100 Things to see at the fair part 3

I had a unique opportunity at the 2008 Tennessee State Fair in Nashville, TN. There's so much going on all the time that you can't see everything in just one day. I was able to go multiple days with a pass to get into all of the events. It was difficult to narrow everything down to just 100 pictures. I have divided the photos into groups of 20 so that one blog post isn't too long. Like usual, click on any picture to enlarge.

100 Things to see at the fair #41: Frog



By now, I don't even remember why there was a small tank with a frog in the Agriculture Building. I was just happy he was front and center for me.

100 Things to see at the fair #42: Before the jump



This was taken right before the big jump, which is seen here.

100 Things to see at the fair #43: African Acrobats



100 Things to see at the fair #44: Spinning Wool



This lady was one of the nicest ladies I had the pleasure to meet at the fair. She and her husband had brought some of their prized sheep to show. Well after the judging was complete, she took wool sheared from their own sheep, dyed it the blue-ish color and she was spinning it when I got there.

100 Things to see at the fair #45: Quilting Demonstration



At the fair, the Volunteer Village is made up of several different artisans demonstrating their craft. The Quiltmaking lady, along with her husband, the grist mill operator, has come from Kentucky for several years in a row. She is one of the nicest people I have ever met.

100 Things to see at the fair #46: Blue & Yellow Macaw



The Blue and Yellow Macaw was the second bird to appear with the Tropical Illusions magic show. Here's the other.

100 Things to see at the fair #47: Tractor Pull




For those of you who've never seen a tractor pull, here's how it works in a nutshell. Hitched to the back of the red tractor it a second vehicle that probably has some technical name, but I'll call it "is to be pulled." To signify that the "is to be pulled" is hooked up properly, it turns on the wide green light. Then, when the tractor is ready, it begins to rev up and the white smoke emitting from it turn dark gray. Once the tractor starts to go and crosses the starting line, the cabin on the "is to be pulled" glides forward on top of the flatbed. Once the cabin reaches the end, they measure how far the tractor has pulled it. Then they spend 5 minutes towing the tractor away while they smooth out the dirt track for the next one. I wish I could say it was entertaining, but it wasn't my thing.

100 Things to see at the fair #48: Ferris Wheel



100 Things to see at the fair #49: Baton Twirlers



The Tennessee Twirlers were amazing to watch. Unfortunately, the action photos I took of the twirlers were not so interesting.

If you want to twirl, classes are starting, so call now. :)

100 Things to see at the fair #50: Thunderbolt



The Thunderbolt is one of those rides that goes faster than you think it will, and if you're expecting a very calm ride, it isn't.

For this ride, I set up the camera to focus in tight on one spot in the sun, and just held down the rapid-fire-take-a-picture-over-and-over mode as the riders kept whizzing by. This mother and daughter constantly had the best facial expressions each time they passed by.

100 Things to see at the fair #51 Riverboat Jim



Out at Volunteer Village, Riverboat Jim is a singer and Mark-Twain-esque storyteller. At the time of this picture, he was singing Oh, Susanna.

100 Things to see at the fair #52: Sleepy Kid



"Kid" as in 5-day-old baby goat. One thing I like about barnyard animals is they sleep in piles and use each other as pillows. I guess that is learned early.

If you think this is cute, watch the video I posted on youtube of what this fella was doing 30 minutes earlier.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=pXU7mKMEtB8

100 Things to see at the fair #53: Horse shed



The last two sheds at the fair are for horses and mules. I'd never seen horses look as affectionate as these did. Soon after this picture was taken, they both scooted back a few feet and eventually tried to lick each other through the fencing.

100 Things to see at the fair #54: Pottery Demonstration



Volunteer Village is made up of all kinds of Arts and Crafts.

100 Things to see at the fair #55: Model Train display



100 Things to see at the fair #56: Llama



This Llama was in the petting Zoo. Be careful, they spit!

100 Things to see at the fair #57: Powersurge



Powersurge is a newer ride, and perhaps the most popular based on the long lines of people willing to pay $6.25 (or 5 tickets) to ride it. I had trouble counting all the ways it spins a person. It also has brilliant lights turned on later in the day.

100 Things to see at the fair #58: Breadmaking contest



Fleischmann's Yeast sponsors a breadmaking contest, one of the lesser known contests at the fair. Hidden Valley Ranch sponsors a salad-making contest, too.

100 Things to see at the fair #59: Booker and Eric "The Red"



I discussed Eric "Badlands" Booker, on the left, in this previous photo. This photo was taken soon after the 8 minute contest was over.

Eric "The Red" Denmark takes his nickname from Eric "The Red" Torvaldsson, a viking. However, it is an apt description for his eating style, which made him the grossest competitive eater to watch. He brings with him a red colored liquid, and he dunks all of his food in the red liquid, which is permitted in the rules. In addition, during the contest, there was always a piece of red-colored Krystal hanging out of his mouth. I did take pictures of that and you should thank me for not posting them here.

Hello to anyone who found this photo here:
eatfeats.com/link-buffet-october-20-2008.html

100 Things to see at the fair #60: bike flips



Many of the stuntbikers were able to go up the ramp into the air and do a flip, but only if you cheered really loud for them

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