Music, rides, livestock and Casting Crowns on tap as Missouri State Fair opens this week in Sedalia

Summer is winding down, but the fun is about to start at the Missouri State Fair in Sedalia. The popular event opens on Thursday. The celebration of Missouri’s agriculture, which dates to 1901, will have plenty more to offer – from big-name music acts and a midway to auto racing and all sorts of shopping – during its annual run.

This year, Casting Crowns headlines the music on Aug. 16. You can get info about the concert HERE.

MSN shared details on what families need to know to plan a day at the fair.

• The fair will run from August 11 to 21. Gates will be open from 7:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily, although exhibit buildings typically close at 9 p.m. The midway remains open until between 11:30 p.m. and 1:30 a.m., depending on the weather and “the carnival company’s discretion.”
• Gate admission ranges from $3 (ages 6-12) to $12 (adults), but that’s fluid. Advanced admission of $10 is available through August 10 at Orscheln Farm & Home Stores and Break Time Convenience Stores. Plus, several special rates are available, including $5 for adults on opening day.
• Sedalia is about a 90-minute drive from Kansas City on Interstate 70 or U.S. 50. Families might consider taking Amtrak’s Missouri River Runner, which leaves Union Station at 8:40 a.m. (and from Independence or Lee’s Summit shortly thereafter) and arrives in Sedalia at 10:27 a.m. The return train departs Sedalia at 6:42 p.m. and arrives at Union Station at 8:45 p.m.
• Country star Trace Adkins will perform at 7:30 p.m. on opening night in the grandstand arena. Tickets are $35 to $45. Other big-name acts include Sam Hunt (August 13), ZZ Top (August 17) and KC and The Sunshine Band with The Four Tops (August 19). Go to www.com/entertainmentfor the full grandstand schedule.
• The 4-H activities, livestock displays and baking and gardening competitions (think huge watermelons and pumpkins) are, of course, the meat and potatoes of the fair. Highlights also will include the Budweiser Clydesdales, racing pigs, a BMX trick team, the Missouri Grown Trivia Challenge, truck and tractor pulls and sprint car auto racing.

For more information about this year’s state fair, visit www.mostatefair.org.  – Dwight Widaman | Editor