Closing weekend at the fair

The Alameda County Fairgrounds swarms with jubilant visitors as the annual fair in Pleasanton heads toward its closing weekend.

Since the fair kicked off on June 17, families, couples and teenagers alike visited the fair’s first summer run in three years because of the pandemic, enjoying all the attractions it had to offer.

Themed “The Road to Summer,” the 2022 fair features an exciting array of carnival rides, concert showcases, horse racing, drone shows, food and other attractions.

Dale Corpus went with his wife and son to the fair last week, and grabbed a family photo in front of the popular “that summer feeling” photo-taking sign. “We had a blast,” Corpus told the Weekly.

The rides with the longest lines this year were the fair’s most hair-raising: thrill seekers tested their stomachs on the upside-down free flipping Turbo, hurtled down tracks on the Zillerator Coaster and plummeted 90 feet on the Super Shot Drop Tower.

Strolling around the grounds, fairgoers could munch on a mountain plate of crispy curly fries, snack on delicate pastel cotton candy flowers or lick vanilla-swirled ice cream cones. For Jessica Nguyen, the giant turkey leg was the most fun to eat.

Over at the Great American Petting Zoo, visitors shielded their ice cream waffle cones from hungry goats and piglets — to the animals’ chagrin — and kids squealed in delight as they stroked the critters.

Resident Haley Butters said she had fun recreating a childhood photo of her 4-year-old self feeding a cow milk from a bottle, this time offering a small tasty treat to a crowd of goats.

For high school sweethearts Brittany and Brandon Batteate, their visit with their two boys to the Alameda County Fair was filled with nostalgia. “Nineteen summers ago Brandon asked me to be his girlfriend in this barn at the Alameda County Fair, and today we showed our kids animals here,” Brittany Batteate said.

Many Pleasanton residents also brought their parents to the fair for a day out. Julia Murtagh had a “fabulous” Father’s Day at the fair with her dad, and enjoyed the horse races with her good friends.

Erin Haslinger took his mother out to attend both the fair and the Stanford Powwow. “It was amazing as every year is,” Haslinger said.

As part of the Fourth of July weekend celebrations, the fairgrounds held a dazzling fireworks display high into the Pleasanton sky last Friday night, where visitors packed the seats at the Stella Artois Grandstand.

Joanna He, Hanna Min, Ellie Xing and Emily Yang watched the fireworks show together on a large picnic blanket. They had all just graduated from Amador Valley High School and wanted to hang out together at the fair before they soon head off to different colleges.

As the county fair celebrates its closing weekend of summer fun and memorable highlights this Friday through Sunday, visitors can expect more entertainment with continued horse racing, drone shows and a junior livestock auction on the final day.

This last weekend, families can also look forward to spreading out their blankets and watching kid-friendly movies streaming at 6 p.m., including new and old animated favorites “Wreck-It-Ralph,” “Rise of the Guardians” and “Encanto.”

The Big O Tires Concert Series also will host three more performances, featuring a versatile, renowned series of artists as the fair signs off on its 2022 season: party-funk band Con Funk Shun on Friday night, widely known for their R&B sonic sound; AC/DC tribute group Bonfire on Saturday, to perform the rock band’s greatest hits made famous by lead singers Bon Scott and Brian Johnson; and Mexican powerhouse Banda Machos on Sunday, a group hailed as having paved the way for the la quebradita style of dance music.

For tickets and the full schedule of events, visit the fair website at annual.alamedacountyfair.com.