News from Iowa State Fair

DES MOINES, IA (07/20/2015)(readMedia)-- Begin your "Fair Tour" with a wide variety of new discoveries to taste, watch and experience at this year's Iowa State Fair. New Fair foods, attractions and entertainment await you in addition to the many traditional Fair favorites.

Foods

This year's Fair foods feature over a dozen new items. New treats include food contest finalists Ultimate Bacon Brisket Bomb, Corn in a Cup, and Toasted Coconut Caramel Cluster. Try them all and vote for your favorite. Fair Squares, the official Fair treat, will also debut the newest flavor, Chocolate Marshmallow Malt, a tasty treat comprised of marshmallows, chocolate chips, cocoa puffs and malted milk powder.

Attractions

Whether you're a lifelong fairgoer or a day-tripping tourist, adventure and excitement are waiting for you at the 2015 Iowa State Fair. Our Fair experts are already hard at work scouting out the best spots and unearthing hidden gems to customize a tour that is perfect for you and your travel companions. Whether you're a foodie, an avid animal lover, an entertainment junkie or just someone looking for the nooks and crannies around the Fairgrounds, you'll be able to leave knowing you saw the hottest spots around the grounds. Audio tours will be live starting August 13.

The first phase of Ruan Plaza, a pedestrian friendly plaza connecting Grand Avenue to the Richard O. Jacobson Exhibition Center, will be complete for this year's Fair. The Plaza will feature a boulevard area with improved utilities and access for vendors and exhibitors. This beautification project will also include 20-foot wide walkways to allow for easier pathways from one end of the Fairgrounds to the other. Phases two and three will resume after the 2015 Fair.

Stop by the John Deere Agriculture Building to experience "It Takes an Iowan," a new interactive exhibit focused on Iowans as leaders in the ongoing effort of providing food for the nation and the world. The exhibit will highlight the advancement of technology to better produce food, as well as education about agriculture around the world. Learn that Iowans are not only leaders in feeding the world, but also in education, technology, communication, legislation and transportation.

Be sure to stop by the Patty and Jim Cownie Cultural Center this year and visit local artist Ben Schuh as he creates a one-of-a-kind mural in the atrium during the Fair. The mural will feature both naturally-occurring and man-made points of interest in Iowa such as wind turbines, the High Trestle Trail Bridge, 4-H exhibitors, farmsteads and much more. Stop by to see the mural come to life during the 11 days of the Fair.

Runners and joggers alike will have the opportunity to experience a 5K race like no other. The ninth annual Fairgrounds 5K, which has traditionally been held in November, is during the Fair this year and will take place on Saturday, August 22nd at 7:30 a.m. The route will take you down the Grand Concourse, through the hills of the Campgrounds, and along Rock Island. You'll see vendors, campers and livestock on your adventure across the Fairgrounds. It's a perfect chance to get your exercise in while supporting the Blue Ribbon Foundation and their renovation efforts.

Stage Entertainment

The new MidAmerican Energy Stage, formerly known as Fairview Stage, will debut at this year's Fair - complete with new restrooms and additional seating to enjoy a variety of entertainment. The larger stage will host some of our best free entertainment yet.

This year's line-up features southern rock band 38 Special. The group boasts more than twenty million in record sales, with hits such as "Hold On Loosely," "Second Chance," "Back Where You Belong" and more. Other rock groups include Head East, Autograph, Get the Led Out, and Steelheart.

After thirty years together, Restless Heart is still enjoying one of the most successful careers in country music history. With hits that include "I'll Still Be Loving You" and "When She Cries," their success includes six number one hits and the 1990 Vocal Group of the Year from the Academy of Country Music Awards. Other country acts include Haley & Michaels, Dan + Shay, Raelynn and Big Smo.

Back by popular demand, the self-proclaimed "Glee-meets-Stomp" group Vocal Trash will perform daily on the MidAmerican Energy Stage. Also returning is funk band Here Come the Mummies and Hairball, the world's ultimate 80s arena rock impersonation act.

"Nothing Compares" to the excitement that awaits Fairgoers August 13-23.

# # #

Frequently ranked as one of the top events in the country, the Iowa State Fair is the single largest event in the state of Iowa and one of the oldest and largest agricultural and industrial expositions in the country. Annually attracting more than a million people from all over the world, the Iowa State Fair located at East 30th and East University, just 10 minutes from downtown Des Moines is Iowa's greatest celebration with a salute to the best in agriculture, industry, entertainment and achievement. "Nothing Compares" to the 2015 Iowa State Fair, August 13-23, 2015. For more information, visit www.iowastatefair.org.

Support the River Cities' Reader

Get 12 Reader issues mailed monthly for $48/year.

Old School Subscription for Your Support

Get the printed Reader edition mailed to you (or anyone you want) first-class for 12 months for $48.
$24 goes to postage and handling, $24 goes to keeping the doors open!

Click this link to Old School Subscribe now.



Help Keep the Reader Alive and Free Since '93!

 

"We're the River Cities' Reader, and we've kept the Quad Cities' only independently owned newspaper alive and free since 1993.

So please help the Reader keep going with your one-time, monthly, or annual support. With your financial support the Reader can continue providing uncensored, non-scripted, and independent journalism alongside the Quad Cities' area's most comprehensive cultural coverage." - Todd McGreevy, Publisher