CAMBRIDGE, Illinois -
As the hours tick down to Family Night at the Henry County Fair, there's plenty of animals, 4-H participants and proud parents. But something is missing. It's the carnival. And it's sparking emotions from the fair faithful.
"It broke my heart," said Amy Moskowitz. "It almost brought tears to my eyes. That's how passionate I am about the Henry County Fair."
Texas-based Candyland Amusements was picked to be a new provider at the fair. But after safety non-compliance violations, eight carnival trucks were impounded in Kansas earlier this month. They showed up in Cambridge with just a few children rides.
After negotiating with carnival management late Wednesday, fair officials expect that the carnival will have four additional rides in place on Thursday. The Henry County Fair will offer free rides from 4-6 p.m. on Friday and Saturday in Cambridge.
"The fair gets 20% of what they make," said Henry County Fair Board President Wayne Douglass. "It's going to cut pretty deep into our profits. We had a rough year last year."
Missing rides are taking a toll on the historic fair. Celebrating its 150th year, this wasn't on the agenda for Henry County.
While other activities continue on schedule, the carnival remains a big draw. Without it, attendance is basically sliced in half.
"A lot of little kids come here just to ride the rides," said Ben Martens, Orion. "They don't want to see livestock shows. I think it's drawing some of the people away."
While the fair board considers legal action, the show must go on without a carnival for now. Thursday's addition should get the fair back on track.
"Now is the time when small carnivals need to stick with small fairs for all of us to get through and get moving," Douglass said.
Once the additional rides are in place and inspected, they will operate through the rest of the fair's run. It remains open through Sunday.
"The families come for the rides, and they're not here this year," Moskowitz concluded. "It's just going to be a bad time for the families."
"It broke my heart," said Amy Moskowitz. "It almost brought tears to my eyes. That's how passionate I am about the Henry County Fair."
Texas-based Candyland Amusements was picked to be a new provider at the fair. But after safety non-compliance violations, eight carnival trucks were impounded in Kansas earlier this month. They showed up in Cambridge with just a few children rides.
After negotiating with carnival management late Wednesday, fair officials expect that the carnival will have four additional rides in place on Thursday. The Henry County Fair will offer free rides from 4-6 p.m. on Friday and Saturday in Cambridge.
"The fair gets 20% of what they make," said Henry County Fair Board President Wayne Douglass. "It's going to cut pretty deep into our profits. We had a rough year last year."
Missing rides are taking a toll on the historic fair. Celebrating its 150th year, this wasn't on the agenda for Henry County.
While other activities continue on schedule, the carnival remains a big draw. Without it, attendance is basically sliced in half.
"A lot of little kids come here just to ride the rides," said Ben Martens, Orion. "They don't want to see livestock shows. I think it's drawing some of the people away."
While the fair board considers legal action, the show must go on without a carnival for now. Thursday's addition should get the fair back on track.
"Now is the time when small carnivals need to stick with small fairs for all of us to get through and get moving," Douglass said.
Once the additional rides are in place and inspected, they will operate through the rest of the fair's run. It remains open through Sunday.
"The families come for the rides, and they're not here this year," Moskowitz concluded. "It's just going to be a bad time for the families."
