Fair grandstand acts revealed

CRESCO - “Giddy up oom poppa oom poppa mow mow” is Oak Ridge Boys speak for “We’re comin’ to the 2018 Mighty Howard County Fair!”

The local fair is taking place Wednesday, June 20-Sunday, June 24, with the American country and gospel quartet performing as the headliner on Saturday, June 23’s Party in the Pit.

Even for those who aren’t country music fans, the Oak Ridge Boys’ iconic songs, such as “Elvira,” “Bobbie Sue” and “Thank God for Kids” are recognizable by most people. The group has been around since the 1940s and scored 12 gold, three platinum and one double platinum album, had more than a dozen national Number One singles and over 30 Top Ten hits.

Tom Barnes, executive secretary of the board, reported, “The concert is going to be something!” He added the fair board started upping the ante on events and entertainment when Cresco had its 150th celebration in 2016, and it shows as they are continuing that trend by nailing the Oak Ridge Boys.

“Usually when we release the acts, we get 9,000-10,000 views, but within three days, we had over 22,000 views for the Oak Ridge Boys.”

 

“In just 12 hours, we had over 12,000 views for Friday night’s Midland band.”

The “Party in the Pit” starts at 8 p.m., with A.C. Jones as the opening act. She is an SSM Nashville signed singer/songwriter and recording artist from Northeastern Ohio. 

“We’ve been looking at the Oak Ridge Boys for a couple years, and this year it worked out. They are a class act, and we are excited to be hosting them.”

• Other exciting grandstand events include:

Wednesday, June 20—ECIPA (East Central Iowa Pullers Association) Sanctioned Truck & Tractor Pull. The event will feature eight classes—Limited Pro Stock, Four-Wheel Drive Truck, Light Pro Farm, Heavy Pro Farm, Hot Farm, 8,500-pound Diesel Truck, 9,500-pound Diesel Truck and Open. The fun starts at 7 p.m.

• Thursday, June 21: One of the tried-and-true crowd favorites is the Stock Car Races. Races include Stock Cars, B-Mods and Hobby Stocks, 600 Mod-Lites and Four-Cylinder Hornets. Hot laps will start at 6:45 p.m. A pit pass is $30.

• Friday, June 22: Midland is the headliner, with band members Mark Wystrach, Cameron Duddy and Jess Carson. 

The band originally formed in Dripping Springs, Texas. Midland intentionally nods to the wild west with country music that is reminiscent of the 1970s and 80s, with a modern day twist.

Barnes says Midland is a very flamboyant group that is well-known with the younger generation.

Forgotten Highway will be the opening act, starting at 7 p.m. This Minneapolis-based band prides itself on being able to successfully walk the line between today’s modern country and yesterday’s country classics.

• Sunday, June 24: Demo Derby & Tuff Truck Competition will feature all the crashes fans have come to expect from these events. The fun starts at 7 p.m.

 

Grandstand Shows

There are five big nights of shows and events that take place during the fair. For many years, show-goers have been able to purchase a button that gets them into all five events. This year is no different. The deal of the year is to purchase a button for $30 (or $40 the week of the fair) and attend all the Grandstand events.

Buttons can be purchased at area businesses starting the week before Memorial Day. If a person wants to attend just one event, tickets can be purchased online at www.mhcfair.com starting in May.

(Single tickets will cost $15 for 14 and older; $7 for 9-13 youth; and under eight years of age are free. Single tickets for Friday night will be $30 and Saturday will be $25, so it makes sense to get a button!)

 

More Fun

The Grandstand shows are great, but the Mighty Howard County Fair has so many other offerings.

New this year is Los Moralitos Circus with animals, tricks and trapeze acts.

Back again are Nick’s Kids Show, Doyle Carving Niche’s Chainsaw Sculptures and facepainting.

The fair board is still getting the Expo Pavilion and Scheidel Plaza acts finalized.

As always, there are a lot of fun things to see at the Mighty Howard County Fair, and a lot of it is free!

Look for more events taking place during the 2018  fair in the months to come. Check out the fair’s website at www.mhcfair.com.