By Al Strain

Owatonna People’s Press

OWATONNA — Jim Gleason was only able to sit down for about five minutes on Monday morning after arriving at the Steele County Fairgrounds.

For Gleason, now in his third year as the secretary/manager of the Steele County Free Fair, all the running around can mean only one thing: It’s Fair Week.

Gleason said he really starts getting excited for the fair after the Fourth of July, and then even more in the 10 days leading up to the fair. On Sunday night, he said he got about five hours of sleep, a pretty typical night for Fair Week.

“I was really excited when I got up this morning,” Gleason said on a brief break from running around the grounds. “I got my five hours in, which is a pretty good amount for during the fair. It’s from about midnight to about 5 or 6 in the morning. That’s about all you can expect.”

The fair has continued to grow in recent years, setting attendance records year after year. Last year, the estimated attendance of the fair was more than 350,000 people.

Fair Board president Dan Deml said when it comes to bringing people together in Steele County, nothing can really compare to the fair every year.

“This, I think, far and away eclipses anything else,” Deml said. “What other activities that happens in Steele County encompasses more people and more activities than this? It’s the biggest activity that goes on in Steele County in a given year. It’s just in a class by itself as far as total community participation.”

With 120 food vendors spread throughout the fair, more than 400 vendors inside the Four Seasons Centre, three free performance stages and jam-packed schedules in the Beer Garden and at the grandstand, the beauty of the fair is that it offers something for everybody.

“People come just for the general fair, but a lot of people have their own special interests—whether it’s something with 4-H, livestock, the beer garden or the concessions. It all kind of depends on where your interests lie,” Deml said.

GoldStar Amusements will once again provide the fair’s midway, the third year in a row. With carnival games, various sideshows and 40 rides, the southwest end of the fairgrounds will be packed with people for much of the week.