Thursday, July 22, 2010 12:20 pm

The North Carolina Mountain State Fair is a western North Carolina tradition. Now in its 17th year, the fair always promises lots of food, fun, and mountain heritage; this year’s fair will fulfill those same promises September 10 – 19 at the WNC Ag Center in Fletcher, NC. 

The newly added Virginia C. Boone Mountain Heritage Center and the Livestock Exhibition Building will continue to house the finest crafts, handmade goods, artwork, and horticulture products that western North Carolina has to offer. In addition, residents from across the region will arrive with their best livestock in tow in the hopes of winning a coveted blue ribbon in one of the numerous livestock competitions. 

The carnival will again be supplied by Drew Expositions. It will be as exciting as always with the return of fan favorites like the Enterprise, the Seattle Wheel, and the chairlift, which stretches from one end of the midway to the other, providing a bird’s eye view of the fair. There will also be plenty of rides for younger children and the carnival will have lots of games of chance, skill, and concentration with your favorite fluffy and stuffed prize waiting.

New to the fair this year will be live music on the Bojangles Music Stage, which will host more than 30 local and regional bands daily. The stage will be outdoors and centrally located on the fairgrounds. All performances will be free for fairgoers with paid admission. 

McGough Arena will host Country Music star Chuck Wicks on Wednesday, September 15, and Christian Music groups The Oxendines and This Hope on Thursday, September 16. Tickets for each show are specially priced at $15 for adults and $8 for children and seniors, and will include admission to the fair. 

The Heritage Stage will continue to host Mountain Music and Bluegrass each night as the Mountain Music Competition returns to the fair. The competition gives local musicians and bands much needed exposure as well as the chance to open for Contemporary Bluegrass musician John Cowan. Cowan, the former lead singer of the New Grass Revival, a band he formed with contemporary bluegrass and folk music greats, Sam Bush, Bela Fleck, and Pat Flynn, will perform on the Bojangles Music Stage on Sunday September 19. Cowan’s performance is also free with paid fair admission.

Mountain State Fair discounted advance tickets go on sale July 15 at the WNC Ag Center and at the WNC Farmers Market. Western NC Ingles supermarkets will sell advance tickets beginning August 1. Tickets will also be available online at www.mountainfair.org during the month of August. All advance ticket sales will end on September 9. To learn more about the NC Mountain State Fair, visit www.mountainfair.org or call 828-687-1414. You can also join the conversation on Facebook by visiting the fan page at www.facebook.com/ncmountainfair.