Rides, food, music draw thousands to fair's first day

Nine-year-old Seth Perdue wobbled off of the towering carnival ride aptly called the Avalanche and tried to put on a brave face for his dad.

"Not so bad," he said at first.

But prod him a little bit and the Benton, Mo., boy tells a different story.

"OK, I was scared," Perdue admitted finally, glancing anxiously up at the ride. "I was so nervous that my jaw was shaking."

Perdue's jaw probably wasn't the only one trembling at Saturday's kickoff of the 151st annual SEMO District Fair. Southeast Missouri residents turned out by the thousands at Arena Park to get thrilled by the 30 rides on the midway, including the Sea Dragon, the Tilt-A-Whirl, the Tornado and that old mainstay, the Ferris wheel.

The less adventurous had live music, including an old-time fiddling contest, as well as tractor pulls, carnival games and 70 commercial exhibits inside the Arena Building.

And don't forget the food -- two dozen food booths lined the fair's thoroughfare, offering popcorn, turkey legs, ice cream, Polish sausages and a variety of other treats.

"I come for the food," said Cindy Gabler of Jackson, in between taking pictures of her 10-year-old son doing somersaults on a trampoline. "My son loves the rides, but I love the corn dogs."

Fair board president Pete Poe said the first day of the fair went smoothly, with no problems to report. He hopes attendance tops last year's 85,653 visitors.

"We'd like to get back to over 100,000 like we did two years ago," he said. "I think we'll top 90,000."

For six years, the fair has started on Saturday instead of Sunday, which Poe said has worked well. It helps push up attendance figures and gives fair-goers two Saturdays to attend.

"It hasn't increased us 10 or 20 percent or anything like that," Poe said. "But we're pleased with how it's worked out."

Poe said a new addition called the Kidz Zone has already been well-received. The activities are free at the tent, which offers activities like face painting, puppet shows and arts and crafts.

"They've been crowding into there, one after another," he said.

Poe also wanted to thank the volunteers. Last year, more than 650 volunteers helped at the fair and probably more than that will help this year.

The rest of the week offers today's horse show and tractor-trailer pull, Tuesday's demolition derby and Wednesday's Heartland Idol karaoke contest. A weekend of music is also lined up -- country singer Ronnie Milsap on Thursday and former "American Idol" contestants Josh Gracin on Friday and Bo Bice on Saturday.

Poe himself spends countless hours making sure everything runs smoothly. But he won't complain.

"I have more fun than anybody that pays to get in here," Poe said.

smoyers@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 137