The Daily Standard
Story Archive
Sea lions play around together in a swimming pool at the Mercer County Fairgrounds.
CELINA - The 171st Mercer County Fair roars to life Friday with a beefy lineup boasting sea lions, border collies, livestock shows, a BMX bike trick demonstration and, of course, the opening night country concert.
Also in store for fairgoers are rides courtesy of Poor Jack Amusements, carnival games, strolling acts, 4-H projects and exhibitors, fine art displays and over 30 food vendors, according to fair officials.
"We have a lot of great entertainment coming that we are very pumped for," said fair social media coordinator Rachel Reichert.
The theme of the 171st fair set to run through Aug. 17 is "Memories in the Making."
Amusement rides begin to pop up in preparation for the Mercer County Fair.
The Mercer County Fair raked in top accolades from The Greater Ohio Showmen's Association with the 2023 Best Fair and 2023 Fair Manager of the Year awards.
Riding the crest of a momentous wave of success, fair officials hope to break the fair attendance record of 89,000 set last year. They're aiming for the once elusive but now inevitable 100,000-people-thru-the-turnstile mark.
Country music fans from Ohio and beyond are expected to come out in droves for the firmly established country concert that has brought national marquee acts to Celina.
Rising country pop star Russell Dickerson will take the grandstand stage at 8 p.m Friday. Dickerson, who in recent years has notched entries on Billboard's country albums and songs charts, represents a new tier of star power to headline the fair's annual country concert.
Dickerson is in the prime of his career and supporting a self-titled record that dropped last year. Known for spiking his country songs with doses of R&B, Dickerson's hits include "Yours," "Blue Tacoma," "Every Little Thing," "Love You Like I Used To," "Home Sweet" and "She Likes It."
Starting Friday, a bevy of special acts will hold daily shows.
The Quack Pack of super-smart, laser-focused border collies will herd ducklings and sheep during demonstrations on the north side of the beer garden.
The sea lion attraction will begin its first show on Friday at 5 p.m.
On the east side of the grandstand's bathrooms, two 11,000-gallon tanks will host sea lions balancing balls, shooting hoops, dancing and performing handstands as part of the Sea Lions Splash Show.
Escape artist extraordinaire and magician Lady Houdini, positioned on the north side of the Kenn-Feld Community Center, will attempt to free herself from chains while fully submerged in water. She will also execute stunts and tricks during her SHOW which fair organizers say is perfect for the entire family.
Behind Market Hall, BMX Pros Trick Team will pull off stunts, jumps and tricks over ramps, according to fair organizers.
Fairgoers traversing the midway are likely to cross paths with One Man Band Marc Dobson and Rock it Robot.
The rest of fair week is brimming with activities and events, including two other big time concerts.
Christian artist TobyMac will perform at 7 p.m. Saturday. TobyMac has sold over 16 million records and won seven Grammy Awards. Over the course of a three decade-plus career with Christian rock trailblazers dc Talk and as a solo artist, TobyMac has dabbled in various styles and sounds all while promoting the message of the gospel.
The musical flavor at the grandstand returns to country with a performance by the platinum-selling Diamond Rio at 6 p.m. Sunday.
Other notable EVENTS scheduled include harness racing, tractor and truck pulls, a high school band show, demolition derby, a veteran's ceremony and the Sale of Champions Livestock Auction.
Last year's livestock auction brought in a net income of $347,417.
Created to encourage 4-H and FFA members to enter livestock projects, the champion and reserves of the market beef, market hog, market lamb, meat chickens, market goat, turkey, dozen eggs, gallon of dairy milk and gallon of goat milk exhibits are auctioned off, according to fair organizers.
In preparation for the Mercer County Fair, workers clean a kid's ride on Wednesday afternoon.
Ashton Hannon, Baltimore, Maryland, continues setting up A trampoline amusement ride.
Kelly Spaulding, Lecanto, Florida, strings bunjee chords over a trampoline to finish setting up an amusement ride.
Workers finish setting up a kids ride at the Mercer County Fairgrounds on Wednesday afternoon.
