Families see animals, try rides, get tempted by treats at Stanislaus County Fair

Family fun, fried food and fundraising for good causes – it has to be fair time.

With the serious heat holding off through its first weekend, families packed in for “Free ’til 3” Sunday at the Stanislaus County Fair.

“The food and the animals” brought Brian Tym of Turlock and his wife, Donna, to munch on fried zucchini and catch a few acts at the free stages.

Along one of the roadways lined with food trailers, Marie Silva of Hilmar helped customers with linguica sandwiches and linguica corn dogs, a specialty of the longtime Knights of Columbus Father Heslin Council booth.

“Meeting with the different people – the new people and some of the ones that come every year,” Silva said, is her favorite part of the fair. She and other volunteers work four-hour shifts, an annual tradition for most.

Organizer Don Grishaw estimated the booth nets the nonprofit half to two-thirds of its budget each year, paying for maintenance and repairs at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Turlock.

“All the little rides – we looked forward to the fair for the kids,” said Paris Rambo of Modesto as she ate some freshly fried doughnuts riding in a stroller top.

Strollers were everywhere Sunday – three-wheeled jogging types, double-wide models, a double model with a backward car seat on top and a toddler-size seat below. Classic throw-in-the-trunk umbrella-style riders appeared to take a back seat to serious transports.

Rambo had parked her stroller in the shade beyond the merry-go-round as her extended family group planned their next foray into the lines for rides or food. Her 4-year-old tugged on her hand to head to the face-painting booth.

Looking around the grounds, Rambo said her childhood did not include the fair.

“It’s my first year,” she said. “I didn’t think it would be this big.”

“The animals – all of them” drew Olivia, 12, and her mom, Karen Zandarski of Modesto, to the fair. It was the first time Zandarski had attended in about 15 years, she estimated, and she planned to make the most of it.

“Icees and french fries are on my list,” she said with a chuckle, adding, “It helped that it was free today, too.”

For George Rodarakis of Modesto, however, the fair is a must-do every summer.

“The Kids Zone has been a huge hit. The airplanes, the race cars, the carousel,” he said, waving a now-empty container of Dippin’ Dots.

“I loved it as a kid. We came every year. I couldn’t wait. I love it as an adult because of my kids,” Rodarakis said. Sunday was the family’s second visit this year, and they plan to come twice more before the week is out.

Carol Sanchez of Turlock, sitting on bleachers with a squirmy 3-year-old, said her fair visit was all about him.

“He just wanders around. I just chase him,” she said, smiling, before jumping up and pulling him back on her lap. The juggling show was about to begin.

Between interruptions, Sanchez got to see Scotty & Trink juggle fire, knives and good-natured insults. The banter was real, the two veteran street performers said, part of what they enjoy about coming to the fair.

“Here we get to just out act, no products, no corporate stuff,” said Katrine Spang-Hanssen, the Trink half of the show.

The duo, who weave a lot of married jokes into their act but are not a couple in real life, travel about a third of the year, said partner Scott Meltzer. They go to conventions, trade shows and sales meetings around the United States and Europe, but summer is their busy time, booked with fairs.

They make time for fun shows such as the Turlock gig, Spang-Hanssen said, “Plus, the people at the fair here are super-nice. That makes a difference.”

This story was originally published July 12, 2015 at 7:40 PM with the headline "Families see animals, try rides, get tempted by treats at Stanislaus County Fair."