County Fair Sees Big Increase in Entries

RISON - While overall attendance to the Cleveland County Fair was down this year, Fair Board President Roy Phillips reported that they did see a "significant increase" in the number of entries they received for the county fair exhibits as well as for the payout for those entries. Phillips attributed the downturn in attendance this year to the fact that the Cleveland County Rodeo that was held in conjunction with last year's fair had to be moved to Friday and Saturday, Sept. 29-30, this year due to a scheduling conflict wit the rodeo company. Despite that, Phillips reported they had a total of 93 entries in this year's county fair, up from the 67 entries made last year. He said the additional entries resulted in about 1,100 more points were awarded this year, which equates to an additional $1,100 being handed out in prize money. Overall, he said about $3,600 was distributed among those submitting entries compared to about $2,500 last year. "Everybody seemed to be excited about the exhibits this year," he said. While some entries are declared as "Best of Show" within a category, the entries themselves are not judged against one another but rather how well the entry meets the guidelines and standards for that particular category. As Danielle Watson, the family and consumer science agent for the Cleveland County Extension Office, explained it, several entries within one category can receive a blue ribbon if all those entries meet the standards. Phillips said each entry receives points based on how well it meets those standards, and those points are then converted into prize money. He said they issued one person a check for more than $600 while several others got checks in the $200 range. There is no fee to enter something in the county fair. As for overall attendance, Phillips admits that the carnival/ midway with rides was always a big draw. However, he said it has become very difficult for small county fai...