Fair weather begins with a little bit of foul

Poor weather hasn't dampened the spirits at the Trumbull County Fair.
BY STEPHEN SIFF
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
BAZETTA -- The early-morning thunderstorm knocked down a vendor's tent at the Trumbull County Fairgrounds, turned dirt roads into mud pies and set barns full of animals howling just a few hours before gates rolled back for opening day Tuesday
In a flimsy canvas wall tent of Civil War design, Pioneer Sgt. Bob Smith, 105th Ohio Volunteer Infantry, slept through it all.
"Slept like a bear," said Smith, as he helped pitch tents for the rest of his unit a few dozen yards from where the vendor's tent came down. "The whole storm, I never heard a thing."
This is fair weather in Trumbull County: Sunny and humid, with temperatures reaching into the 90s and periods of violent rain.
Spirits are up
But the downpours Monday and Tuesday, and forecasts of more to come, haven't dampened spirits or altered expectations.
"We had a little bit of rain, but the storms haven't really hit," said fair board member Terry Evans.
"I'm going to go get my sunglasses," said fair board president Richard Roscoe.
The fair's midway and most main paths are paved, but parking lots are just grass. As of Tuesday, that was grass and mud.
"If it rains tonight, we will have a little more slip-sliding tomorrow," said Norma Brink, leader of Job's Daughters Bethel 49, a service group that manages fair parking.
At the parking lot at the east end of the fairgrounds, a few cars required a good push to get back on the road.
"The main paths are gravel, but if you pull off, you are going to get stuck," said Brittany Fishel, of Bristol, a member of Job's Daughters Bethel 35 in Niles.
Inside the fairgrounds, the mud starts where pavement ends. Paths around 4-H livestock barns and the RV camping area are swamped with puddles and serious fairgoers have ditched sneakers and flip-flops for calf-high rubber boots.
Cow-cleaning challenge
No one seems to mind, but it does make it harder to keep the cows clean, said Kenny Wellman, adviser to both Trumbull County Dairy Feeders and Cows 'R' Us 4-H clubs.
"We take them to the wash rack, clean them up, and by the time we get them back, their feet are dirty," he said.
The fair board promised to lay slag outside the cow barns and show ring before the animals' first show today, he said.
Among old-timers, the Trumbull County Fair is known for its poor weather.
Past storms have sent pedestrians scurrying for cover and toppled tents, said John Vlahos, who has been selling gyros at the fair for 27 years.
It even rained on Johnny Cash when he played at the fair years ago.
Rain right before fair this year pales by comparison, he said.
"It looks like it is going to be a beautiful fair in Trumbull County," Vlahos said. "We have got the rain out of the way, we got the storms out of the way, now we are ready."
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