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County fair has something for everyone
At the end of the month, the Monmouth County Fair will invade the East Freehold Park, just like it has for the past 31 years.
From Wednesday, July 26 through Sunday, July 30, the fairgrounds will be filled with a wide variety of interesting sights, sounds and smells.
The first county fair in America was held in Burlington, New Jersey in 1681. The very scattered history of the Monmouth County Fair started in 1838, when the Monmouth County Agricultural Society began holding an annual fair that only lasted for a few years.
In 1854, a farmer in Freehold named Bennett allowed a fair to be held on a 10-acre plot on his land for a $50 charge. That version of the fair continued until 1888. The county fair returned in 1910 in Red Bank, which lasted for 10 years.
The grounds of Freehold High School hosted a fair in the early 1950s, until the Monmouth County 4-H moved it to the Freehold Raceway in 1954.
The current incarnation of the fair started in 1975, when the Monmouth County Park System teamed with Monmouth County 4-H and moved the fair to the East Freehold Park Showgrounds.
Some special features this year are “Scheer’s Lumberjack Show,” where lumberjack athletes compete in different activities like logrolling and speed climbing, and “Bwana Jim’s Reptile Show,” which is an educational wildlife show. Other features include: “Raptor Project” about predatory birds, “Robinson’s Racing Pigs” and home and garden competitions and demonstrations.
The opening night of the fair, Wednesday, July 26, is Fireworks and Flight Night. Visitors will have an opportunity to step inside a tethered hot-air balloon, see a flight simulator on display and make their own paper airplane to take home. At 9:15 p.m., weather permitting, the fireworks show will light up the sky overhead.
Also on Wednesday, the Monmouth County Firefighters Association will host a Hose and Ladder Competition, pitting teams of volunteer firefighters in a battle of speed, accuracy and precision.
Thursday, July 27, is Motorsports Night, with four cars from the NASCAR circuit on display. Scheduled cars include the #20 Home Depot car, the #24 Dupont car, the #18 Interstate Batteries car and the #5 Kellogg’s car. There will also be a simulator car set up and a tire-charging experience to see what an actual pit crew has to do.
There will also be rodeo-style barrel races on Thursday, performed by local cowboys and cowgirls. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Special People United to Ride (SPUR) organization, which runs therapeutic horseback riding lessons for persons with disabilities.
Friday. July 28, is Children’s Day, as well as Working Animals Day. On Children’s Day, anyone under 17 years of age gets in for free until 5 p.m. There will be plenty of games, rides, and races for children to partake in.
Kids Race Day is on Saturday, July 29. Competitions include the Diaper Dash, Toddler Waddle, Big Wheel Rally, and the Sneaker Sprint. Also, on Saturday, visitors can get a taste of 19th century baseball. Three teams will partake in games playing using rules from 1873, when the fielders didn’t use gloves and four balls do not count as strikes.
The main event on Sunday, July 30 is the Antique and Classic Auto Show, where car owners can bring their prized possessions down to be judged or where people can get lost among the rows of beautiful machinery.
Also, on Sunday at 1 p.m. is the fourth annual pie-eating contest. Anyone 12-year-old and up can stuff the faces with pies donated by Wemrock Orchards in Freehold.
The fair runs from 5 until 11 p.m. on Wednesday and Thursday, 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Friday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday. Admissions is $5 per person, children 12 and under are free. The East Freehold Park Showgrounds are located on Kozloski Road, between Routes 33 and 537 in Freehold
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