe said he did not have access to attendance numbers before 2011.

What's ahead

This year's fair opens Saturday, with a few changes in its usual schedule.

The annual parade is being moved to 9:30 a.m. Saturday instead of its previous Monday evening slot. A new promotion, "Two for Tuesday," also will be available, in which admission prices will be two-for-one, and select vendors will participate.

"[By] moving our parade, we think we'll bring more people to the fairgrounds on Saturday," Poe said. "We think it will give more folks an opportunity on Monday evening to come to the fair who normally would have been at the parade. With our promotion Tuesday for Two for Tuesday ... we think that will boost attendance, so we have several things going on to help that."

This year, all vendor slots available have been filled, with approximately 125 scheduled to display their wares at Arena Park.

When asked what the main attraction of the fair would be, Poe said it's a tossup, as it is most years, between the DeWitt Auction/D&S Salvage Hot Rod Truck and Tractor Pull and the Auto Tire and Parts NAPA Dual Demolition Derby.

"We have about 3,300 seats available for either one of those two shows, and we call it a sellout every time, for both of them," he said.

Also new to the fair is AgriLand on the south side of the fairgrounds. Poe said it is a cooperative venture with state agriculture associations that's geared toward younger people to teach them where their food comes from.

"They'll have some interactive video things, some scavenger hunts, some instructional videos, plenty of giveaways ... opportunities for young folks to actually be involved," Poe said. "There's actually some egg races, teaching them how to make ice cream, and what the ingredients are for ice cream, things like that."

That is just one of the free events Poe mentioned that takes place throughout the fair.

"We use the word 'free' quite liberally," he said. "We have a lot of free exhibits on the ground. All of the livestock exhibits, both the commercial and competitive exhibits in the arena, are all free. Of course, people-watching is always free, so we've got plenty of free things to do."

New grandstand acts this year include Jeremy Camp on Tuesday night, classic-rock act Grand Funk Railroad on Thursday and Chris Janson on Friday. Finishing out the week is country-music star Clay Walker on Saturday night.

Worries have arisen in the past about finding parking for the larger events, but Poe said congestion rarely is a problem.

"Our parking and gates crew, if there's an open hole someplace, they know where it is and they'll get a car parked in it. They do a real good job of taking care of the traffic, getting them in off the street and getting them into a parking place," he said.

Four parking lots surround the fair, one in each direction, so Poe said no matter from which way participants come, they can always find a place.

smaue@semissourian.com

388-3644