WINNEMUCCA — The Tri-County Fair & Stampede has seen lots of great changes over the years but one of the biggest—and most important—changes has come in the way the event is set up.
"This year once again, we will use the Winnemucca Event Center to give everyone more room, keep everyone cooler and give our fair-goers more and better restroom facilities,” said Agricultural District No. 3 Director Kim Petersen.
Petersen said he got the idea to use the Winnemucca Event Center facilities during the night after he had been contemplating how to make the four-day event—planned this year for Thursday, August 29, through Sunday, September 1—more attractive to local residents.
“It makes the fair weekend better all the way around—for every single event, vendor and participant.”
Once again this year, the event center will house the fair exhibits, Brad’s World Reptiles, a dining area and some indoor vendors.
More vendors for food and other items will be outside the building’s front doors and in front of the event center parking lot along with the Antique Engine & Tractor Show and a National Guard display.
The carnival will once again be located in the parking area on the east side of the Winnemucca Event Center.
This year’s bigger-than-usual large animal exhibit will again take up the entire 4-H Livestock Pavilion, while the Small Animal Display — which formerly shared the pavilion—will be housed inside the Exhibit Hall, where fair exhibits used to be.
The Petting Zoo will be staged on the west side of the event center. Other events this year will stay at the Main Arena Outside, including the 98th annual Labor Day Rodeo and the expanded Great Basin Challenge.
Fair-goers may park in lots on both sides of Fairgrounds Road, while the smaller parking lot between the Exhibit Hall and the livestock stalls will be reserved for spectators at the Rodeo and Great Basin Challenge events; ample handicap parking will be available throughout the weekend.
For safety reasons, the portion of Fairgrounds Road between the Exhibit Hall and the Winnemucca Event Center will be closed during the four-day event as it has in the past.
Petersen agreed the setup has been somewhat challenging for both organizers and participants, “but in the end, it’s been a much better set-up and much better experience for everyone involved.”
A copy of this year’s event setup is available at www.LaborDayFair.com by clicking on the homepage and scrolling to the bottom of the screen.
