The Utah State Fair kicks off today - 11 days of farm-raised fun, locally produced art, fried foods on sticks, carnival rides to make you puke up said stick-based cuisine, the chance to blow several bucks to win stuffed animals you could buy for half as much money, and the opportunity to introduce your city-fied kids to real live cows and all the smells that accompany them.

Here, in random order, are the fair events I always look forward to:

• The canned food award winners, if only to imagine the long-running rivalries between Ida Lou from Hurricane and LaVerne from LaVerkin.
• The commercial exhibits, to marvel at the fine art of hawking dust mops and kitchen knives.
• The giant butter sculpture.
• The Fine Arts and Creative Arts exhibits, to gush like a proud papa over my children's entries.

The Tribune kicks off its coverage of the fair with a full schedule and - if you pick up the print edition - a "Fair Libs" game so you can create your own wacky Utah State Fair story.

Labels: Utah State Fair