The 162nd Ohio State Fair opens Wednesday in a ceremony presided over by Gov. John Kasich, back from his first tour as an official candidate for president. Our Statehouse Correspondent Karen Kasler has a preview of this year's fair.
Midway rides have been under construction for a week, and last minute preps go on up until the fair opens.
The state's chief ride inspector Michael Vartorella says they'll check out 79 rides from nine amusement companies before the fair - and during it.
"We'll come back in and make sure that the operators are doing what they're supposed to be doing - checking heights and making sure everybody's safe."
In other parts of the 360 acre fairgrounds, livestock shows are underway. Food vendors are setting up - this year featuring something called deep fried cake balls. The Department of Natural Resources has installed a new 14-foot-tall animatronic Smokey the Bear in its fairgrounds park. Fair general manager Virgil Strickler says all this shows why Ohio's fair ranks in the top five state fairs in the nation.
"People quit looking at how many people you actually have coming. They actually started looking at the quality of your fair. I want them to do that."
The Fair set a record last year with nearly 917,000 visitors in 12 days.
This year's fair runs through August 9.