You know the party’s over when the cows go home.
Late Sunday afternoon at the Saratoga County Fairgrounds, the Guernsey, Angus and Hereford cows were led out of the dairy barn and into trucks to cart them back to more familiar lodging. Even though their six-day accommodations came with lots of fresh hay, the constant companionship of their owners, and blasts of cool air from the largest fans on the grounds, there weren’t many moos of protest as they made their departure. It was the humans who were doing the whining.
It went by too fast, said Nick Hanehan, 14, hanging out in the barn with his brother, Liam, 10, and cousin Justin, 13. `This really is the best part of summer, and we’re sorry it’s over.`
The Hanehan trio was nonetheless basking in pride as owners of a Jersey cow named Queso, who was bedecked with blue ribbons for winning champion status in the fair competitions.
`The cows know they weren’t home, but as long as they get their food, they’re happy,` said Nick Hanehan.
After a county fair week plagued by thunderstorms, Sunday’s last call before the close of the season brought perfect temps and moderate breezes. Although attendance figures won’t be available for at least another week, fair manager Dick Rowland said the fair kicked off with a bang on opening day Tuesday, July 17.
`We set records on opening day,` said Rowland. `Obviously, the weather caused some of the daily attendance to fluctuate, but we had a very strong finish.`
Sunday was one last blast of summer fair fun, with flower arranging seminars, a dog obedience contest, the Best of Fair talent finals, and the last chance to lose your wits on the Ring of Fire and the Gravitron.
An Amusements of America employee running the giant Ferris Wheel said it would take five to six people 10 hours to dismantle the largest and most glittering ride on the midway.
One of Sunday’s most popular events in the afternoon heat was the ice-cream-eating contest in the dairy pavilion, when 20 contenders lined up to scarf down a pint of their choice of vanilla or chocolate Stewart’s ice cream.
`We do let the pints melt a little so they can be slurped like a milkshake,` said marketing specialist Amy Sweeney. `There aren’t any chunks in these flavors so there isn’t much chewing involved.`
Josh Pailey, 12, of Galway, was the contest winner after wolfing down a pint of chocolate in 1 minute and 22 seconds. His prize? A year’s worth of Stewart’s ice cream.
Josh attributed his sweet success to a healthy appetite.
`I made sure I was hungry when I started,` said Pailey. `That, and I’ve had lots of practice.`
Around 11 p.m., the baby ducks were sold for $3 each at the 4-H center, students took their award-winning photographs and artwork off display boards, bunnies and guinea pigs were carried out in cages. One man left the fair gates with a rooster tucked under his arm.
At the midway, a good-sized crowd, including a mix of teens and families with children dozing in strollers, cruised the brightly lit circle one last time. Many were clutching stuffed bulldogs, silk roses or large cloth basketballs won at booths that took as much luck as skill. Carnival workers cajoled people to take one last shot at popping a balloon with a dart or tossing a ping-pong ball into a fishbowl.
Signs that once said `the line starts here` were replaced with `help wanted` signs for local people to join the crews tearing down the massive rides and getting them onto trucks for their next destination.
Fair clean-up crews began the early part of the job of dismantling and scrubbing down the grounds. Sunday night, a crew of three guys went around to shut down green and white tents and empty 150 trash cans and two 40-yard trash containers.
`It is amazing how much garbage people just throw around,` said crew member Tom Peet. `But we’ll have 12 people out here working and in two weeks, we’ll have it all cleaned up in time for the next event, the dog show.“
