WRITTEN BY CRYSTAL SANDS
There is perhaps nothing that speaks to the Maine summer more than walking into a summer fair and smelling the fair food, seeing the lights on the rides, and hearing music in the background. Many of us have seminal memories of this experience, the memories that stay with us from childhood, the memories we hope to recreate for children or for ourselves when we attend a summer fair in Maine. This year, the Bangor State Fair will celebrate its 175th anniversary in grand style with a focus on returning the fair to its former glory while helping a new generation of Mainers make lasting fair memories.
The Bangor State Fair is one of the oldest fairs in the country, dating back to 1849. This year, as the fair celebrates 175 years, organizers want to make sure there is something for everyone. This year, the fair will last longer and offer opportunities for everyone to find something to love about a big summer fair.
Brad LaBree, Director of Sales and Marketing at Cross Insurance Center, is a part of a team of dedicated organizers to ensure this year’s fair is extra special. He says “People have a lot of treasured memories of the fair. As things grow and change, we want to do right by our community. We want people talking about this fair like people did in years past.”
To ensure the fair is something special this year, organizers have planned something for everyone who attends.
For those who love the agricultural aspect of the fair, this year’s fair has much to offer. Like last year, this year’s agricultural events will be held indoors at the Cross Insurance Center. LaBree says turning the Cross Insurance Center in a giant barn makes it easy for fair goers to enjoy all the agricultural events in air-conditioned comfort. Events this year include goat shows, steer shows, sheep shows, the Farmer Olympics, tractor pulls, and more. The agricultural area opens before the midway gives visitors a chance to look at the animals while cooling off indoors.
For families, the fair is featuring a Kids Zone. The Kids Zone includes its own stage for family events and offers magic acts, jugglers, and puppet shows. The Kids Zone will also offer face painting, and organizers have made an effort to focus on attractions that create a classic carnival feeling for the children’s events and activities.
This classic carnival spirit will be carried through in other events offered at the fair this year. There will be three stages for concerts and performers, and organizers have scheduled events throughout the day to ensure fair goers can take advantage of so many opportunities for entertainment. The fairgrounds will feature a main stage, the Penobscot Stage, a second stage, the Kenduskeag Stage, and families can find children’s performers on the Chickadee Stage. Throughout the week, local bands, frisbee dogs, trampoline artists, and more will be featured on these stages. Fair events will also include two nights of demolition derby, harness racing, and car shows.
LaBree says this year’s fair includes more artists and vendors than ever before. There will be games, artisans, and a variety of hand-made goods for sale all through the midway. For food, there will be more food trucks than ever before, including the classic food trucks one expects from a fair, as well as some new trucks this year. LaBree says organizers are also excited that the fair will feature a Beer Garden for the first time this year. The Beer Garden “will be a great place to take a break, grab a beer and something from the food truck, and just relax a little,” says LaBree.
Of course, the fair includes rides. An all-inclusive bracelet will be available to give visitors access to all 25 rides at the fair. Some extra special events also include a local celebrity dunk tank. To raise money for the Old Town Animal Orphanage, local celebrities, such as members of the Chamber of Commerce and our Bangor Police Department will sit on the dunk tank platform for a good cause. The fair will also feature themes each day, including dress like a pirate or princess day and dress like a superhero day. Other theme days will offer discounts for first responders and veterans.
With so much going on and so many big changes happening for the Bangor State Fair, LaBree says a team of dedicated organizers has been devoted for months to make this year’s fair so successful. LaBree says, “It was really important to us, from the beginning, for our offerings to be diverse.” While LaBree notes that this anniversary year is special, he points out that he and the team are always working to make events better and good experiences for our community.
He continues, “It’s our job to make every event as good as it can be. No matter the size of the event, our team always debriefs and tries to do better the next time. When it came to the fair this year, we compared notes and brainstorms from last year, and the catalyst for the changes this year is really just that it’s our job to make events enjoyable and safe.” LaBree emphasizes that organizers wanted the fair to bring a nostalgia to the community and the state this year. The joy and excitement of attending a fair that is both fun and well organized is an important memory-making opportunity.
To make room for so many events and activities, it is important to note that the fair will last two full weekends, July 25-28 and August 1-3, giving more people throughout the state a chance to attend this year’s improved fair. More information about events and schedules can be found at bangorstatefair.com.
LaBree hopes that members of the community will come see what this special year at the fair has to offer. “I want to ask people to help keep our tradition alive because the Bangor State Fair has been a part of our community for 175 years. Help us celebrate our 175th anniversary with an array and events that you won’t find anywhere else. Help us create memories you will carry with you for years to come.”
