107th Rogers County Fair Returns to Claremore BY TOM FINK
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eptember, 2021: No matter what else has been going on in the world, the Rogers County Fair has brought people from near and far to Claremore to enjoy the experiences of a traditional county fair for more than 100 years. This year proves no exception, as the fair board, organizers and planners are working together to bring the traditional fair back to Rogers County this September. Among those overseeing plans for the fair to return for its 107th year are Visit Claremore Director Tanya Andrews and Susan Gebhart, Vice President, Rogers County Fair Board, both of whom are keenly mindful of the need for additional safety precautions due to COVID concerns. “The (Rogers County) Fair Board is very diligent about the health of the public, and last year, our city leaders moved quickly to mitigate COVID, and we held the fair with several safety measures in place to protect the public,” Andrews said. “The safety protocols we used last year will be reinforced this year,” Gebhart began. “The only real difference (this year) will be
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masks because last year, they were required by the city, and this year, they’re not. In addition to that, last year, we operated on the premise that everything was outdoors, with the exception of the inside exhibits, and outdoor exhibits – over the last year – have been generally recognized as more safe. “As such, this year, there will be more focus on things being outdoors in the fresh air, with the games, vendors and rides, and we’ve left the sides of the tent off for the music so there will be more fresh air coming through there,” she continued. “There will be hand-washing stations and hand sanitizing stations distributed throughout the fair, indoors and out, and for the barn activities, we’re using the same measures we did last year, to prevent people from getting crowded in tight groups, so we’ve gone to an online entry process for all the livestock Right: Visit Claremore Director Tanya Andrews
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species, so that avoids the kids standing in line. We’ve changed the way the kids prepare and show their animals in the show ring.” Last year, Gebhart said, there were considerably fewer indoor activities, curtailed due to the thenCOVID situation, but this year, there will be more to see inside the Expo Center. “This year, they’re going back to
