AMBOY, Ill. — The Lee County Fair will return in 2021 — and its board members are more than ready.
“We are thankful that we are coming back to what we know and love,” said Katie Pratt, secretary and registrar on the Lee County Fair Board.
The Lee County 4-H Fair and Junior Show will take place July 22-25 at the Lee County 4-H Fairgrounds, 1196 Franklin Road, Amboy.
When the board made the difficult decision to cancel their 2020 fair, thoughts turned to 2021. The early conversations, at the end of 2021 and the beginning of 2021, centered around a fair that would possibly take place under the guidelines and crowd size restrictions that were in place at the time.
“We keep saying that it’s easier to open up than it would be to close down. I am glad that our board started conversations about what a fair would look like in the most restricted of settings because going through that exercise gave us a chance to look at all the pieces of the fair. We got to look at our fair through a different set of eyes,” Pratt said.
One of the biggest changes that fairgoers will notice this year is that there isn’t a carnival.
“Our carnival company is not coming back and that is a decision that they made. They are from out of state and they had to plan their season and they couldn’t plan when they didn’t know what the guidelines would be in Illinois. So, they had to make a decision and they canceled their route through Illinois,” Pratt said.
But those who are fans of a carnival midway shouldn’t get disappointed just yet.
“We are working on another type of carnival-ish event with a local vendor who we are really excited about. I don’t have all the details, but we will have them on our Facebook page as they become available,” Pratt said.
The fan favorites, including truck and tractor pulls and a rodeo, will return to the 2021 Lee County Fair.
“Thursday and Friday night in the grandstand we will have our tractor and truck pulls. Thursday night is the garden tractors, as well, and then Friday night will be the Illini State Pullers,” Pratt said.
The Broken Horn Rodeo returns to the fair on Saturday night.
“We really enjoyed working with them and they put on a great show,” Pratt said.
For children, there will be a full schedule of activities.
“We will have pony rides, a petting zoo, AgLand, the activity tent for kids, and the County Fair Speedway, the remote control car racing,” Pratt said.
A popular event for fans of shooting sports will return to the fair after a few years’ absence.
“The National Wild Turkey Federation will be set up with their shooting sports demonstration. Kids will be able to come and do some target practice with BB guns and archery. This event was really popular when they came a couple of years ago so they are returning,” Pratt said.
Pratt said that the Marketplace, a vendor and craft fair, will return on Sunday. Booth spaces still are available for that event.
“We are actively looking for people who would like to come and set up in a booth space to sell their wares,” Pratt said.
When it comes to fair food, most of the fair’s usual food vendors will be returning and the fair’s patio dining area will host two ag-related events.
“On Thursday night on our patio, the Lee County Farm Bureau Young Leaders will be serving Italian beef sandwiches. On Friday night, the Lee County Pork Producers will be serving their pork chop sandwiches. The patio is open on Saturday night, so we are putting out the word that if an organization wants to come out and serve a meal as a fundraiser, we’ve got the space and they are welcome to join us on Saturday night,” Pratt said.
On Friday, Saturday and Sunday mornings of the fair, Teen Turf, the youth after-school organization in Amboy, will present a pancake and sausage breakfast fundraiser.
Pratt said the fair board continues to keep the events that have proved to be popular year after year.
“We have stuck with our traditional things. We still have a pedal pull on Sunday. We have pin dodgeball, which remains really popular with our young people,” she said.
The fair ends on Sunday with an event that allows everyone to blow off a little steam in a fun way — Big Wheel races.
“Picture Fisher Price Big Wheels and a 12- or 13- or 14-year-old trying to sit on it and drive it. We set up a track in the show barn and we race Big Wheels,” Pratt said.
The last race of the fair is for the members of the fair board.
“We are so exhausted and then we get on Big Wheels and attempt to race. That’s how we end our fair, hoping none of us die in that moment,” Pratt laughed.
The fair’s website continues to be updated with information on this year’s fair activities and contests. Pratt said the fair will also be offering updates on events on its Facebook page.
The fair can be reached at leecounty4hcenter.com or by phone at 815-857-2603.
Lee County 4-H Fair & Jr. Show
July 22-25
1196 Franklin Road, Amboy, Illinois