The Kansas State Fair opens Friday and will be a more digital experience this year

The Kansas State Fair will open today in Hutchinson with several new high-tech features that will try to pull the down-home event into the digital age.

But first, let’s clear up one important question: Yes, the pig races — a delightfully low-tech fair favorite — are back for 2024 after being left out of last year’s fair.

The pig races, however, won’t be in the same spot on the fairgrounds where they were staged for 35 years until the tradition was broken in 2023. They have a new home this year, and fair general manager Bryan Schulz hopes that fairgoers will utilize one of the fair’s new digital features to find them: The fair has a brand new app, which can be found in the app store under “Kansas State Fair 2024.”

Though the fair, which runs through Sept. 15, has had an app in the past, the newest iteration has lots of bells and whistles that will help people find exactly what they want while on the grounds, Schulz said.

The app includes lots of “wayfinding” information as well as details on where to get certain foods. If, for example, fairgoers are craving funnel cakes, they just type the words “funnel cake” into the app and it will provide a list — with maps — of every vendor selling funnel cakes. The app also includes a searchable daily schedule, the concert lineup at the Grandstand, a guide to free entertainment, and a “shopping finder.”

Visitors also can buy tickets on the app, share fair photos and get answers to frequently asked questions, such as “What are the top foods at the fair?” (Pronto Pups, deep-fried Oreos, Pizza Box Nachos, chicken salad cucumbers) and “When does the Midway open?” (At different times nearly every day.)

Also, the app’s searchable maps feature will allow users to view the fairgrounds, click where they want to go, and allow their phones to lead them straight there.

“We had an app a couple of years ago, but the tech really wasn’t there,” Schulz said. “We’ve increased that technology, which has given us a lot more information. ...I would highly recommend people go to the app store on Android and Apple and download that app.”

The app is not the only fair feature that’s digitized this year. There’s also a big change at the Midway.

Those who want to ride the carnival rides this year will not get perforated paper admission tickets as they always have in the past. Instead, they’ll buy a “FunTagg card” that costs $30 in the app and online and also can be purchased at the Midway ticket booth during the fair. The cards are refillable and will have 65 tickets digitally embedded on them.

Fairgoers also can buy admission tickets, food vouchers and concert tickets before they arrive at the fair using the “buy tickets” button on the app.

Schulz said that the fair is looking at a good forecast so far — temperatures should remain in the mid 80s to low-90s for most of the run, and very little rain is predicted.

That, combined with data he’s gathered from grandstand ticket sales, lead Schulz to believe that 2024 could be the year that the Kansas State Fair finally reaches its pre-pandemic attendance numbers. Last year, 331,000 people attended the fair. The pre-COVID average was 350,000, he said.

“And with the economy the way it is, people are thinking more of doing staycations or a quick drive, maybe an hour’s drive, to go do something instead of spending a lot of money driving or flying somewhere.”

The fair just might be the (digital) ticket people are looking for, he said, especially considering that fair admission prices are one thing that hasn’t increased this year.

WHAT’S NEW IN 2024?

Though part of the fair’s charm is that it stays mostly the same from year to year, those who attend in 2024 will find some new attractions and events and will be able to enjoy some fairground improvements. Here’s what fairgoers will want to look for this year:

A brand new building: The fairgrounds this year has new place where people will be able to hang out, eat, rest in air conditioning, enjoy an adult beverage or catch some evening entertainment. It’s called 1861 Club, and it’s a big new event venue that features space for 350 people and will be used during the offseason as a rental space for weddings, quinceaneras, corporate events and more.

The new building, which sits just on Fort Riley Boulevard, right next door to the Domestic Arts building, is such a big deal that it has its own Facebook page and website. It’s such a big deal that it has its own fair food menu, which features healthier, more upscale fare like a Mexican shrimp cocktail, a charcuterie board, hummus and wraps.

On Friday, the fair will celebrate the 1861 Club’s grand opening from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The Facebook page also will list the other events that are planned for the space during the fair. Among them: performances by 1980s cover band Paramount on Friday and Saturday and screenings of the KU and KSU football games on Saturday.

The venue, which was named for the year the Kansas State Fair was founded, has indoor and outdoor seating.

Crazy fair food: State Fairs are known for their weird, wild and deep-fried food, and the Kansas State Fair will once again have plenty of it this year, Schulz said. Some of the highlights will include S’mores quesadillas at Dusek Concessions; pretzel-wrapped pickles at Bracket Concessions; Grilled Cheese Slammers with barbecue pork, mac and cheese and fried pickles at the Mac-N-Cheese truck run by Freund Family Foods; and taco burger sliders at Charlie’s Wine Garden.

Taylor Swift at the grandstand (sort of): The biggest-selling concerts at the Kansas State Fair grandstand this year, Schulz said, are country legend Wynonna Judd on Friday, rockers Goo Goo Dolls on Saturday; Christian group Casting Crowns on Wednesday; and the Sept. 14 show by country singer Riley Green. (Green’s catalog includes the mega hit “You Look Like You Love Me,” which he performs with a singer who will be opening for him at the fair — Ella Langley.)

But there’s also buzz around an act that may help soothe the sadness of Swifties who didn’t land an Eras Tour ticket. On Tuesday, a Taylor Swift tribute act called Let’s Sing Taylor will perform and will feature a singer dressed as Swift delivering all of her top hits, backed by a live band. Grandstand tickets are available on the app and at www.kansasstatefair.com

Superbowl trophies: Friday, Sept, 13, will be “Chiefs Red Friday” at the fair, and although the reigning Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs won’t be there themselves, their two most recent Super Bowl trophies will be. People are encouraged to wear their Chiefs gear to the fair that day.

Better pavement: The fair requires walking, and walking should be easier this year thanks to new asphalt that crews put down on “pretty much every square inch of the grounds,” Schulz said.

The new asphalt will eliminate “trip hazards” that people may have noticed, he said, adding that the crews also have just installed better, brighter and more energy efficient lighting.

Strong & Amazing and Lady Houdini: The fair’s Gottschalk Park each year features some type of traveling performance group, and this year, it has two. Strong & Amazing is an aerial stunt show that features trapeze, upside-down loop walking and more. And Lady Houdini is known for escaping “water torture cells” and other traps. Shows are free and will happen multiple times a day throughout the fair.

More flags: More-patriotic attendees said they loved that the fair plays the national anthem over the public address system every morning at 10 a.m., Schulz said. What they didn’t love, however, was that they couldn’t find any flags to salute while “The Star-Spangled Banner” played. This year, the American Legion donated close to 70 flags to the fair, and they’ve been placed them all over the grounds and in every building.

What about those pig races? Last year, the spot where the pig races had been staged for more than three decades was taken over by a new act: the Kenny Ahern Family Variety Theatre. Meanwhile, Joe Hendrick’s pork-tastic pig races were sidelined.

But they’re back this year in a new home — at 600 20th Ave., between the petting zoo and the camel rides. The piggies will race multiple times a day through the fair.

Returning favorites: Fair-goers should check the fair’s new app (or, for old schoolers, the schedule on the Kansas State Fair website) to find times and locations for favorite annual attractions, including the butter sculpture, Dr. Goddard’s Lab, comic hypnotist Ron Diamond, the petting zoo, the chainsaw artist, cooking contests, the big slide, the State Fair railroad, Ye Old Mill, the Sky Ride, boat rides, the giant pumpkins, the birthing center and more.

KANSAS STATE FAIR

When: Sept. 6-Sept. 15

Where: Kansas State Fairgrounds, 2000 N. Poplar Hutchinson Admission:

Admission: Gate admission starting on Friday is $10 for adults, $6 for children ages 6-12 and for seniors 60 and over, $4 for military members with ID. Tickets are available on the Kansas State Fair 2024 app, at the gate, at Dillons stores and at www.kansasstatefair.com

Midway tickets: Midway “FunTagg” cards include 65 virtual tickets on a refillable, non-expiring, credit-card style card. It will replace paper tickets and cost $30 in the app and at the Midway Ticket Booths. Additional rides may be added onto the card during the fair. There will also be six “wristband” days during the fair: on Sept. 6, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 and 15. Wristbands are $35 and good for all rides all day. There will be no Dillons Dollar Day Midway special this year. Instead, a seventh wristband day has been added.