Goshen in 2014: All a fair should be

GOSHEN — It was everything you’d want a county fair to be. At 102 years old, the Goshen Agricultural Fair remains true to its roots. Sure, there are plenty of modern attractions and trendy food. But the focus remains on youngsters showing their animals, giant pumpkins, blue-ribbon contests for growing and creative pursuits and a showcase for all the skills learned on the farm.Crowds flocked to watch the lawn-mower pull, a lumberjack exhibition and the FFA petting zoo —fair classics that can still hold their own against elephant and merry-go-round rides, archery shooting and games of chance on the midway.Fair-goers said a new addition is one of the best: a giant dining tent for a respite in the shade to enjoy a variety of food. Speaking of which, fried Oreos was about the craziest thing one could buy to eat. No spaghetti on a stick here. Fried dough, onion flowers and baked potatoes seemed the most popular, based on the length of the lines and the foods people were carrying as they walked from barn to barn and tent to tent.Two friends ended up with ice cream sundaes from different booths, eventually deciding the “World’s Best” beat out the “Ultimate.”A nod to some local winners (and apologies to those ribbons we missed).Gordon Lock, 11, of Lakeville earned a first-place blue ribbon for his Lego soccer stadium. Tom Brown of Cornwall won second-place for a photo of his lovely daughter, Meghan. Also from Cornwall: Buddy Hurlburt took the blue ribbon for his butternut squash and Phil Hart for his maple syrup and for his maple sugar candy. Hart said he always wins first place, but quickly qualified that by saying the candy that he and his wife, Joyce, stay up late the night before the fair (using their own syrup) has been the only entry in the category for as long as they’ve been making it.