Setting up for the fair

Members of the Barker family were busy setting up in the Boer goat barn Tuesday afternoon at the Newton County Fairgrounds.

It’s the first year Chris Barker remembers having the early Tuesday set-up, making it easier for farmers who have other chores early Wednesday morning. People, she said, like to come early to bring in tack and bedding, then bring the animals later in the evening or the next morning.

“That way they just come in Wednesday morning and they’re good,” she said.

There were six farms represented in the barn by early Tuesday afternoon, and Randall Barker, Boer goat superintendent, said there would be more trickling in throughout the day.

“It’s the fastest growing industry there is as far as animals out there,” he said.

The Boers will compete in show and breeding stock or seed stock categories. Goats, he said, are growing in popularity, especially meat goats.

“It’s the most consumed meat in the world, it’s just not consumed by Caucasian people as much,” Randall said.

Elizabeth Beisinger peered into the rows of the empty chicken pens. This year she will bring three youngsters to show at both the Newton County and McDonald County fairs. One will show banana bread, another will show Rhode Island reds and photography, and a third will show vegetables, brownies, lemon bars and samples of her cake decorating skills.

“She’s quite an artist,” Beisinger said of Adeline Presley, the family cake decorator.

The fair gives young people a chance to connect to skills that were once common.

“So many arts are just kind of being lost,” Beisinger said. “There are a lot of children that don’t just get exposed to it as everything becomes commercialized.”

Chad Spencer and Brandon Keeling were setting up, too, in the beef section of the barns. They said their main work was on Tuesday and Wednesday before the fair began. On Tuesday, they were setting up from 9 a.m. until late afternoon.

The work is “not very hard,” Keeling said, but it’s time consuming.

“Tomorrow, it’ll be a hectic day,” he said while describing the various preparation procedures to have clean, good-looking steers. “After Wednesday, it’s just watering them in the morning, hanging out and meeting new friends.”

The fair will include a judging of all farm animals, and the 10 best of each animal species will go to a market sale on Saturday.

“Whatever money you make on your animal, you keep,” Spencer said.

And, of course, there will be rides. Pride Amusements spent most of Tuesday setting up their roller coaster rides, booths and carousel.

“We can usually do it in a day, sometimes a day and a half,” Ronnie Leighton, office manager and safety coordinator for Pride Amusements. “Depends if it’s raining.”

Pride Amusements are based in Joplin and set up for fairs, shopping centers and festivals for 40-45 weeks a year. They usually stay within 200 miles of Joplin.

Safety of the rides is their main priority. In case of heavy rain and thunderstorms, the workers suspend activities until it passes.

They also check the rides and activities often to make sure nothing is too dangerous.

“On a daily basis, our operators are trained to inspect the rides that they operate,” Leighton said.