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ROCHESTER - Thursday afternoon's reopening of the reborn Rochester Fair was met with a robust round of thunderstorms, but that didn't dampen the enthusiasm of fair organizers and vendors who danced round raindrops and puddles trying to put the finishing touches on rides, exhibits and midway games of chance and skill.
A grand opening at 3 p.m. outside the Exhibition Hall was held under a soft rain with fair Ambassador Joel Sherburne proclaiming the fair open and welcoming the fair's special guest, 101-year-old Bill Harris of Hopkinton.
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| Rochester Fair board President Nancy Gilbert presents 101-year-old Bill Harris of Hopkinton, right, a Rochester Fair T-shirt, as Fair Ambassador Joel Sherburne looks on. |
When the carnival rides were expected to open around 4 p.m., however, many were still not completely set up, while some food concession stands still didn't have the go-ahead from safety officials.
One of the midway attractions that allowed patrons to test their pitching skills couldn't use its radar equipment used to calculate pitch speed due to the rain till late in the afternoon.
But within an hour or so, many of the rides were in service and the cacophony of game hawkers filled the air much to the delight of parents who'd brought their young children on a day when many of the older kids didn't show up due to school and homework.
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| Matt Troiano and wife, Sarah, of Union, who build beautiful, sturdy pet beds. They don't do Facebook, so if you want one, you have to come to the fair's Exhibition Hall. $200 for a big dog bed like the one here. Dogs prefer to sleep off the floor, Troiano says. |
It was a perfect day, however, for Melissa Schwartz of Ossipee, who brought her 10-month-old twins, Aden and Zoe, to savor their first Rochester Fair.
Schwartz said the two were enjoying the sights and sounds, and likely the smells, of their first fair. Coincidentally, right next to them a pair of Fiesta Show workers were doling out huge sausage subs with all the grilled onions and peppers you could handle. Along with a nice heaping helping of fries, $13.
Another popular venue for many was the beer concession where bluesman Al Roux played Thursday at 7 p.m. Roux said he'd be back to perform several times during the fair.
After weeks of uncertainty over whether the Exhibition Hall and Grandstand would be approved by fire officials for use during the fair, Rochester Fair board president Nancy Gilbert said it was a triumph that both had been approved, but worried that the late approval had frustrated fair officials' efforts to induce more major vendors to fill the Exhibition Hall.
Many such longtime vendors, like Calef's Country Store of Barrington, were no-shows on Thursday.
"We couldn't very well market the spots since we didn't know if we would be OK'd to use the hall," Gilbert said.
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| THAT'LL BE OVER EVERYTHING - Rochester Police Sgt. Eric Babine lets fly with what turned out to be a 53 mph fastball during Thursday's opening day at the Rochester Fair. |
Rochester Fire officials have said they will sit down with RAMA, the board that oversees the fair, to discuss needed improvements for next year a couple of weeks after this year's fair so the marketing issues won't cloud next year's fair, Gilbert said.
Meanwhile, around 6:30 p.m. Circus Hollywood owner Serge Coronas, sitting in his Gator outside his Big Top, said he still hadn't gotten the OK by safety officials and that his circus' scheduled 7 p.m. performance would likely be delayed till 8 p.m.
Despite the minor snafus, however, those that came out to the fair on opening night were delighted with having the Rochester Fair - proud tradition that she is - back in business.
After all, it's a new fair and a new Rochester Fair board that took over a financially strapped institution on the brink of insolvency just 16 months ago.
Like the old Virginia Slims commercial, "You've come a long way, baby."
Today's fair opens at 4 p.m. with trailer racing in the Grandstand at 7 p.m.
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