“More fun” is the theme of this year’s Eastern Idaho State Fair in Blackfoot. Brandon Bird, the fair manager, says this year is huge.
“Every year is special, I don’t want to detract from any of the other years, but this year is big,” he said.
This year the fair will feature the popular rock and roll band Journey! Famous for songs like “Can’t Stop Believin’” and “Anyway You Want It.” The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2017 and will play at the Eastern Idaho State Fair Friday, Sept. 6.
Fair Board member and dedicated attendee, Jodie Jackman, has been going to the fair every year since she started 4H at age 8.
“The big thing that stands out for everybody is Journey,” Jackman says. “They usually do big events, so for us to bring them to a small venue like the fair is huge.”
Country artist Craig Morgan, who sings “Redneck Yacht Club,” will perform with special guest Max Stell.
Other performers include comedian Jeff Foxworthy, the largest selling comedy recording artist, multiple time Grammy Award nominee and author of over 26 books; magician and illusionist Dan Sperry, star of the best-selling magic show on Broadway; Hilla Hula Hoop Extraordinaire, who has performed on TV and at many events, festivals and fairs across the country for the past 8 years; and Sara Twister, archer, contortionist and comedian who appeared on Romania’s Got Talent and countless other events worldwide.
This year families with children can look forward to the petting zoo, Cow Town, Little Buck-A-Roo Rodeo, Stalk Dog Competition and the many personalities strolling the grounds.
“The strollers are amazing because they interact with the kids,” Jackman says. “So whenever you see one of those strollers be sure to take advantage of getting the kids to interact with them.”
The two-time winners of the Small Market Rodeo of the Year, the Gem State Classic Pro Rodeo, is coming to the fair with its adrenaline rich events.
If the rodeo does not satisfy your need for adrenaline, the fair will also feature truck and tractor pulls, bull riding, arm wrestling and a demolition derby.
Tickets are available to the public starting May 15, at 10 a.m. on the fair’s website funatthefair.com. If you can’t wait till then, fair VIPs receive access to tickets a day early on May 14, at 10 a.m. You can become a VIP for free at funatthefair.com.