The 26th annual Kendall County Fair closed on Sunday after four days of 4-H competitions, riding, entertainment and family fun.
The fair opened on Thursday with the annual Western Speed Show, where riders of all ages competed in a variety of categories, from exhibition poles, to Texas 8 barrels. Entertainment continued through the weekend, with events including the tractor/truck pull, where the Kendall County Sheriff’s Office got the night off to a successful start in an “exhibition pull,” using the department’s MRAP (mine-resistant armor protected) vehicle to pull the sled across the Grandstand Arena to the cheers of the packed stands.
Throughout the weekend, visitors and local 4-H members surrounded themselves with animals entered for competition, from beef to goats to poultry. The livestock prove to be a perennial attraction for visitors to the fair, including Merle and Machelle Green of Plainfield who visited the fair for the first time on Thursday.
“This is really nice,” Machelle said. “It’s like a mini Wisconsin Fair.”
Chainsaw carver Jim Barnes works on a wooden bench adorned with an eagle, in his workspace at the Kendall County Fairgrounds on Friday evening. Barnes periodically carved a variety of sculptures at the fair, which were sold later at the fair.
Yorkville residents Gionni Danis (left), 3, and Kloei Danis (right), 5, work hard to separate corn from the cob at an interactive booth at the Kendall County Fair on Friday evening. Many local farming organizations and 4-H groups had booths at the fair to spread knowledge about the workings of farm technology and life.
Newark resident Jacey Johnson, 7, cuddles with a puppy at the petting zoo hosted by Staudacher Farms at the Kendall County Fair on Friday evening. Like many families who visited the fair, Johnson's family was there to show animals: cows, pigs and sheep.
Chicago-area band Recycle the Day brought their covers of classic rock, country, Motown and modern hits to the Kendall County Fair on Friday evening, covering everything from Pitbull to Tommy James & The Shondells.
The Kendall County Sheriff's Office got the Kendall County Fair's annual truck/tractor pull off to a strong start on Friday, using the department's MRAP vehicle to pull a heavy sled all the way across the fairgrounds' Grandstand Arena.
Tractor/truck pulling, a competitive motor sport, sees modified farm tractors, tractors or modified street-legal trucks attempt to pull a heavy sled across a great distance, with the winner being the one who pulls the longest distance.
Hailee Dannenberg (right) and Greta Friestad (left) observe the riders entered in the Western Speed Show as they prepare for competition at the Kendall County Fairgrounds on Thursday morning.
Curious goats poked their heads through the grates in their pens on Thursday, as 4-H members prepared their animals for competition, and in some cases, auction.
Competitors started off the Western Speed Show at the Grandstand Arena on Thursday with exhibition poles, one of nearly 20 events in the show. The category was open to all ages, with horses and riders of all sizes. In exhibition poles, riders and their horses make a weaving path through six poles set across the Grandstand Arena. Riders were judged for time and technique, with penalties given to riders who knocked poles over.
Young fans and family members watched as riders made their way through the poles set up in the Grandstand Arena at the Kendall County Fairgrounds during the Exhibition Poles competition in the Western Speed Show on Thursday. The speed show is an annual feature of the fair, which opened on Thursday morning.
Jim Hill (center), commander of Plano's American Legion Leon Burson Post 395, salutes the American flag as it was raised by local 4-H members as part of the opening ceremony for the annual Kendall County Fair on Thursday. Members of the Honor Guard also presented the 4-H flag and flag of the state of Illinois to 4-H members to mount on the fairground flagpoles.