Arizona State Fair, Phoenix.
Held Oct. 7-30, this year’s Arizona State Fair debuted new events and promotions that helped increase attendance four percent from 2015. A total of 1,144,627 fairgoers visited the Phoenix fairgrounds during its run.
Although final numbers were not yet in at press time, gross sales from overall midway, food and parking were reportedly up about 7 percent on average compared with last year, according to Jen Yee, the fair’s assistant executive director.
In an effort to support gender equality, the fair held a promotion with ONE Community, a local organization that promotes social and cultural diversity, including the LGBT community. Approximately 3,500 fairgoers signed a Unity Pledge for free admission to the event. “We’re the first fair in the country to come out in support of gender equality,” said Yee.
Admission has remained the same since 2007, $10 for adults and $5 for children, with parking at $10 per car.
Another new and well-attended event was Lucha Libre, a Hispanic wrestling exhibition, sponsored by Cricket Wireless and the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
“On Sundays, we typically have 100,000 attendees, but this event put us over the top,” said Yee.
Another big success was the fair’s competitive entries division for fine, culinary and student art, which saw a 300 percent increase after the hiring of Nicki Hanger, director of competitive entries.
With a budget of $1 million, the Veteran’s Memorial Coliseum Concert Series presented 14 shows over 18 fair days. The highest attended show was heavy metal band Slayer, with 8,000 attendees. Other popular performances included The Flaming Lips, Iggy Azalea and Gavin DeGraw/Andy Grammer. Reserved seats were $20 and $10 each, with free general admission.
The midway, operated by Ray Cammack Shows (RCS) of Laveen, Ariz., included 70 rides and attractions. “This was a record year for food, games and rides,” said Chris Lopez, vice president, RSC. “Ride [revenues] were up 7.5 percent, food was up 6 percent and games were up 12 percent.”
This year, four new rides debuted, including the Big Wheel, a 33-meter Ferris wheel; a Twister ride; the Endeavor and Puppy Roll for younger children. The most popular rides were the Sky Ride, La Grande, Wild River, Euro Slide and Rave Wave.
Drone view: Arizona State Fair
Along with 12 new ticket boxes and 10 self-serve kiosks, the cashless midway added food to its ride and game payment cards.
Rides and games cost $2 on Wednesdays, while midway games cost $2 on Sundays. Arizona kids ages 5 to 14 who read three books approved by a teacher or guardian received three ride passes. Unlimited ride wristbands were available on Thursdays for $30 and Sundays for $50.
Other fair discounts included free admission for Univision subscribers on Fridays, which brought in 8,000 attendees.
A food drive on Wednesdays, where those who brought in four cans of food received free fair admission, was a huge success. This year, 124,000 pounds of food was donated to a local food bank, 30,000 more pounds than in 2015.
Highlights at this year’s fair included Rock U: The Institute of Rock and Roll, which showcased the history of the genre from the British Invasion to the present. “This included old and new guitars and drums; showcases of different listening mediums, like turntables, cassette players and CD players; and a section on one-hit wonders,” said Yee.
Other popular exhibits were Lights of the World, a Chinese lantern festival, and Jurassic Trail, which displayed animatronic dinosaurs.
New food vendors included Ricardo's Hawaiian Feast, which offered the Maui Wowie, a half pineapple filled with rice, meat and vegetables and Eli’s French Bakery, which served up French Sable Macaroons.
“The media was buzzing about the fair’s Deep Fried Pumpkin Pie, Frito Pie Chili Cheeseburger and Flaming Cheetos Corn on the Cob,” said Yee. “The Bacon Nutella Pickle also was new this year.”
Coca Cola, Budweiser distributor Hensley & Co., Metro PCS and Arizona Milk Producers were among this year’s fair sponsors.
The 2017 Arizona State Fair will tentatively be held Friday, Oct. 13 through Sunday, Oct. 29.
“We will go through our feedback from guest services comments, deploy a survey, debrief and then see where we’ll make adjustments for next year,” said Yee. “The fair is always evolving.”
Interviewed for this article: Chris Lopez, (602) 763-2179; Jen Yee, (602) 252-6771