On a recent trip to Texas I attempted to understand why Texans were so crazy about their state fair and what brought approximately
3 million visitors every year. Growing up in Iowa, the Iowa State Fair was an annual family tradition with must-sees including a butter cow, beef barn, and all the pie you could ever eat. I was hoping for a unique experience at the Texas state fair and ended up getting exactly that!
I spent over seven hours trying to experience all the Texas state fair had to offer and ended up finding some amazing surprises. Here is an Iowans top ten list from the Texas state fair:
1. Ostrich Races
The ostrich races were easily the most unique attraction at the fair and were part of a free event with multiple daily showings. The races went exactly as you would imagine they would go. When humans ride birds interesting things happen... enjoy this video I captured of my first ever ostrich race experience:
2. "Extreme" Test Drive Track
The
Chevrolet Ride and Drive is an "extreme" test track built for test driving Chevy trucks located in the middle of the fairgrounds. With "mountains", "rocks", and "twisty ditches" the track is no joke! Texans take their trucks seriously and it was very evident by the huge line of cowboys waiting their turn for a chance behind the newest Chevy truck model.
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| "Extreme" Truck Test Drive Track in middle of fairgrounds. |
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| Inside of the tree. |
3. A Home in A Tree
Built from a 1900 year old California redwood, the home is built inside the carved out tree trunk and has a bedroom, kitchen, and living room. The tree home is privately owned and tours the country as
Allens Redwood Log House.
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| The tree the home resides inside of! |
4. A 55 ft. Texan That Speaks
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| Original Big Tex Burning in 2012 (Courtesy theunticket) |
Big Tex is the shining crown of the fair. He's an over-sized cowboy who stands at the entrance of the fairgrounds waving his mechanical arm at those who walk by. Big Tex even talks to fair-goers in the most Texan of ways with a slow and drawn out pace. In 2012 the original Big Tex caught on fire in the last week of the fair which was nearly apocalyptic for Texans!
Thankfully a new Big Tex was quickly made for the 2013 fair and is looking strong in 2014!
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| The new Big Tex standing at 55 feet tall. |
5. Fried Beer
The Iowa State fair needs to pick up their fried food game! Fried beer is basically beer poured into ravioli pockets and fried... Each bite into the pocket releases a flood of boiling beer into your mouth... yeah it's terrible and disgusting....
6. Fried Thanksgiving Dinner
An entire dinner rolled into one big ball and deep fried, the Thanksgiving Dinner is ridiculous. It begins with a pile of stuffing and turkey rolled into a ball which is then dipped into creamed corn and rolled in corn meal. The dinner is served with cranberry sauce and gravy to give it the complete Thanksgiving Dinner taste.
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| Fried Thanksgiving Dinner. Image courtesy of delish.com |
7. A 1200lb pig
Of course over-sized farm animals are always a must see at any fair! The record pig weighed in at just about 1200 lbs.
The illumination sensation is a water, light, sound, and video show played on a nightly basis. It was a display of various fair traditions and history, and was a perfect way to end a great day at the Texas State Fair!
9. Wine Tasting
In the back corner of the fair is a beautiful little courtyard with a variety of local wineries offering wine tastings, glasses of wine, and even bottles for sale. The average taster was about $1 which was my highlight of the fair! The wine was all wonderful and with each taster being $1 it was one of the best deals at the fair. Sitting in the courtyard enjoying the shade, tasting local wines, and listening to live music was superb.
10. Texas Star Ferris Wheel
The Texas Star Ferris wheel is massive and provides an amazing view of the fairgrounds and downtown Dallas. It's the perfect way to end a long day of exploring at the fair and to catch the sun go down across the fairgrounds. |
| Texas Star ferris wheel on a beautiful night in Dallas, Texas. |
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