(Spencer)– Another Clay County Fair is now in the books. The 2026 run concluded yesterday (Sun.). General Manager/CEO Jason Brockshus says it was another successful run, even with the challenging weather…
“Well it was a wet one. You know it’s been several years since we had a wet fair but kudos to our fair goers, they still came out. We’re still tallying our final numbers but both Saturdays were very, very well attended. Even throughout the week, so. I’m anticipating we’re a little bit down but not as much down as we could have been with the wet weather. Our vendors seemed very happy. People were out eating fair food and still riding carnival rides. We had all the shows happen in the grandstand except one. We were unable to do that Friday night race but other than that everything got in, so. I would say by all measures a successful fair.”
Brockshus says the wide variety of entertainment this year was another good draw for the fair…
“You know I think having a comedian in the grandstand really went over well. Gabriel Fluffy Iglesias had a great crowd and it was fun to hear over three thousand people all laughing, having a good time. That’s what the fair’s all about is kind of forgetting our day to day worries and coming together with family and friends and creating all those great memories. And then of course all the livestock shows. You know those kids work all year long and this is kind of their last hurrah to show off all those animals so really well attended livestock shows. And then I always look to bring in an animal act and this year we were able to get in elephants, The Elephant Encounter, and those seats were packed every show, Steve, so it was very well attended. The diversity we had in entertainment was well received and we hope to replicate that in future years.”
And even though this year’s fair has just concluded, Brockshus says preparations for the 2027 Clay County Fair are well underway…
“Actually have a couple of acts booked for our free entertainment next year and we’ll be looking at those things. You know the planning kind of overlaps from year to year so we can’t wait until the fair’s all the way done to start planning for the next year so we want to get a trend and we want to get on the radar for some of those artists to come join us in Spencer. You know, we pride ourselves on having world class entertainment, blue ribbon competition and a family fun environment. That is a year-round process and we have a lot of people that really support this fair, are passionate about it, and a wonderful board of directors that tries to hang onto tradition and bring new things in, so. Hopefully we can maintain that world’s greatest county fair moniker and people enjoy it year to year.”
He again reminds everyone of special opportunities available to leave a lasting legacy on the Clay County Fair by contributing to the Clay County Fair Charitable Trust Fund; the Plant The Future tree planting program or by donating to the Clay County Fair Endowment Fund. You can find more information at claycountyfair.com.
