Fair board reviews events

The Sanders County Fair Board met last week to recap the 2023 fair. More than a dozen community members showed up to the board meeting last Wednesday at the fairgrounds.

“It was a very challenging summer for us,” board chairman Randy Woods stated. “We had a hard time finding summer help and some of the fences didn’t get fixed right and coolers didn’t get fixed.” Woods also stated the fair had issues with a phone line that affected an ATM. He also noted that the River Road East Fire prompted some people to not show up, though there was no threat to the fairgrounds.

Recapping the rodeo, Woods said some people who had signed up for events did not show up, but he stated that the Cowboy Channel has been replaying all three rodeos from the fair. “The attendance doubled almost to the person for the Thursday rodeo, and Friday and Saturday had the same attendance as last year,” Woods detailed. He said that while the board did hear some complaints about ticket prices, the rodeo prices have not been touched in two years and that the vendor fees have always been the same. “The rodeo went well and the vendors were happy,” Wood said.

Woods said there were no major issues with the fair and rodeo, except that some signs were stolen. ‘The demo derby turned out pretty well. We had 46 cars,” he added. “The fair went really well for us behind the scenes.” He noted that the fair board has discussed that the week prior to the fair, they need to walk through the grounds and take care of any last-minute issues.

Community member Rick Sanders commented on the demo derby, saying that the contract says 75 seats will be provided for drivers and pit crews, but that the tickets were sold to others. “Seating for the guys is a continuing problem,” he said.

The fair board this year voted to purchase and hand out $400 in carnival ride tickets. Board member Jim Newman stated that he did not give out many of the free carnival tickets that Thursday because most people opt to purchase wristbands for the rides. Board member Brian Crain commented that the number of games seemed to be down and stated that the board needed to work to get carnival prices down. “We make money off the rodeo and we make money on the demo derby, maybe we should talk about lowering the fair’s take on the carnival,” Crain stated.

“You had a lot of complaints and concerns last year about the carnival,” community member Teresa Garrison said at Wednesday’s meeting. “How much effort went into finding a new vendor? You have a boat load of people who are upset about the cost of rides and games. People can’t afford that.” Wristbands for the carnival were $30 for presales and $40 when purchased the same day. Wristbands were sold separately for two separate daily sessions, but board member Kim McMahon stated people could go back for the second session of a day and pay $15 for the afternoon. “We thought the locals night on Thursday would help,” McMahon said. “Please believe we are trying hard to make things better and address concerns.” Crain stated that in Ravalli County and in Dillon, wristbands were $25 and $30. Garrison stated that there were no rides for younger kids and Crain stated that he only saw a couple rides for teenagers. “Last year I think the fair went downhill,” Garrison added. “This year it went downhill further.”

Juli Thurston with MSU Extension in Sanders County said the fair went well from the 4-H perspective. “We had a great fair. The sale numbers were up and it went really well,” she expressed. She did note that there were cooler issues in the pavilion building, and Woods said that the board should look in the future at updating the refrigeration system.

Fair manager Melissa Cady reported that most vendors said they did better with sales at the fair this year, and that they had the same amount of food vendors as last year, though they were spread out differently this year. She suggested that wi-fi be added to the pavilion permanently so that anyone who rents the building would have access to the internet. The cost would be $90 a month. “ I agree,” Crain stated. “In this day in age, it’s necessary to have it.” Cady also said they are looking ahead to getting the Christmas decorations set up at the fairgrounds, with hopes of beginning in October and having the decorations up by the beginning of November. She said the South Side Sparks 4-H club did a great job painting bleachers and she would ask them or another organization for help putting up the Christmas display. Cady also noted she hopes work on the lighting in the rodeo arena can get started and be completed before winter. The carnival bathroom stalls will also be replaced, with that funding coming from the Sanders County Fair Foundation. Woods also suggested that the fairgrounds need more picnic tables and umbrellas before next year’s fair.

Woods stated that the fairgrounds is an evacuation site for the county and said they are starting to work on a better plan. “After the River Road East fire, we realize we need a better plan so the grounds are better utilized and better prepared for next time,” Woods said. “What you saw this year is going to happen over and over. After the fact is not the time to plan.” Community member Bruce Newton said a plan is needed to check people in during an emergency situation. McMahon added that none of the fair board members have seen an emergency protocol. “It’s not the board’s job to make a protocol, it’s the county’s job. The county needs to be involved,” she stated. Newton stated he was willing to help with a plan.