Beer here! A Night at the Utah State Fair

I made my way to the Utah State Fair Monday night for the first time in a few years, hoping to find some funky fare beyond the much-publicized fried Jell-O. While I didn’t run across anything particularly noteworthy–at least food-wise–I found myself once again enraptured by all the glorious weirdness that comes with the fair each fall.

Crusty-looking carnies? You bet! Games offering players NO chance of winning? They’ve got ’em. A circus-style freak show with genetic mutants? Oh yes.

And beer, glorious beer! I found myself briefly wondering why I can’t buy a beer at the Warped Tour that stops at the fairgrounds every summer, but I can for the family-filled state fair, but I didn’t wonder for long. Instead, I gladly paid my $7 for a large Bud Light (hey, I didn’t say it was GOOD beer), and made my way around to see what’s up in 2012.

Like the always groovy ferris wheel, offering a pretty stunning view of the sunset Monday night if you got there on time. I did not.

After throwing down that first beer, I went hunting for sustenance. While fried Jell-O wasn’t in the cards, I was happy to see local businesses I actually patronize involved with the fair, like Moochie’s and Siegfried’s deli. But who are we kidding? When I go to the Utah State Fair, I’m looking for one thing, and one thing only:

While the fair CAN be all about gastrointestinal experimentation and derring-do, it’s not ALL about food. There are games to be played, and fun to be had.

I’m not sure this guy doing a rectal exam on the mechanical bull has quite the right idea. But maybe he paid extra for the pleasure.

I don’t have children myself, but the next “game” I ran into seems like a brilliant idea. Kids love being inside a giant gerbil ball. Parents (I assume) love putting their kids inside giant gerbil balls. Talk about your win-win.

Of course, no trip to the fair can be over before visiting the freak show. It’s always a highlight for me, and while I won’t spoil what’s in store for those of you yet to visit the fair this year, I’ll say that they don’t call the giant frog “Big Dick” for nothing. A “menu” of this year’s attractions: