Unveiling the Magic: Inside the NC State Fair with Heather Overton

Step into the magic of the North Carolina State Fair! In this episode, we chat with Heather Overton from the NC Department of Agriculture to bring you the scoop on the state's most exciting 11 days of the year. Discover the rich history of the fair, its deep roots in agriculture, and the traditions that have stood the test of time since 1853. Learn about the fair's impact on local farming, the unique attractions, and the logistics behind organizing such a grand event. Explore why the NC State Fair remains a beloved celebration for families, friends, and newcomers. Don't miss insights on the fair's economic impact, must-try foods, new additions, and tips for navigating the grounds.

00:00 Welcome to the North Carolina State Fair
01:45 Interview with Heather Overton
02:42 History and Evolution of the Fair
05:32 Agriculture's Role and Importance
12:05 Challenges and Economic Impact
14:36 New Developments and Future Plans
16:12 Navigating the Fairgrounds
17:27 Parking Tips for the Fair
19:13 Bringing New Vendors to the Fair
20:40 Exciting New Foods at the Fair
22:37 Funny Fair Stories
24:20 Must-See Spots at the Fair
27:37 Animal Exhibits and Logistics
30:13 Favorite Fair Foods
31:29 Fair Dates and Ticket Information

Creators and Guests

Host

Melissa

Host of What's Up, Wake + social media manager + writer + travel editor

What is What’s Up, Wake?

What’s Up, Wake covers the people, places, restaurants, and events of Wake County, North Carolina. Through conversations with local personalities from business owners to town staff and influencers to volunteers, we’ll take a closer look at what makes Wake County an outstanding place to live. Presented by Cherokee Media Group, the publishers of local lifestyle magazines Cary Magazine, Wake Living, and Main & Broad, What’s Up, Wake covers news and happenings in Raleigh, Cary, Morrisville, Apex, Holly Springs, Fuquay-Varina, and Wake Forest.

36 What's Up Wake State Fair
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[00:00:00]

Melissa: Step right up and get ready for the magic of the North Carolina State Fair, it's almost time to smell the funnel cakes. Hear the squeals of adrenaline junkies, and stare in awe at the award-winning pumpkins. Certainly a lot has changed since the first North Carolina State Fair in 1853, but some things have stood the test of time.

For one, the focus remains [00:01:00] on one of our state's, biggest and most storied industries, agriculture, honoring its heritage. Showcasing North Carolina's farmers produce and livestock. Not to mention bragging rights have always been a part of the fair, whether it's a contest for the state's biggest zucchini, the year's best decorated cake or fattest pig, a blue ribbon is a bigger prize than a life size stuffed animal.

And simply the tradition of going with family and friends. Returning year after year for rides, food laughs, and Community. From Funnel Cakes to Ferris wheels, it's time to peel back the curtain and get the scoop. Today I'm chatting with someone who can give us a peek behind the state's most exciting 11 days of the year.

Please welcome from the North Carolina Department of Agriculture, Heather Overton. Hi Heather. Hi. Thank you for having me. I am really excited. I've been begging you to come on, however, this is obviously your most busy time of year. You guys were [00:02:00] recently at the Mountain State Fair near Asheville, and now we are gonna be talking about the NC State Fair here in Raleigh.

So you guys stay really busy in the fall.

HEATHER OVERTON: We do the, the Mountain Fair is a good warmup for the mm-hmm. For the big event with the state fair. And it's, it's a beautiful, you couldn't ask for a, a prettier setting than Nashville. It's especially what in September is that when the Mountain State Fair is?

Yes. It always starts right after Labor Day. Okay. And it's, it's a very much a smaller scale fair than the state fair, but all the elements that you would expect to find at a fair is there. So it's, it's a nice. It's a nice fair, and I encourage everyone to make a trip to the mountains and experience for it for themselves.

Melissa: Can you talk to us about what the main purpose of the fair is? Both when the fair originated and what it is today?

HEATHER OVERTON: Well as you mentioned, the first fair was in 1853 and fairs at the time were they were [00:03:00] social events and they were, designed to bring the agricultural community together. Now a fair in 1853 would look very different than a fair today.

Mm-hmm. Most of the people who came came to basically learned new agricultural techniques. I mean, if you think about it, back in 1853, you didn't have. The internet, you didn't have tv. You just had, you had to go places to learn what new equipment might be out there, what new methods that there were for agricultural production.

And one, one of the early faires, a big exhibit at that year's fair was upgraded technology and chicken production.

Melissa: Mm.

HEATHER OVERTON: So very different. You know, the, the fair was not run by the Department of Agriculture in 1853. In its early years, it was run by an agricultural society. And a fun fact is one year of the agricultural society was run by Edith Vanderbilt, who was also a big, oh [00:04:00] yes.

Okay. She was you know, and it was odd at the time probably to have a, have a woman leading the

Melissa: Absolutely. That's the first thing that went through my mind. Not just a woman, but a woman of her, of her status as well. It just doesn't seem like it would. The two would go together. Yes.

HEATHER OVERTON: But yes, she was in, in charge of the fair at one.

That is interesting. In 1928 is when the Department of Agriculture that took over running the fair.

Melissa: Mm-hmm.

HEATHER OVERTON: And it's when we moved to the spot we currently are if you come out to the fair and you've seen the big white buildings that kinda line Hillsborough Street mm-hmm. Those are the, the first buildings that were put at at the current site, the commercial and education building.

Melissa: And it was built for the fair specifically? Yes. Oh, I didn't realize that. That building always reminds me when I drive by it, of the part of the movie Big with Tom Hanks when he's at the fair and he's talking to that. Like Jeanie guy in the booth. Yeah. Zoar. Yes. Thank you Joe. That, [00:05:00] that building just reminds me of that, and I love that.

I love the looks of that building.

HEATHER OVERTON: Well, it's funny that you mention that. Mm-hmm. Because this year at the fair, one of our new entertainments is conjure Fortune, fortune machine, which you need to Oh really? Oh my gosh. So you've got, you know, and, and the way we're. Describing it as, you know, thank Tom Hanks.

Big no way. Yes. Okay. What a coincidence. You'll have to find that when you come out to the fair this year. Okay.

Melissa: I will definitely find that because I really do, every time I drive by that building, I think about Tom Hanks and that part of the movie.

HEATHER OVERTON: But as the fair has progressed, it's, it's turned, you know, we do have food, we have blue ribbon competitions, and the, the mission of, I think why we have the fair.

While it's still agriculture related, it's changed a little bit. What we want is when people come to the fair, that they learn a little bit about agriculture and where their food comes from and why it's important. And that is one of the reasons why we do have exhibits at the fair, that focus on things [00:06:00] that are made here, grown here.

Mm-hmm. Caught here, raised here. We want it to be a celebration of North Carolina agriculture. As well as just North Carolina in general. I mean, it's, we have North Carolina musical acts. We have, you know, the people who compete in our competitions. They're bringing what we consider the best of North Carolina.

Melissa: Mm-hmm.

HEATHER OVERTON: You know, it, it's a celebration of our entire state and and in particular, it's a way to educate about agriculture.

Melissa: I, I, I feel like I'm almost a broken record at this point because I've mentioned this several times on what's up, wake. I wanna talk about why it's important for us to learn about agriculture, why agriculture education is important, and I'll, I'll start out by prefacing it with, I read something that was really shocking to me.

It said that North Carolina is the second in the nation for projected loss of farmland to [00:07:00] development. I understand that, you know, we're talking about how the main purpose of the state fair is to to celebrate farmers, so this makes it more, seem more imperative than ever that we are continuing the tradition of, of celebrating farms and farmland.

HEATHER OVERTON: I think that if you just drive from Raleigh to carry. Or even just take a drive across Wake County, you can see that we are losing farmland. Mm-hmm. It's, you know, we have, North Carolina is an incredibly popular state. Everybody wants to move here. You know, we have great universities, we have the mountains, we have the beach, we have, you know, job growth and it's, it's a very popular place for people to want to move.

And we, we do need to get, be strategic in say, keeping our farmland farms. It's important because. Food doesn't grow at the grocery store. Mm-hmm. It grows, it grows in the ground and, and on a farm.

Melissa: And of course, everybody wants [00:08:00] that to be as local as possible and as fresh as possible.

HEATHER OVERTON: Right. And North Carolina has, you know, we can grow just about anything here.

Mm-hmm. We, we are number one in several different commodities. You know, if. It's hard to see that if you live in Raleigh or Charlotte, that we do have such a agricultural background backbone. But if you drive through some of our smaller counties in the state, you can see the impact of agriculture and the fact that we do still have rural areas of the state that are producing our food.

Melissa: And I'm, you know, I, I think it's obvious when you drive beyond Raleigh that the population is growing beyond the city limits. And so I, I drive out to a more rural area, Benson Dunn, and I just imagine, well, that's gonna be next. That yes. You know, is gonna keep on expanding. So, so when I read about North Carolina being the second.

But it's behind Texas, which I was shocked about that too, in terms of, of losing the, the rate that we're losing farmland [00:09:00] is scary.

HEATHER OVERTON: And, and once you develop land mm-hmm. It doesn't go back to being farmland.

Melissa: Yeah.

HEATHER OVERTON: You know, once you once you pave over something, it's hard to, to, you know, grow something on there again.

Mm-hmm. So it's, you know, it's important that we save our best farmland. Mm-hmm. And we do have a. A program within the Department of Agriculture, our farmland preservation division which is focused on that. And they have, you know, saved thousands of acres over the years and they're, and they're working to to save more because it's not just farms farm, you know, land.

Helps us keep our natural resources too. Mm-hmm. You need land to have the water resources that we need to, as a state, you need land to have the, the trees, you know, the, it's, it's more than just farms, you know? We need to make sure that we have, that we keep, you know, land, land where we can all of our natural resources.

Yes. It's like

Melissa: that song, they paved paradise and put up a parking lot. I feel like we're seeing that all over the place. But very much so in Wake County. [00:10:00] What do you think makes our state fair unique compared to others? I admittedly have never been to a state fair outside of North Carolina. So I, I really don't know the answer to this, but is there something that you would think that it makes us unique?

I

HEATHER OVERTON: think that what makes us unique is all fairs are different. I think all fairs are a reflection of their state. You know, with the state fair, when you get out there, it's, it has a long, rich history. You know, you have Dorton Arena which is the, which is a civil engineering landmark that always tell people that people in Germany study that in architectural textbooks.

It's a, it's a very prominent building. You have you have all things. North Carolina, most of the food booths that we have are actually local North Carolina businesses. You know, we do bring some in from outta state, but we work really hard to make sure that the fair is a reflection of our state.

Mm-hmm. And you also are just part of, [00:11:00] you know, something that's been been. In North Carolina for so long, we have almost a million people come to the fair, and there are other places that have about that same attendance. You know, the zoo, we have one of the, I think we have one of the best zoos in the entire country.

We do. Mm-hmm. Maybe world. Yeah. Their attendance is, you know, a little over a million and that's great. But we do that in 11 days. Yeah. We're reaching a lot of people. Mm-hmm. And it's, you know, the fair. It has something for everyone if you come to the fair, you're gonna find something that you like.

Melissa: Definitely, because I am not a ride person. I'm definitely a food person, but I'm not a ride person. But when I go to the fair, I've got, I've got my, my route kind of down where I, where I wanna go get my food, but I always go see the animals and see the, the giant produce and things like that.

So. I guess I'm one of those old ladies that just like to go, go and, and not ride the rides and try to avoid the crowds, but which has become [00:12:00] very difficult to avoid the crowds they are, especially on a, on a nice sunny day. , What would you say is the biggest challenge of organizing something on this scale?

Because like you said, it's, it's one thing to say you have a million visitors, but to say you do that in a week and a half is, is mind blowing.

HEATHER OVERTON: It's, you know, a lot of different groups work to put the, the fair together. Mm-hmm. From the Department of Agriculture to all of our safety and security partners, to all the individual vendors that come to the fair, to our carnival provider.

You know, it's, it's a team effort and it's people that are working on this year round to bring the best state fair that we can bring. And I, and I will say, you know, you have your route that you come and mm-hmm. You do. And, you know, I have my list of things that, that I wanna do. I mean, now granted, I get every day to, to, to check everything off my list.

Yeah. Most people don't come to the fair every day. But we also recognize that we do have a lot of newcomers to the state who maybe don't understand the fair or maybe they've been to a state [00:13:00] fair before and, you know, it's like, well, I didn't really like that. I'm not going to go to the North Carolina fair, but.

We have been working to develop a newcomer series where we, explain the fair, like how a friend would explain it to you. You know, we have the best photo spots. We have North Carolina State Fair landmarks. We have a brief history of the fair, and we've been posting them on the state fair website in hopes that the newcomers moving to the area before they come out can learn, you know, what's the, what's the best thing to do if you go to the flower show?

Melissa: You

HEATHER OVERTON: know, where, where to find this, you know, so when they, you know, where should I take a selfie with my family? You know, so that when they go to the fair, that they'll have some of that, that knowledge, you know, before they get out there and just get overwhelmed.

Melissa: I mean, that sounds like something that I would want to look through too, even though I, I feel like I know the fair, I, I probably don't really, when I get down to the details about where everything is and, and the history of things.

HEATHER OVERTON: It's, it's been a fun series to do because it is, it's, [00:14:00] it's like how I try to explain the fair, but we have it in several different articles that would probably take way too long on the podcast to go through all of them. Yeah. Yeah.

Melissa: So we can find that on your website. Yes. Okay. And let's talk about the economic impact of the fair.

For Raleigh as a whole in North Carolina, what kind of economic impact does the fair bring us?

HEATHER OVERTON: I don't know the exact numbers. Mm-hmm. I will say that the, the state fairgrounds is a, is a self-supporting agency.

So a lot of the, the money that's made during the fair does go back into the state fairgrounds. Okay. Fairgoers that come out this year will notice that there is a section of the fairgrounds that is a construction zone. We are building a new building and it will be a food hall. I did not know that.

Yes. Okay. It will be a food hall. And where is it?

Melissa: Where the old I can't remember what it's called now, the building that has been there forever and now it's not there anymore. Yes. The,

HEATHER OVERTON: it's, it's where the old lunch stands. Buildings. Yes. Yes. And the, when people [00:15:00] come to the fair, they'll notice that the steel is up.

Mm-hmm. And you know, it's it will be open in time for the 2026. Fair.

Melissa: Okay.

HEATHER OVERTON: The, the cool thing about this building is if you, it will be a year-round food hall. So, you know, any, it will be open during the fair, of course. Mm-hmm. And we will use it for fair activities, but anytime you come out to the fairgrounds, there will be a place that you can go and eat.

Melissa: That's great. I mean, because the fairgrounds you know, always has flea markets going on in different events. I know my daughters. Competitive dance has a big competition out there every year, so it would be great to have a, a place that's always open there. Yes.

HEATHER OVERTON: It'll be a great addition to the state fairgrounds.

Yeah. And it, you know, it, it'll be a great building to have, you know, just to have out there for meeting space. You know, in addition to the state fair, there's probably about 500 other events that happen at the fairgrounds every year. So it, it'll be a good building to have out there. And of course it'll be great to see during the fair.

You know, I've seen the designs. [00:16:00] It really compliments Dorton Arena. Oh, does it? Yes. So. Okay. It'll be, you know, it will be a construction zone this year, so there will be fences up, but you, 2026, it'll be open.

Melissa: Speaking of construction zone. How are the roads surrounding the fair right now? I know that they've been doing so much on Hillsborough Street and Blue Ridge.

Is that almost done? I haven't, I, I don't think I've driven out there in a few weeks. Right.

HEATHER OVERTON: It won't be done completely before the fair starts. Yeah, of course not.

Melissa: Let's just say, of

HEATHER OVERTON: course not. I think that it's probably better to come in. The hi, you know, the highway or other roads.

Mm-hmm. And try to get in, you know, I, I even my kids, when they come to the fair, I recommend that they go park in a satellite lot. Mm-hmm. And we have the cardinal lot, which is down 54 little ways. And then we have the, the dogwood lot, which is at Rey Creek and Edwards Mill. And, you know, they're a little bit of a ways from the fairgrounds, but once [00:17:00] you park there, you take a bus and then they've, you know, free st shuttle and they drop you off right at the the gate

Melissa: and you're avoiding all the, the traffic yourself.

You're letting the bus driver get into, into that, right. But I, I did that last year and that's the way I'm gonna go from now on. It's a lot less stress. Park and let, let you know, let somebody else deal with all, all the, the traffic and Yeah. Getting through all the hubbub

HEATHER OVERTON: because the highway patrol's going to try, is going to, to work to get the buses through.

Yes. Mm-hmm. And so it, it is to me, you know, it saves you some walking from the back of Carter Finley, you know, where, you know, the free parking is. And it's just, I, I, you know, aim to get, I, I tell my friends and my children to, you know, try to get into one of those lots because it's just, it's the easiest way to get in and out of the grounds.

Easiest, less stress.

Melissa: [00:18:00] [00:19:00] onto the fun part, the rides, the food, the entertainment. How do you decide which things to bring into the fair? Is there like a process that people. Turn in an application or something and say, I wanna bring this, this, this ride, this, this food vendor. How, how does that process work?

HEATHER OVERTON: So we do take applications for new vendors, and every year there's some new ones. You know, we, but we also have a lot of repeats. You know, I mean, I, everybody knows like. Where Al's french fries are absolutely

Melissa: gotta have al's fries or

HEATHER OVERTON: peaches, donuts. Mm-hmm. You know, I mean, so there, there is a lot of repeats.

It is an application process. We open up applications in the spring and you have to have your application in by July 1st. And then we look through that. We consider what we already have. [00:20:00] What we might be looking

Melissa: for. So you try not to have too many repeats of the same type of food

HEATHER OVERTON: Yeah. Or the same type of booth, you know?

Mm-hmm. You know, we, we do look for variety and that that's how, you know, all the booths get to the fair. But you know, it is, it is a lot. And Latrice who works in the fair office, she's the one that, that does all that. And, you know, she has a big job.

Melissa: Well, I hope, I hope that Latrice is. Getting some food out of this and that she's getting to taste test all these things.

And in years past, I've been the lucky recipient of the exclusive media pass where I get to come and, and try new foods and, and get kind of a sneak peek of all the new foods coming out. And as of the time of the recording of this podcast, you're not quite ready to tell us the new foods coming out, but I'm wondering if, you know, if you can give us a little sneak peek of, of some of.

Some of the things Can What? Can, what kind of, well, I can, little things. Can

HEATHER OVERTON: you tell us? I can tell you that one, food is the [00:21:00] number one reason people come to the fair.

Melissa: Mm-hmm.

HEATHER OVERTON: No doubt about that. Yes. And it's what everybody gets excited about. Mm-hmm. And you know, and we know that, and we do kind of, you know, we play to it a little bit.

You know, and I will have to say that our vendors have completely embraced the fact that people come to the fair to eat food. Yeah. And they probably try to

Melissa: come up with new concoctions They do every year,

HEATHER OVERTON: right? They do. Mm-hmm. They do. They and I know that we're gonna have more than 50 new foods this year.

Everyone wants to be the one that has the food that's just. The most outrageous that everyone wants to come out and try and, you know, and we get excited about it too, and we like talking about it and we, you know, we love hosting you know, hosting the media event mm-hmm.

For people to come out and, and get a sneak peek at, at what's coming for the year, because it really does seem like, like

Melissa: one year. Things will, menu items will look super crazy. I remember the first time that I saw you know, the, I, I guess it's the Korean dogs that are [00:22:00] dipped in the batter and then double dipped in something else.

And, and I just thought. Wow, it can't get crazier than this. And then the next year or something always seems to beat whatever in years past seemed to be the, the newest and, and most outlandish food item.

HEATHER OVERTON: Yes. And you know, and one of the other things that I always tell people when they come to the fair and was like, how did you stand in that line to get that?

You know, and Yeah. Yeah. The, you know, the old adage is, lines don't lie If there is a line somewhere. Very true. Very true.

Melissa: Yes.

HEATHER OVERTON: Then likely what people are getting from that booth is super good. And you might wanna stand in line too. Yeah. Worth the wait.

Melissa: do you have any funny stories or anything like the funniest thing you've ever seen at the fair or heard about the fair?

There, I will say fair, fair people watching is, is superior to Walmart. People watching you go and just, just sit on a bench somewhere and and watch, you're probably bound to see something that's entertaining or [00:23:00] funny.

HEATHER OVERTON: I will say that probably the, the thing that is most amusing to me and we, we get a good a big laugh of it is and I, I'll just state right, right now that it's, we do allow service animals into the fair and people need service animals. Mm-hmm. But we, we do have at times that people try to bring in.

Animals that probably wouldn't be considered a service animal. Like you can't have a service monkey. There's no such thing as a service monkey or a snake or a ferret. Oh, goodness. Or, you know, it's, so I, I think that probably some of the funniest stories that I've heard are people trying to bring their service pet into the fair and, and clearly it's not a right.

Melissa: Typical service dog or something. Right.

HEATHER OVERTON: And, and service dogs are allowed, you know other dogs are, are not, we don't allow pets to come to the fair. Mm-hmm. But I mean, I, I'm a dog lover. I have a dog. Mm-hmm. And I love her to death. And the fair is not somewhere I would take her. It's too many people and it's very, I wouldn't think that most very overwhelming, you know, [00:24:00]

Melissa: normal thinking people would want to take their pet to the fair because it's overwhelming for them too.

Right. Service

HEATHER OVERTON: dogs are trained Yeah. To handle those types of situations. Our pets are not. Mm-hmm. And it is just, it's a very overwhelming environment. It's,

Melissa: it's overwhelming for humans at times. I would think that for pets it would be even more so. Right. Yeah. Let's say someone is coming to the fair for the very first time.

What's the one thing you say they absolutely should not miss?

HEATHER OVERTON: Well, I will say my favorite spot on the fair would be the, the Heritage Circle area. I love the Bluegrass Stage and it, it, the Black Smith shops down there. Mm-hmm. There's a tobacco barn. It links into the flower show. Mm-hmm. Which is. Gorgeous every year the moms and the pumpkins and the flowers the superintendent of that show does a wonderful job, and it's, to me, I get excited to see the gardens that are put together [00:25:00] and it's, it's a, it's a great area to go and it's a very oddly relaxing part of the fairground.

Melissa: You're right, it

HEATHER OVERTON: does

Melissa: feel different. Yes. Over there it feels. Quieter, calmer, not so fast paced. Kind of like we're stepping back into time. Yes. Over there.

HEATHER OVERTON: The other thing that I would encourage everyone to do, you know, shortly after you get there is to ride the fair flyer. That way it's the, it goes over the midway.

It gives you a great bird's eye view of the grounds, and you can kind of, you know. See where you might wanna go after you, you get off your ride. A tip is you do not have to, if you buy a round trip ticket for the fair flyer, you don't have to use it all at one time. Mm-hmm. You can take the fair flyer from.

Heritage Circle, which is near Gate seven, gate eight, and ride it up to the other end that's closer to kitty land and car Scott building. And walk around up there, which is

Melissa: where a lot of the food, the good food is too, right?

HEATHER OVERTON: And walk [00:26:00] around up there for a little bit. And then at the end of the day, take your return trip back down to the Gate seven, gate eight

Melissa: for normal people.

I would say that that's highly recommended. However, you did not see. The panic attack that I had on the Fair flyer last year, and it, it is funny because I, I had a panic attack on the Fair flyer probably two or three years ago, and I convince myself every year. I'm gonna be able to handle it this year. So I get back on it and then I have another panic attack, and I'm like, they're gonna have to stop this thing, get a giant tall ladder and come get me off because I'm freaking out.

So clearly I, the older I get, the worse I am with heights. So I, I need to avoid that. But you're right. It is really the best way to see the fare. Well,

HEATHER OVERTON: and it's. You know, we have someone in our office that doesn't like heights either. Mm-hmm. And, you know, he's not gonna get on the fair flyer. So. Yeah. But the good thing about the fair is there is something for everyone.

Yes. You know, I, I don't ride rides like I did when I was [00:27:00] younger. Mm-hmm. We are, North Carolina State Fair is a, is a. Is a heavy riding fair. You know, the people that come do enjoy the rides. Yeah. And we have more than a hundred out there. We're, we'll have three new ones this year. Mm-hmm. You know, so it's, it's an important part of the fair, but not everybody does it.

Melissa: Yeah.

HEATHER OVERTON: I always thought it was crazy that like my kids don't really like the rides that much. Hmm. They, they love the food. Yeah. And when they come out there, that's what they want to do. They want to eat and Yeah. But but a lot of people do love the rides and we do have them. I mean, and they, they are a, a big part of the fair.

Melissa: I want to know about the animal side of the fair. My, I've got two children who are in the FFA program in their high school. They participate in the children's Barnard area at the fair, where they go and, and kind of tend to the animals during the day. And they love that. They're super excited to do it again this year.

But I think about the [00:28:00] logistics of bringing the trailers, bringing the animals in, and having someone care for the animals every day. Is that something that you guys are just so used to and you just, it's just kind of like second nature

HEATHER OVERTON: at this point? Well, again, that's where our partners come in.

Mm-hmm. You know, we, we have NC State's, a partner of ours. Mm-hmm. You know, they run the they have a, a booth in the expo building. You know, people stay with their own animals and every animal that comes to the fair has to have a health check. That is done through our veterinary division. Oh.

And so before the shows, I didn't even think about that. Right. So it's because you don't

Melissa: wanna spread any type of diseases or anything with the animals. Right? Yeah,

HEATHER OVERTON: I didn't think about that. So we do, there's a team. Mm-hmm. And it's a big team that that's working just on livestock shows. And the shows rotate.

So like the first weekend. Is like, just, we'll take the cattle shows. Mm-hmm. You know, the first weekend you're gonna have all the beef shows, and then the second [00:29:00] weekend it's gonna be the dairy shows, and then there's a turnover day and that's in the middle where they changed the shavings. And so, I mean, there is a possibility that you're gonna come to the fair and that day there's not gonna be a cattle show.

Melissa: Mm.

HEATHER OVERTON: And that's, you probably came on the turnover day.

Melissa: Mm.

HEATHER OVERTON: And what we did. Because of that, because the shows do rotate and and they have to, to get 'em all in between the youth and the open and just the, the sheer number of shows that the, the Fair has. Yeah. We have what we call the state fair arc, which is in the expo building.

I, I actually really like it because someone who didn't grow up on a, I didn't grow up on a farm and, you know, and I've learned a lot over the years. But we have like the cattle breeds on display and there's signs. So, you know, you can look at, it's a mama cow and a baby cow, and so you can see. What a belted Galloway looks like.

Yes. Or a jersey, or, you know, they're labeled so. Mm-hmm. You know, if you you know, if your knowledge of cows is, is not, you know, if you're not, you know, farmer level, then you can [00:30:00] go and, and learn what the different the breeds look like and the baby pigs are in there. The little chicks, you know, it's, it's a great place to stop by if, you know, if you want to see, you know, see animals that are on display all the time.

Melissa: I'm gonna try not to get you in trouble with this next question. But what is your favorite? Fair food?

HEATHER OVERTON: I do have a list that I really, of things that I, I do want every year. Mm-hmm. and luckily, you know, I, I limit myself to, you know, just one fair treat a day. Mm-hmm. At some points, but sometimes it's, you know, it might be a ham biscuit or you know, another day it may be al's french fries.

And I also try to share, geez, that is a hard question. I would have to say that one thing that it would, the fair would not be complete for me if I did not get roasted corn from somewhere.

Melissa: Oh, absolutely. I'm with you on that. That's the one thing I go and get every year too. But [00:31:00] there's that and a giant bag of cotton candy. Yes.

HEATHER OVERTON: So I just, I have to say that the, you know, the a, a eating, you know, roasted corn.

Walking around the grounds, especially like, I like to do it on a particularly where maybe it's a little bit cooler night. Yeah.

Melissa: Mm-hmm. I like, that's just quintessential fair, having a, a, a roasted corn on the cob, you

HEATHER OVERTON: know, October and North Carolina, we can have all four seasons in the week of the fair.

Absolutely. Yeah. That

Melissa: makes it tricky to, to manage things as well. Yes. Tell everybody who's listening the dates of the fair this year and where we can find out more like schedule of events and things like that.

HEATHER OVERTON: The dates of the fair are October 16th through the 26th. You can buy your tickets online and save money up until October 16th.

Oh, okay. So it's, you know, it's a great way, you know, especially if you, if you do have. You know, riders. Mm-hmm. You can really save on ride tickets and, and admission tickets,

Melissa: and it's another way to avoid [00:32:00] one line.

HEATHER OVERTON: Right. And the best place to find information is follow us on social media. Our fa we have a Facebook, Instagram, TikTok.

Twitter or X yeah,

Melissa: I feel like we're just, at this point, we're just gonna always call it Twitter. Yes.

HEATHER OVERTON: Or, you know, our website, nc state fair.org has all the information that you need.

Melissa: Thank you so much for taking the time out of your super busy time of year to sit with us and tell us all about the fair.

I really appreciate it. Oh, no problem. Thank you for having me.

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