With the opening of the Berlin Fair just a few days away, there’s an air of anticipation blowing across the fairgrounds. The grass is getting mowed, the flowers donated and planted, and the barns swept. I was fortunate to stumble upon two teenagers acclimating their steers to an arena. Though the setting was not yet filled with the chattering of spectators, crowding of competitors, and crackling of a loudspeaker, there was still value in letting the steers get used to the space ahead of the commotion.

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Bailey Piccard (17) introduced me to Frank, a black steer with a smattering of white dotting his legs. Her cousin, Emma Finkler (14), lined up next with her steer, Queso. I learned they were practicing “setting up.” A perfect stance is with the front hooves side by side, and the back hooves set with the left one slightly forward. A show stick is used to adjust the hooves.

The teens explained how they began working with the steers last fall, and since then have spent time with them daily. The work involves leading them with a halter, teaching them to do blocking circles—a repositioning in the show ring—and guiding them into a chute. In the chute the steer is washed and then dried with a blow dryer. And not the salon kind of blow dryer, in case you’re wondering like I was. A livestock blow dryer whisks away dirt, speeds drying time, and makes the steer look “fluffier.”

“All the hard work is worth it,” Baily said, “because fair week is truly the best of week of the year.”

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As the girls practiced, Bailey’s grandma, Jean Piccard, looked on. She joked that her days of competing at the fair were about “a hundred years ago.” Piccard said that back then it was a "4-H" fair, and she would enter homemade items to be judged. “They had a freezer, and we could do frozen food. Every year you did something different, starting out with brownies the first year, and so on. In sewing, your first project was an apron and a towel. My daughter was in 4-H, and she made ‘hammer pants,’ if you can remember MC Hammer. By the time you’ve been in 4-H ten years, you’re making a gown." Now Piccard's fair days are spent cheering on  her grandkids.

"It’s fun," Piccard said. "Good for the kids. It keeps you out of trouble.”

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The Berlin Fair first opened in 1856, back when the town of Marne was called Berlin. The Marne Historical Society will have the history of the fair on display in the Still Exhibit barn. “It’s really fun to look through the years,” Fair Board of Director President Joan Kutchin said. “Some of the oldest fairs had all the horses and buggies.” There was also what she called “weird entertainment that fit the era,” such as a beard growing contest in the 1950s.  

Kutchin's always been involved with the fair, always loved the fair. She grew up on a dairy farm, and the fair was the highlight of the summer for her and her siblings. She showed dairy, beef steers, and pigs, and by the age of 21, was a 4-H leader. She soon joined the Rise Up committee, the Fair Board, and then, in 2019, became the Fair Board President. And now her kids have all gone through the fair as well, with a couple of them still showing.  

When asked what it takes to get a fair ready to open, Kutchin said it takes a lot. And it takes a lot of hands. The fair board is a cohesive group of volunteers that works well together. The week before the fair opens, board members and others who are fully vested in the fair—area businesses, people who used to show—work to beautify the grounds and get everything ready.

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In addition to volunteers, there are Berlin Raceway staffers also making preparations. Samantha and Sarah work in maintenance. Their job includes cleaning off the bleachers, power washing, and blowing off the concourse. During the fair you might spot them tooling around on their golf cart keeping everything tidy.

A full list of events can be found here. Two events that Kutchin expects to be popular again are the two days of rodeo and the demolition derby, called Night of Destruction.

A few daily highlights

Monday at 1:00pm: The animal showing begins and continues through the week—steers, heifers, hogs, lambs, goats, horses, rabbits, dogs, and… cats.

Tuesday at 5:00pm: The Carnival opens, the smell of cotton candy wafts through the air.

Wednesday at 7:00pm: Night of Destruction, demolition derby—cars smash and crash the night away.

Thursday at 10:00am: The commercial and exhibit buildings open—for those who want to enjoy the fair in the shade.

Friday 7:00pm: Twisted P Rodeo—promises a rootin’ tootin’ good time.

Saturday 2:00pm: A pre-rodeo party, plus a mechanical bull for all the cowboy wannabes. 7:00pm: A second night of Twisted P Rodeo, yee-haw!

Costs

Parking is free. General Admission $5 (Ages 10 and under are free admission). Grandstand Admission is in addition to the $5 Gate Charge. Carnival wristbands are $25 on Tuesday through Thursday and $30 on Friday and Saturday. Directions to the fair and additional information can be found on their website.

No matter your age or whether it’s your first time or fiftieth, there’s just something about the Berlin Fair.

“Some things never change,” Board President Kutchin said, “the excitement of fair, the amount of hard work kids put into their projects, the carnival… just the fun.”