Crowds Say Fair-Well Until Next Year

Sunday at the Ventura County Fair was a day for last chances.

The last chance for a deep-fried, extra-long corn dog. The last chance to be whipped on the Zipper. The last day to say goodbye to an event that only visits once a year, and then disappears like Brigadoon.

“I’m here on the last day to get my fix,” said Marilyn Lee of Thousand Oaks. “But I honestly think I can only take all this once a year.”

The 2001 Ventura County Fair ended pretty much the way it began, as thousands of area residents lined up for their yearly sensory overload: trips on gut-churning rides, sugar-topped elephant ears, and visits to see the fattened hogs and skittish goats.

And it meant 352 days, 22 hours, 30 minutes and 22 seconds until the next fair will begin, at least at about 12:30 p.m., according to a countdown sign in fair publicist Devlin Raley’s office.

“The last day is always a relief. We can reflect on our accomplishments and our year of preparations,” he said. “We’re already having discussions about next year.”

This year, fair officials were challenged by a car chase Thursday that shut down the Ventura Freeway for hours and kept many drivers and at least eight buses stranded. But though it was a momentary hassle, Raley said it didn’t affect attendance.

The total attendance for the first 11 days through Saturday night was 247,318, well above the 219,539 during the same time frame last year.

By closing time at 10 p.m. Sunday, Raley was expecting a grand total of 275,000 for the event’s 12-day run, equivalent to more than one-third the county’s population.

Last Chance for a Deal on Flowers

“We have a huge day going out there,” he said Sunday afternoon.

At the Big Island Plants flower stand, the fragrance of plumerias and tuberose drew visitors. The vendors were cutting prices on the last day, in preparation for packing up and heading to Anaheim for another event this week. It was the last chance for a great buy on bromeliads.

“I got to see a lot of old faces. I got to meet a lot of new people,” said a hibiscus-crowned Gina Hernandez of Santa Paula, who helped run the stand. “The really nice people come back and they remember me.”

Kymberlee Luna, 12, of Ventura, just returned from Mexico, but she made sure to visit Ventura’s Seaside Park for the fair’s final day.

“The first thing I wanted to do was go to the fair,” she said.

Finding Relaxation Amid the Chaos

They had only been there a few minutes, and her mom was already sitting down at a “Footsie Wootsie” vibrating massage machine.

“Yeah, they’re dragging me all over the place,” Connie Luna said, sighing happily.

Dale and Dawn Dana of Ventura figured the last day would have sparse crowds. They had tried to come earlier but turned around and headed home after witnessing a traffic backup at the entrance.

“I just didn’t want to walk three miles here,” Dawn Dana said. “We’re planning our whole day here.”

Transplants from Wyoming, the Danas marveled at how gigantic the Ventura County Fair seemed. “Oh, this is huge,” Dawn said, “but you don’t have as many animals.”

At Susy’s BBQ, the line was particularly long as folks queued up for spicy treats. Barbara and Larry Hockemeyer of Thousand Oaks said it was definitely worth the wait. They came on the last day to see livestock champions paraded around the grandstand.

“The last day is our day. It’s a tradition,” Barbara Hockemeyer said.

“We like to see the four-legged animals. And the two-legged ones,” Larry said.