All I Owe O-Hi-O: A Return to the Ohio State Fair

It's taken a few years, but now I think I've come to truly appreciate the entity that is the state fair.

I visited California's version of the state fair a few times both as a college student and later as young adult, but during those years my enjoyment of carnival and roller coaster style rides was waning, and the more informational exhibits weren't all that interesting to me at that time.

My first visit to the Ohio State Fair was something akin to the movie/musical "State Fair", where my spouse and I were still deeply experiencing the thrills of a young romance alongside the midway. The next couple of visits were more for the concerts, with Dolly Parton in 2016 (a fabulous show that I wrote about on this blogpost) and then comedian Gabriel Iglesias the following year.

This year, we got the full on fair experience, with a little help from some long time fair participants.

Down Home & Absolutely Fabulous: The Ohio State Fair & Dolly Parton

Double the pleasure, double the fun: The Ohio State Fair & Dolly Parton

There was a brief time in my life, a bit cocksure and a lot less wise than I thought, when I felt I was too cool for the fair, no matter what its incarnations. I had graduated from the entry-level spin-laden midway rides to greater G-forces, the food was the same old burgers and dogs and lemonades, and the musical acts seemed geared to people much older than I.

The passage of time has a way of changing attitudes, and I am no exception - I have returned to the notion that the fair is one of the coolest things around.

Sure, some things remain the same, and The Ohio State Fair, in existence since 1850, has plenty of those elements. From the old school midway games to the marching band parades every few hours to arts and crafts competitions across all fields, these institutions have become the traditions that provide the base structure of the modern day event. And yes, every opportunity to raise your cholesterol a few points still remains an option at every food booth you see.

For me, the human element has become the most appealing aspect of the fair, whether it be the earnest efforts of children participating in their 4-H or Scouting activities, or the sometimes spectacular arts and crafts produced in that year's competitions, or the whimsical sets of the local train club and the wide-eyed kids watching a miniature B&O-styled locomotive line whiz by.