The Year of the Dairy Cow at the 2012 Indiana State Fair will feature a signature food made from dairy- spaghetti ice cream and meat balls made of malted milk balls. You'll find it at a special booth in the gazebo area of the fair near the Dairy Bar.
The Diary Bar will also feature new choices, including a grilled cheese sandwich that includes pepperjack for a tangy flavor. If you like a bit of spice and twang like I do, you'll love it. I've already tried it out.
Pork barbecue sandwiches will be back, at the Pork Tent, not the Dairy Bar, and I've tried the 2012 edition of those too. They're as saucy and tangy as ever. It's an old favorite back to spice up your fair for another year.
Look for many of your most loved activities plus new ones at the Indiana State Fair.
There will be livestock shows, starting with showmanship early in the fair and continuing through the fair. Visit the Indiana State Fair website for complete show schedules.
There will also be lots of concerts on the free stage near the 4-H Building , says Andy Klotz, communications director. Some big name groups will be on the stage, and it will be manned every day. What won't be on the grounds are live, big-time concerts, but they will be at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
The Grandstand will be used for many events, just none requiring a formal stage. And despite some earlier confusion, the Pepsi Coliseum will be available or use at the 2012 fair. It will be under renovation and not available in 2013. When it reopens for the 2014 fair, it will bear a new sponsor name, yet to be announced.
Fair admission is now $10 per person- pre-sale, available at many stores, or buy a three-day pass for $18. It's still a bargain for families, who will find lots to do in the family fun park on the northeast corner of the fairgrounds, just east of Pioneer Village.
Speaking of the Pioneer Village, look for grand 'ole Opry music shows and an old-time auction with real money. The auction happens on Saturday morning during the last day of the fair.
Our Land Pavilion will be transformed into a display about the food we eat, including displays from Purdue and other companies. You'll also have a chance to sample foods and buy goods in this building.
Dates for the 17-day run are August 3-19. Here's a closer look at activities you can expect to see at this year's fair.
The cow on the truck in the background comes to life and becomes the star of the fair, replacing soybeans, which were the featured commodity of the 2011 Indiana State Fair.
Chances are this isn't the cow from the truck, but it kind of looks like her. The young lady holding her is likely better looking than the guy who drove the truck in the first picture. Look for Buttercup, a mascot cow of the American Dairy Association, to be showing up in various locations around the fairgrounds. There will also be an area in the family fun park where kids and parents can learn about how to milk a cow.
The 2012 fair won't just be about cows. It's also about 4-H. Here, Sherry Bingle-Coffman, executive director of the Indiana 4-H Foundation, urges visitors to make their way to the 4-H exhibit hall on the northwest side of the grounds to check out thousands of 4-H projects from all over Indiana.
Kids of the younger set won't have trouble finding animals to see at the fair. This young person and parent happen to be examining a lamb in the air-conditioned sheep Pavilion.
Older kids, 4-H members, will also be at the fair. Here Kayla Bechman prepares a lamb for the show, with help from her older brother Daniel.
One of the more intricate displays at the fair and most-well-known Is the Indiana FFA pavilion on the north side of the track, west of the Farm Bureau Building. Set-up by the Indiana FFA state officers and district FFA members began on July 25.
When it's completely assembled, the horseshoe shaped FFA pavilion isn't hard to find. It features a country store where you can buy all kinds of goods made in Indiana, and benefit FFA at the same time.
Mini-golf is a mainstay at the FFA pavilion. Kids and families paly an 18-hole course for free. This will only be the second year for this new course. As they play, kids and parents can learn fun facts about agriculture and FFA.
Another new mainstay on the north side of the tract is 'Old McReynolds Farm', a permanent display by Reynolds John Deere from Fishers. You can buy a real combine or a John Deere hat, take you pick, while visiting the on-grounds store.
What would the state fair be without Pioneer Village? Mauri Williamson and company celebrated 50 years last year, but since the date was sort of a compromise as to when it really started, who knows- they're probably still celebrating!
Get around the fairgrounds on the shuttles powered by Indiana soybeans. The shuttles are powered by tractors that run on diesel fuel blended with diesel fuel. For a nominal price, a ride on the shuttle is a good way to see the fair.