Utah State Fair is underway, a"/> Utah State Fair is underway, a"/> Utah State Fair is a great state fair [slideshow] - The Salt Lake Tribune

Utah State Fair is a great state fair [slideshow]

Sean P. Means | The Salt Lake Tribune
A family experiences the swirls and hurls of the Pharaoh's Fury ride at the Utah State Fair.

Sean P. Means | The Salt Lake Tribune
Comic juggler Randy Cabral swings his clubs on the Gazebo Stage at the Utah State Fair. He started one gag with, "I call this trick 'Somebody's Going to Get Hurt.'"

Sean P. Means | The Salt Lake Tribune
This is not your grandparents' Utah State Fair: Urban artist JP, from Tru GD Art, airbrushes his graffiti-like designs on T-shirts in a booth at the fair.

Sean P. Means | The Salt Lake Tribune
The show must go on, even if there's nobody (or almost nobody -- check out the single patron up front) to hear it. So a shout-out to singer-guitarist Galen Young for persevering through his performance.

Sean P. Means | The Salt Lake Tribune
No, these guys didn't get lost on on the way to the Salt Lake Comic Con. Dylan King (left, as Two-Face) and Adam Garcia (as Black Mask), both of Tooele, went to the Utah State Fair to get their faces painted before heading over to Comic Con.

Sean P. Means | The Salt Lake Tribune
Amid all the food-chopping gadges and miracle mops, you can buy pretty much anything at the Utah State Fair -- even funeral planning. The Cricket spotted three different booths representing cemeteries or funeral homes, but only one had an actual casket.

Sean P. Means | The Salt Lake Tribune
The return of Twinkies to supermarket shelves was celebrated by none more heartily than the fair fried-foods industry, who quickly got back to work making the little gut bombs more unhealthy than they already were.

Sean P. Means | The Salt Lake Tribune
Riders for the Revolution Drill Team of Richfield take their horses out for a ride to acclimate them to the rodeo arena at the Utah State Fair, where they were set to perform Friday night.

Sean P. Means | The Salt Lake Tribune
And you thought people went to the fair to get away from things that remind them of work. Here, Sandy the log-rolling dog walks without getting anywhere at the Paul Bunyan Lumberjack Show at the Utah State Fair.

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Sean P. Means | The Salt Lake Tribune A family experiences the swirls and hurls of the Pharaoh's Fury ride at the Utah State Fair. Sean P. Means | The Salt Lake Tribune Comic juggler Randy Cabral swings his clubs on the Gazebo Stage at the Utah State Fair. He started one gag with, "I call this trick 'Somebody's Going to Get Hurt.'" Sean P. Means | The Salt Lake Tribune This is not your grandparents' Utah State Fair: Urban artist JP, from Tru GD Art, airbrushes his graffiti-like designs on T-shirts in a booth at the fair. Sean P. Means | The Salt Lake Tribune The show must go on, even if there's nobody (or almost nobody -- check out the single patron up front) to hear it. So a shout-out to singer-guitarist Galen Young for persevering through his performance. Sean P. Means | The Salt Lake Tribune No, these guys didn't get lost on on the way to the Salt Lake Comic Con. Dylan King (left, as Two-Face) and Adam Garcia (as Black Mask), both of Tooele, went to the Utah State Fair to get their faces painted before heading over to Comic Con. Sean P. Means | The Salt Lake Tribune Amid all the food-chopping gadges and miracle mops, you can buy pretty much anything at the Utah State Fair -- even funeral planning. The Cricket spotted three different booths representing cemeteries or funeral homes, but only one had an actual casket. Sean P. Means | The Salt Lake Tribune The return of Twinkies to supermarket shelves was celebrated by none more heartily than the fair fried-foods industry, who quickly got back to work making the little gut bombs more unhealthy than they already were. Sean P. Means | The Salt Lake Tribune Riders for the Revolution Drill Team of Richfield take their horses out for a ride to acclimate them to the rodeo arena at the Utah State Fair, where they were set to perform Friday night. Sean P. Means | The Salt Lake Tribune And you thought people went to the fair to get away from things that remind them of work. Here, Sandy the log-rolling dog walks without getting anywhere at the Paul Bunyan Lumberjack Show at the Utah State Fair.

The Cricket by Sean P. Means

· September 11, 2013 3:36 pm

This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

The 158th annual Utah State Fair is underway, and with it all manner of fun, excitement, food, entertainment and cute farm animals.

The Cricket took a long lunch hour at the Fairpark today, to get a feel for what's happening. He brings back these snapshots of the fun. (Click on the thumbnails at left to start the slideshow.)