The Plumas Sierra County Fair Exhibit Guide is available
The Exhibit Guide for the 2021 Plumas Sierra County Fair is here and residents can decide what they want to bake, sew, grow or create to enter in this year’s event.
The theme for the 2021 Plumas Sierra County Fair is Celebrating Fairs Past. “Maybe we need to look to our past to remember what it is like to have a Fair after this pandemic,” said Fair Manager John Steffanic this week. “Even if we have to learn it all over again, it all begins with entering something in the 2021 Plumas Sierra County Fair, Aug. 11 – 15.”
Steffanic said that the number of competitive exhibits is a “direct reflection of the health of any fair,” and the Plumas Sierra County Fair Board is urging everyone to take a look at the exhibit guide and enter something. The 2019 fair saw the most dramatic increase in exhibits in decades! Part of the credit goes to better outreach through the schools and organizations, but a huge chunk of the credit goes to the PSCF Foundation, the non-profit group that supports our local Fair, Steffanic said.
The Foundation covered entry fees in most of the divisions offered in an effort to break down some of the barriers some novices may feel when entering something for the first time. Well, it worked! Total entries jumped up by over 500, compared to most years that might see a 100-entry swing up or down. The Foundation will do it again. All entries in the Floriculture building (except for the gardens and table settings) are free. All entries in the Home Arts building (except for quilts and professional divisions) are free. And new this year, all sculpture and poetry entries in the Art Barn are free.
The steps are simple: browse the exhibit guide, decide what you might like to enter, fill out the entry form, turn it in to the Fair office by the deadline (most are July 23, many of the Floriculture entries are due just the week before the Fair), and then bring your entries to the Fair on the dates shown in the guide. Since there are no fees, feel free to enter as many things as you want. For instance, if you think you might want to enter your COVID inspired sourdough bread, go ahead and enter it. When Fair time comes, and maybe there is a reason you can’t get the bread done, it’s no big deal. You aren’t out any money, but at least you could have entered the bread if you had gotten around to it.
There are many categories that are not what some people would think of at a Fair. There are certainly the classics: jelly, baked goods, zucchini, flowers and needlepoint. But there are also divisions that are unique and might not require a particular skill to enter. There is a Division for Giftwrapping. Do you write poetry? Enter your poems. Make a shadow box. The Fair actually provides the box, so all you have to do is gather the items you want to display and come to the fairgrounds to arrange them in the box. In 2019 there was a shadow box full of things that were found on the fairgrounds with a metal detector that was fascinating. You can enter soap or candles you have made. You can decorate a cake, pie or confection, even if you didn’t make it, the judging is on the decoration. Enter jerky, or salsa. Crochet a rug, sew a Christmas tree skirt. There are categories for all these.
If you have an African Violet, or a cactus, or a Boston Fern that thrives in your home, please share it with everyone by entering it in the Floriculture Building. Some people don’t have a green thumb, but love plants. There are several divisions for silk or dried flower arranging. Finally, everyone should know that to enter something from your garden, you only have to turn in an entry form the Friday before the Fair. Perhaps it is some cut flowers, or some fresh carrots or onions. Don’t forget about the oddities — largest vegetable, oddest shaped vegetable or the heaviest tomato. These are all things the public needs to see!
Printed Exhibit Guides are available at all Plumas Bank branches and public libraries. Copies can also be picked up at the Fair Office. A downloadable version is available on the Fair website: www.plumas-sierracountyfair.net. The Fair has also taken the extra step of breaking the book down by sections for those that still have dial up and don’t necessarily need the entire book. Livestock entries are due on June 18 and most all other entries are due July 23.
