The Waseca County Free Fair never fails to impress. From all the rides provided by Midway to the bull riding and demolition derbies that bring in hundreds of spectators every night, it’s always a good time at the county fairgrounds. One would find it difficult to have gotten bored at the fair.
In the grandstand, there was the staple entertainment that Waseca County fairgoers expect year after year: bull riding, demo derbies, and the enduro races. However, this year, the demo derby went for not only one night, but two nights. One of the grounds crew members working the pits explained, “Last year, it was so popular that we ran out of seats in the stands. So, we decided to add another day.”
Thursday, July 11 was the first of two days of the derby, and it was well attended. However, Friday was even better in terms of attendance, and there were very few spots left in the grandstand or the pits. It all equaled over four solid hours of demo derby action.
Bull riding kicked off the grandstand entertainment on Wednesday, July 10, bringing in rodeo fanatics and connoisseurs from around the Midwest to the show to win prizes and see some top-notch bull riding…if the bull allowed the riders to stay on for more than five seconds.
Saturday was the last night of grandstand entertainment with enduro races.
From Wednesday to Saturday, the beer garden was hopping with live music by IV Play, Good For Gary, Gen X, and the Local Hooligans. There was also plenty of other musical entertainment near the food court stage, including GTX featuring Janesville’s own Tammy Seys and the duo Miller-Denn, to name only a few acts. On the free stage were comedy and magic shows from various acts.
A new addition to the Waseca County Fair this year was the DockDogs competition which featured several dogs competing to see which one jumped the farthest in a pool of water as well as testing their vertical jump abilities. Local 4-H’ers also had several shows with goats, rabbits, and more. Members of the JWP FFA were also at the county fair this year.
Of course, it wouldn’t be a county fair without amusement rides like the Ferris wheel, which was provided by Midway entertainment. It also wouldn’t be a fair without several food trucks serving fried everything, onion rings, burgers, BBQ, pizza, or even Chinese. There was a little something for everyone.
With the county fair past us, it’s a guarantee that the fair board members are already looking toward next year. With the success of so many events throughout the week, hopefully, shows like the DockDogs will make a comeback. You also can’t go wrong with two nights of demolition derby.
To check out more content from the Waseca County Fair, check out the Wednesday, July 17 edition of the paper.
