The Schoharie County Sunshine Fair is preparing to celebrate its 150th year next week in Cobleskill.
The fair is scheduled to run Tuesday, Aug. 11 to Sunday, Aug. 16. Rides, performances, demolition derbies, tractor pulls, vendors and many more festivities are planned throughout the fair.
Fair Director Tim Purcell said Thursday, Aug. 6 that the fair will celebrate both the fair’s milestone anniversary and 250th anniversary of the United States’ founding.
“Everything’s going to be red, white and blue here. We’re going to be super patriotic,” Purcell said.
He added that the fair will be selling commemorative coins, t-shirts, mugs “and all that kind of fun stuff.”
He said that on Sunday, the final evening of the fair, there will be a parade that includes the Buffalo Bills’ official percussion band.
“They put on a real great, lively show,” he said.
The headline performer, scheduled for Wednesday, is country music artist Joe Nichols. Other musical entertainment acts include modern country band Skeeter Creek on Friday and 1960s British pop band Peter Noone and Herman’s Hermits on Saturday.
“The favorites of the tractor pulls will be going on, as well as all the shows in the horse arenas, and the the cattle barns, and the sheep, and the horses, and the rabbits,” Purcell said.
A new demolition derby with buses will be Thursday.
“I’m excited to go see that,” Purcell said.
Vendors have flocked to the fair this year in numbers that mean some had to be be turned away because the fairgrounds were at capacity, Purcell said, “which is a great problem for a fair to have.”
Purcell, who said he has served as fair director for about the last four years, said what he likes about the fair is that “it gives people a chance to come down and connect” with people they have not seen in a while. “It’s a great place for families to make memories. We really want to be known as the family fair in Schoharie County,” he said.
Event details
The fair runs on a pay-one-price per day model, Purcell said.
“We’re a one-price fair, so everything you pay at the gate will include all of your entertainment, all of your rides, all of your shows, all the ground attractions, which is fantastic,” he said.
Ticket prices are $18 on Tuesday, $20 on Wednesday and Thursday and $23 on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Special rates will be available on certain days for seniors age 62 and older and for veterans and active duty military service members.
A free tram will be used to shuttle people from free parking areas to the fairgrounds, Purcell said.
For additional event details, visit www.sunshinefair.org.