Five Things to Know About the Kendall County Fair

Ready or not, the is here.

The annual event kicks off Thursday at the in Yorkville, and runs through Sunday night. Here are five things you should know about it.

1. The fair begins Thursday at noon with an opening ceremony. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday, events begin in earnest at 10 a.m. Tickets are $7 for adults, $3 for children ages 5-13, and $4 for seniors, meaning those 62 and older.

The standard admission ticket does not get you into the pit for Friday afternoon’s tractor pulls, although – for that you have to pay $10 for a pit pass, and sign a waiver. Those pit passes will only be sold at the livestock entrance.

2. There’s a new traffic pattern for Highpoint Road during the fair, starting at 6 a.m. on Thursday and running until about 7 p.m. on Sunday. Some streets will be one-way for the duration of the fair. Read all about that (and see a handy map) .

3. In addition to that tractor pull, which begins at 6 p.m. Friday, there are loads of interesting events lined up for the fair this year. Start Thursday: there’s an open horse speed contest at 2 p.m., and country band Back Country Roads will play at 7 p.m.

Then there’s a karaoke contest Friday at 6 p.m. (followed by the always-frightening open mic karaoke), an antique tractor pull at 1 p.m. Saturday, the Red Woody Band jamming out at 8 p.m. on Saturday, and the 4H Parade of Champions (from all of the various competitions throughout the weekend) Sunday at 4:30 p.m.

4. Car hockey. Seriously. Car hockey.

5. There are all kinds of good things happening all day, every day, including carnival and pony rides for the kids, a petting zoo, face painting and merriment by Buttons the Clown. You can find a full schedule, directions and contact information at the official website, www.kendallcountyfair.com.