By Morgan Bryce
Staff Reporter
The 71st annual Lee County Fair, sponsored by the Opelika Exchange Club, will be Oct. 3-7 at the Lee County Fairgrounds, located at 2316 Lafayette Parkway.
Tickets for the event will cost $3 for adults, $2 for children 12 and under and $1 for senior citizens and current/former military members. Armbands to access the rides will cost $20.
The fair kicks off with a ‘Kid’s Day’ Oct. 3 from 4-6 p.m., providing free admission for both children and adults, followed by a grand-opening ceremony at 5 p.m.
Different fair activities during the week include a kid’s cookie and block-building contests, statewide lamb show and preliminary round of the Miss Lee County Fair beauty pageant Tuesday, heifer and steer show and final round of the beauty pageant Wednesday and statewide goat show Thursday.
One of the fair’s more popular children’s contests is the poster competition, open to kindergartners through eighth grade students, which focuses on the importance of agriculture. This year’s theme is ‘Agriculture: Food for Life.’
Friday and Saturday’s focus will be live music from local acts and the 20-plus carnival rides, which include a Ferris wheel, Himalaya and merry-go-round.
Jim Sadler, president of the OEC and Lee County Fair Association, said the fun-filled event is for people of all ages, but is specifically geared toward youth and branching out their interests.
“What other venue do you have that you can provide competition and gather youth participation in something like this anymore? You don’t have many,” Sadler said in a previous interview with the Observer. “It’s all about youth and agriculture and making people aware that there are other things out there besides city life.”
Sadler said the fair gates will open at 4 p.m. Tuesday and Saturday, and at 6 p.m. Wednesday-Friday, and will close after the crowds leave.
For more information on fair activities and competitions, contact the Lee County Extension Office at (334) 749-3353 or visit the office located at 600 S. Seventh St.
