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"Each year we try to make
a few changes around the fair to keep the tradition exciting and
fresh," Bliefnick said. "I'm excited about the additions made to the
fair this year. They're intended to draw new visitors to Springfield
and offer something fresh to fairgoers that visit us year after
year." 2006 State Fair attractions include:
-- Located inside Gate 2 on the Illinois State Fairgrounds,
Hometown Pride is an opportunity for communities across Illinois
to showcase the best their city has to offer to thousands of
guests from across the state and the Midwest. Each day will
feature a different city. Leaders from Decatur, Champaign,
Quincy, Effingham, Kankakee, Jacksonville, Galesburg,
Bloomington, and the Southernmost Illinois Convention and
Tourism Bureau will highlight their history, industry and
tourism.
Sale of Champions
expanded -- For the
first time in the 154-year history of the fair, meat goats will
be added to the sale as well as a new category of grand
champions. The Land of Lincoln grand champion steer, barrow and
wether will be auctioned off. Land of Lincoln-certified
livestock are bred, born, owned and exhibited by residents of
the state of Illinois. Changes to the sale have been made to
reflect industry growth and showcase more of what the livestock
industry has to offer.
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Jungle attractions
-- Located just inside the Main Gate, the Jungle will
feature several new animal attractions this year. Additions
include "Close Encounters of the Exotic Kind,"
a mix of Royal Bengal tigers and African lions; "Great
Little Bear Show," featuring three North American black bears;
and "Live Shark Encounter," a shark show in which divers get
into a tank and feed sharks.
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Horseshoe eating
contest -- Located on the Lincoln Stage, GoldenPalace.net
will bring the first-ever horseshoe eating championship to the
Illinois State Fair on Saturday. GoldenPalace.net has placed a
total purse of $4,000 on this event, an official stop on the
2006 World Series of Competitive Eating.
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Drive-in movie --
A fun oasis themed like a classic drive-in movie that
encourages visitors to sit down and relax for a few minutes
while enjoying a cartoon on the big screen in the Hometown Pride
area. Fairgoers can get their picture taken in one of three
dream cars from another decade as they park and watch four
cartoons featuring Bugs Bunny, Roadrunner and friends.
[to top of second column] |
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Maximum
Velocity stunt show: Located in the Hometown Pride area,
this fast action on two and four wheels will certainly entertain
all ages and have everyone screaming for more. Maximum Velocity
is a professional bicycle, skateboard and in-line stunt team
featuring the hottest riders and skaters in their sport. These
expert daredevils perform such maneuvers as "540s," "tail
whips," "ice picks" and "tooth picks" -- soaring high above a
13-foot-tall, 16-foot-wide half-pipe, one of the largest
portable half-pipes in the world. Also featured is a
4-foot-high, 22-foot-long box jump from which riders perform
even more in-line and bike-bending wizardry, pulling off "back
flips," "front flips," "360s," "720s" and other stunts.
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We're recycling:
The Illinois Department of Agriculture is teaming up with
the lieutenant governor's office and the Illinois Green
Government Coordinating Council in an effort to bring recycling
to the 2006 Illinois State Fair. I-Cycle, the state's recycling
entity, is providing 50 recycling bins that will be placed
around the fairgrounds for aluminum and plastic bottles. This is
a pilot project that will be used to determine if recycling
efforts at the state fair can be expanded in the future.
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White Sox baseball
trophy -- Continuing the celebration of the White Sox World
Series championship, the White Sox and U.S. Cellular are
bringing the 2005 World Series trophy to the Illinois State
Fair. The authentic World Series trophy will be on display Aug.
19 in the U.S. Cellular tent across from the Emmerson Building
on Main Street from 1 to 4 p.m. The visit is part of a 45-city
tour across Illinois and northwest Indiana.
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Professional Rodeo
Cowboy's Association -- There will be two separate
professional rodeo competitions in the Arena during the 2006
Illinois State Fair, featuring seven events: bareback riding,
steer wrestling, calf roping, saddle bronc riding, WPRA barrel
racing, team roping and bull riding. The shows will take place
Aug. 18 at 6 p.m. and Aug. 19 at 8 p.m.
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Harness racing and
tractor pull events expanded -- Twilight harness horse
racing has been expanded to three evenings from two and will be
on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday in the grandstand. The truck
and tractor pull also will be expanded to three nights from a
day and a half and moved from the Grandstand to the Arena.
[Illinois
State Fair news release] |
