Sun Nov 08 2009
By HEATHER BAUGHMAN
On a warm summer Saturday evening, the glow of lights from the county fair entice visitors to take a stroll down the midway for a ride on the Tilt-A-Whirl or grab a Sno-Kone and cheese on a stick for a late-night snack. The fun and entertainment of the county fair and church and town carnivals are a summer staple for many, however, there may come a day when the lights go out and the mouth watering treats from the snack carts disappear.
Though that demise hasn't affected northwest Ohio as much as it has other small communities across the country, but that doesn't mean the area is immune. "We've got some counties (fairs) that are struggling," said Bill Prowant, president and part owner of Durant Enterprises Inc., which provides carnival rides for a number of fairs and festivals in and around northwest Ohio.
"A fair is a business, just like any other business. Expenses have gone up," he said. "A lot of your smaller fairs are struggling," with fuel prices being a catalyst effecting everyone.
While preparing for this past week's Bryan Jubilee, Prowant said he spent $4,500 to fuel his generators, compared to $2,600 last year. "It's (fuel prices) going to affect us big time. The bottom line is not what it was last year," he said.
"The cost it takes to move a show today is just about enough to run everyone out of business," said Doug and Deb Hanefeld, owners of D & D Putting and Amusements Inc. of Continental. "People will complain about ticket prices, but they do not understand just what it takes to move a show down the road," noting that they try to stay within an 80-mile radius of home. "Everyone can feel the crunch at the pump when filling up one vehicle, but just try filling up 15 to 25 vehicles," they said.
Gas prices are "definitely making us rethink things a little," Prowant said, noting that he left a few trailers at home before he left for Bryan.
"Someday there will be regional fairs," he speculated. "There are getting to be fewer and fewer ride companies every year," he said, some battling with the increasing regulations being put upon the industry.
For now, the Prowant's have the next few years secured with many of the county fairs and festivals with multi-year contracts.
A few years ago, the fair board of the Paulding County Fair did away with their ride amusements. "A lot of it was money issues," said fair board treasurer Carina Meyer. But this year, the rides are back. "It was actually by chance," that fairgoers again have the opportunity to ride the carousel again at the Paulding County Fair.
Meyer explained that Calliope Productions out of New Metamoras contacted the fair board and offered to set up their rides ... and they were free of charge.
The fair, which came to a close Saturday, offered free rides.
"We're really looking forward to having him (Calliope Productions) back next year," Meyer said, however, she did not think that having the rides at the fair had much of an impact on the attendance, noting that most of the amusement riders were people who were already at the fair for one reason or another.
"Without the rides, we still (had) tons of activities for the children all week going on," Meyer said.
The Hanefeld's are noticing the shift in amusement rides. "We would estimate we only ride one third of the riders that we rode just five years ago," the Hanefeld's said. "Twenty five years ago, fairs and carnivals were something everyone saved their money to have fun when they came to town. Today people live such a fast paced life with cell phones, computers and transportation that there doesn't seem to be enough time or money."
Looking back over the years, the Hanefeld's said, "the days of small town street fairs, firemen's festivals or a picnic in the park are becoming extinct. Twenty five years ago, there were around 800 of them and today you're lucky if there are 40. It takes a lot of volunteer time for committee persons to put on a fair or festival and people do not have as much time to spend working on them."
The hectic schedules that people keep these days also has impacted fair rides; so much that the Hanefeld's don't think midway rides should open before 5 p.m. on week days.
Adding to the complication are industry regulations, which make the ride entertainment business more difficult. "In the past, this was the most unregulated business and now, in 2008, it is one of the most over-regulated businesses," the Hanefeld's said.
Today, many of the people who make it to the county fair are kids involved in junior fair and 4-H programs. "I think fairs are all about the kids and the 4-H programs," Prowant said. "The rides are just a bonus." And, he added, "the bigger the 4-H groups or the bigger the junior fair program, the bigger the fair is going to be."
With so many families still attending the fair, Prowant said carnival rides are "probably more popular today" than 25 years ago. "There are so many different types (of rides)," that people keep coming back for more.
"Everyone wants to ride the Merry-go-round," he said, and the bigger kids love "anything that goes high in the air and upside down."
Today, Durant Enterprises has about 35 rides, with the "good 'ole rides" being the most popular, such as the Tilt-A-Whirl. "Everybody loves that ride," Prowant said.
"The rides that our parents and grandparents rode 30 to 40 years ago are probably the rides that are most popular today," the Hanefeld's said. "Rides like a Tilt-A-Whirl, Ferris wheel, Scrambler, Frolic, kiddie car rides, kiddie train rides and plane rides like the Sky Fighter."
Some of the newer rides, such as the high-flying kamikaze, are more popular with the pre-teen and young teen crowd. "The 12-14 year olds go for something that's a little more spectacular," Prowant said. But after about that age, he's noticed that rides are "not cool anymore."
Even though the Prowant's still see lots of kids enjoying their rides, they may become a fond memory in the future. "I would say that the outlook may not be as bright as it was five or 10 years ago," Prowant said. "This is a very hard business nowadays."
"Unfortunately the amusement ride business is slowly fading in the wind," the Hanefeld's said. "People are finding it hard to maintain a household, and it is getting harder and harder to maintain this type of business. It has always been a family business past down from generation to generation, but it may come to a sudden halt with this generation," the Hanefeld's said.
"It is kind of sad to see this side of life slowly dying off," they added. "It is nice to remember the simpler life on the midway, and we wonder what our grandchildren will remember as they grow up. There is no greater feeling than putting a smile on a kids face with a bag of cotton candy, Sno-Kone or a ride and that is why we area still in the business. Hopefully we are filling a child with a lifetime of memories to share with their children and grandchildren one day. There is still a little kid in everyone and coming to the Fair is a good way to show it."
Upcoming area county fairs are the Putnam County Fair, Ottawa, Tuesday through Sunday; Henry County Fair in Napoleon, Aug. 8-14; Defiance County Fair in Hicksville, Aug. 16-23; Fulton County Fair in Wauseon, Aug. 29-Sept. 4; and the Williams County Fair in Montpelier, Sept. 6-13.
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