Active-duty retired and veteran military personnel, plus spouses and children who are with them, may enter the 108th Northwest Washington Fair in Lynden for free on Wednesday, Aug. 15, during Armed Forces Day.
In addition to complimentary gate admission, Armed Forces Day at the fair will include participation by active-duty personnel and Veterans of Foreign Wars members in the free grandstand horse shows at noon and 5 p.m. Also, some surprise attractions are planned at the horse shows and a tribute to the armed forces will precede the Lynden PRCA Rodeo competition at 7:30 p.m.
“The Northwest Washington Fair Board, our staff and I have a tremendous amount of respect for those who have served in the armed forces for our country,” said fair manager Jim Baron. “Free gate admission on Aug. 15 for them and their families is one way we can express our gratitude.”
The Northwest Washington Fair, which annually draws close to 200,000 attendees each year, will open gates at 9 a.m. and close them at 10 p.m. each day Aug. 13-18. The carnival is open from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Carnival wristbands are accepted only until 10 p.m. After 10 p.m., fair attendees can use carnival tickets to ride until closing.
Other highlights of this year’s Northwest Washington Fair include:
- The region’s largest provider of carnival rides and games, Funtastic Traveling Shows, will be in Lynden. More than 3 million people, including attendees of the Washington State Fair in Puyallup and the Oregon State Fair, visit Funtastic Traveling Shows each year.
- Children 10 and younger can get free tickets to the Lynden PRCA Rodeo by going to the fair office or a CHS Northwest retail store in Lynden, Ferndale, Bellingham or Nooksack by Aug. 12.
- The trick-roping, whip-cracking antics and comedy of Karen Quest will be on display on the Banner Bank Festival Stage and while she is walking around the fairgrounds. Magician Louie Foxx also will be performing throughout the fairgrounds when he isn’t on the Banner Bank Festival Stage, which offers entertainment daily from late morning through the evening. They will share the stage with other acts, including B2wins, a high-energy Brazilian group that incorporates break dancing and colorful costumes into their musical performances.
- The Wenatchee Youth Circus, “The Biggest Little Circus in the World,” returns with high-wire and flying trapeze artists, fire acts and aerial feats.
Characters Elsa and Anna from “Frozen” will be meeting fairgoers the last three days of the fair.
- Hundreds of cows, horses, pigs, sheep and more will be exhibited by local farmers and 4-H and FFA youth.
The schedule of featured grandstand performances follows (prices don’t include fair gate admission, which is required):
- Monday, Aug. 13 – Demolition Derby. Reserved grandstand tickets are $10 for the 12:30 p.m. show and $18 for the 7:30 p.m. show.
- Tuesday, Aug. 14, and Wednesday, Aug. 15 – Lynden PRCA Rodeo, 7:30 p.m.; $15 for ages 11 and older ($12 tickets available through Aug. 12 while supplies last at all Whatcom County CHS Northwest retail stores).
- Thursday, Aug. 16 – Bret Michaels, 7:30 p.m.; preferred seats, $30; reserved seats only $5 courtesy of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 191.
- Friday, Aug. 17 – High Valley, 7:30 p.m.; preferred seats, $20; general admission, free festival seating courtesy of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 191 and offered on a limited first-come, first served basis with gate admission into the fair.
Saturday, Aug. 18 – Jeff Foxworthy, 7:30 p.m.; reserved seats, $35 (preferred seats sold out).
For more information, visit
www.nwwafair.com or call (360) 354-4111.
