Fair Game with Robert Smith

Cheryl Flood knows she's one of the lucky ones. As executive director of the Florida State Fair, she is one of the few fair managers who actually had a fair back in 2020 just prior to the Covid pandemic being declared. While her 2020 fair was a success, she did not escape the pandemic unscathed. As the vaccine began to be distributed the decision had to be made to delay the 2021 Florida State Fair by several months. We talk about that decision and more on today's episode.

Gene Cassidy is the President of the Eastern States Exposition, affectionately known as The Big E! He's also the current chair of the IAFE Executive Committee. He joins us today from The Big E! to talk about how they've navigated the Covid pandemic and what he's most looking forward to when the fair opens its gates this fall.

Samantha Fairlie is the owner at, “The Pretzel Lady,” a hand-rolled pretzel business based out of St. Augustine, Florida. Not only are her pretzels delicious, she's the proud owner of one of the most amazing food trailers in the entire industry. When I first saw it my first thought was, “this is the kind of set up you'd see at EPCOT in Disney World during Food & Wine Fest.” We talk about that amazing display and more on today's episode.

Carey Harveycutter faced the challenges of 2020 with patience, making decisions focused on the health of his staff and community. It's 2021 now and the folks at the Salem Fair are ready to open. With their dates fast approaching the pandemic is waning just in time for the 2021 Salem Fair.Producer's Note: This episode was pre-recorded on Wednesday, June 9th, 3 weeks prior to the fair's opening night on Wednesday, June 30th.

If you've ever met Cale Moon you know he's not only an incredibly talented country artist but also one of the kindest men you'd ever meet. We sit down to talk about how he handled pandemic life and the joy of knowing our industry is coming back.

When Adam the Great is performing his magic will amaze, amuse, daze & confuse. It's a family friendly show that delights all ages at fairs across the country - except for in 2020. On today's show Adam and I talk about his approach to performing as well as his 2020 story.

Danny Aguilar is the Assistant GM & Director of Marketing for the Delaware State Fair. After the pandemic shut our industry down in March of 2020, Danny and the team in Delaware worked hard to find a way to open safely. In July of 2020 they were first in the nation to open after the pandemic shut us down. Danny joined me to talk about that and their plans for 2021 on today's show.

Dennis Friebe is an experienced magician having performed at fairs across America and some of America's largest theme parks including Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida. He takes a deliberate and thoughtful approach to magic which leaves his audiences in awe. He joins us today to share his story from 2020. PLUS - did you spot him in a hit Netflix series? Find out on today's show.

Scooter Korek has been in the carnival industry for 43 years. He's the Vice President for Client Relations for the largest carnival provider in the business, North American Midway Entertainment. With 5 units running simultaneously, N.A.M.E., is responsible for over 120 shows annually. Scooter joins me from Calgary, Alberta, Canada to talk about the challenges of the Covid pandemic and how he reacted to being shut down along with the Miami-Dade County Fair in march of 2020.

If you've ever seen the Robocars in action, chances are good Jeremiah Trippett may have been one of the performers bringing the characters to life. Jeremiah got his start with the Robocars on a chance encounter one day. During the show we talk about that encounter plus, the Jeremiah shares how he hustled during the pandemic to stay ahead of things. All that and more!

Jim Ward is on the board of the Pasco County Fair and is the immediate past president of the Florida Federation of Fairs & Livestock Shows. Jim's year as president was marred by the Covid-19 pandemic. In order to show the Federation's support of its member fairs, Jim along with Federation director Dan West, visited 28 fairs, traveling more than 6,000 miles in the process. We talk about all of that and more on today's episode.

Ron Diamond has over 30 years of entertaining experience in the fair and festival industry. His focus on building strong relationships and delivering high production quality has made him an industry favorite. Between his magic shows, hypnosis shows and incredible A/V stage production, Ron Diamond has delivered for fairs all across America.

Mallory Hines joins us from the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo where she overseas entertainment and exhibits. Their event took place in 2020 just prior to the world shutting down. We talk about that plus how they adjusted for their 2021 event.

Freddy Miller joins us today. Like many of our carnival operators, Miller's Spectacular Shows out of Arkansas was hit particularly hard in 2020. But like a true ride operator, Miller is optimistic about the future and getting back out on the road in 2021.

Rick Frenette has been involved in the fair industry since he was a kid. With over 30 years of management experience in the industry, Rick launched his consulting company, Fair Advantage. The company supports clients with all manner of project from contract negotiations to midway presentation, ticketing, entertainment and more.

Welcome to Season 3 of the Fair Game Podcast. Today we welcome Devin Vaughn from the Colorado State Fair. Devin shared the fair's 2020 story along with their hopes for a successful 2021 opening. PLUS, which green chile is best? New Mexico or Colorado?

Charva Ingram is the Vice President of Marketing & Sponsorships with the Heart O' Texas Fair in Waco. Charva talks about how she handled the last year and she dishes on the state of marketing and sponsorships in a Covid world. All that and more!

It was going to be her coming out year as the new fair manager for the Hillsborough County Fair in Florida but 2020 had other plans. Today we talk with Suzanne Holcomb about the frustrations she faced plus her new dates and high hopes for 2021. All that and more!

Andrea Wiesenmeyer just took over her role as manager for the Jerome County Fair a few months ago. A brand new job in the middle of a pandemic? She may be out of her mind! Tune into today's episode to find out.

Neal Snyder takes his Firefighter Training Show across the country entertaining audiences and making junior firefighters out of the kids in his show. He's innovated his program with the addition of the Tiny Tanker which we talk about on the show. All that and more! Thanks for joining us.

Courtney Cox is the Fair and Special Event Coordinator for the Adams County Fair in Brighton, Colorado. Like so many others she has a long history in the fair industry from the livestock ring to fair management. We talk about being a young fair manager during a pandemic and the similar challenges we each face with our names. Plus! Did you know both Courtney and I were Disney World cast members? We talk about all that and more on today's show.

Lisa Reiff has a long family history in the fair industry. That family history would eventually lead her to the Michigan Association of Fairs & Exhibitions where she is the executive director. In March of 2020 as the pandemic hit Lisa discovered things wouldn't be all roses and flowers. (Listen to the show and you'll understand). To learn more about the Michigan Association of Fairs visit www.mifairs.org.

Angela Miller has been the fair manager for the Roosevelt County Fair in Culbertson, Montana for 9 years. At first glance the fair doesn't seem like your traditional county fair. There's no carnival and entertainment consists of events such as a corn hole tournaments. But when you look deep, you realize the Roosevelt County Fair is about as traditional of an “Americana” county fair as you can get.

Today we welcome Jeannine Domeyer from the Delaware County Fair in Manchester, Iowa. Jeannine has been involved in the fair industry for 16 years. After cancelling in 2020 her community rallied around the fair to help raise money and support the fair. Her leadership and the hard work from her team helped successfully navigate the pandemic. She's now looking forward to opening the gates in 2021.

Danny Grant is a lasso-twirlin', joke spittin', one-man cowboy comedy circus. He spent most of 2020 creating new show elements while patiently waiting for fairs to reopen. What many don't realize? He has a family history in entertainment. We talk about all of that and more on today's show.

Christine Iannotti is brand new to being a fair manager. She became fair manager of the St. Lucie County Fair in Florida in late 2019. Luckily for Christine, her dates snuck in right under the wire in 2020, concluding just a few days before Houston cancelled and the dominos began to fall. We talk about her experience navigating 2020, how she felt watching her colleagues have to cancel their fairs and how she managed her 2021 fair.

Cody Cashman is the fair manager for the Red River Valley Fair in North Dakota. His first challenge as manager? Navigate the Covid19 pandemic.

Daniel Jolley, aka Pirate Man Dan is a swashbuckling entertainer who delights audiences. Based out of Vermont, Daniel travels across the northeastern and southern United States bringing smiles to people's faces from New England to Alabama.

Jenn Flinton is on the YPI Steering Committee for Zone 1 and currently works for the Saratoga County Fair in New York. Jenn is a fair industry lifer having grown up in the industry. She brings a lifetime of knowledge to the show. You don't want to miss it.

Jo Reynolds joins us from Iowa where she oversees the Warren County Fair. We talk about the importance of small fairs to their communities and how she's navigating her fair through the Coronavirus pandemic.

Cindy Hoye is the executive director for the Indiana State Fair. The Indiana State Fair is one of the five largest state fairs in the midwest along with the State Fairs of Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsins and Ohio. Cindy and I talk about the leadership challenges of navigating a pandemic and the decision to move forward with their 2021 fair.

Jamie Jones is the fair manager for the Grady County Fair in Oklahoma. The event is by far the smallest fair we've had represented on the podcast. Make no mistake when it comes to the size of an event - our fairs play big time roles in their communities.

Pamela Rosaire's company, Rosaire's Royal Racers entertains and delights audiences across America. But 2020 put a stop to that. Today we talk about pandemic life and the challenge of navigating 2021.

Jake Sperley is the CEO of Fair & Event. One of their new products is a booth management system for event planners. The roll out hit a major roadblock as Covid disrupted events nationwide. Here's the impressive thing - Fair & Event actually expanded and added employees during the pandemic. We talk about how that happened on today's episode.

Daryle Lupretta is the Food & Beverage Manager for the Santa Clara County Fair. The fair is located in San Jose, California where continued government restrictions have been crippling to the events industry. Can the Santa Clara County Fair survive a protracted shutdown and what impact does the pandemic have on food vendors? All that and more.

Dominic Palmieri is the owner of Odyssey Foods & known as “The Midway Gourmet” for Ray Cammack Shows. When 2020 became the challenge of a lifetime, Palmieri made adjustment to start a new sanitizing company. We talk about that as well as food costs and the challenges concessionaires may face moving through the pandemic.

Tim & Robin Balster join us today from just outside Chicago where they are the husband and wife duo of Balster Magic. We talk entertainment, their new trivia game show and life during the pandemic.

Today we welcome Collin, Adrienne and Benny Rolf. Together the sibling trio make up, Renata the Banda. They took time out of their fair performance schedule (YES! They were actually at a fair when we spoke!) to come on the show and share their pandemic experience and talk about how great it felt to be back on stage performing at the Southwest Florida & Lee County Fair.

Interim CEO Walter Marquez has his hands full at the Los Angeles County Fair. As the grounds has been forced to cancel back-to-back fairs now, he's tasked with navigating the fair in Pomona, CA through tumultuous waters. He's joined by Don DeLano the Farm Manager (and resident historian) of the LACF.

Steve Trash is a performer who talks the talk and walks the walk when it comes to conservation. He is without question one of the most polished and professional acts in the industry. He joins us from his home in Alabama to talk about conservation, the pandemic and the future of fairs.

Professionally know as, “Bandaloni,” Paul David is an accomplished entertainer who delights audiences with him incredible one-man-band performance. He joins the show from Ontario, Canada where the border to the US is still closed due to Covid. We talk all things fair, pandemic and why he has toboggans and sleds in the corner of his home.

Jamie Larson is the fair manager of the Richland County Fair in Sydney, Montana. She pulls double duty as the president of the Rocky Mountain Association of Fairs. We had a terrific chat about the challenges she's faced during the pandemic.

Nancy Smith is the General Manager of the South Carolina State Fair. During her time at the fair her team has faced its ups and downs. From flooding to record setting events to the pandemic, patience and quality leadership has brought them through it all.

Matt Cranford is the CEO of the Stanislaus County Fair in California. The government restrictions have proven to be an enormous challenge for the fair as they move into 2021. Matt talks about that plus, did the Stanislaus County Fair create the best fair ad ever? All that and more on today's episode.

Jeremy Emerson is a partner and creative director for Saffire. Saffire has become the industry standard for quality marketing and efficient mobile ticketing. On today's show we talk about how Saffire supported their clients during the pandemic.

Bill Buchanan is the owner of Kids Celebration - an exciting & interactive family experience that includes fun games and challenges. Having faced a difficult 2020, Bill and his attraction are ready to rock and roll in 2021.

Don Delahoyde is the immediate past president for NICA, the National Independent Concessionaires Association. While enjoying that warm Arizona sunshine, Don joins us to talk the concession business, NICA and the pandemic.

Ashley Brown is the Director of Commercial Sales for the Georgia National Fair. If you ask him, however, he does a little bit of everything. From sales to entertainment booking, Ashley has it covered. We talk about the challenges he's faced the last year, what he looks for in entertainment and his hopes for 2021.

William Zakrajshek is the founder of Out at the Fair. The event had its beginnings at the San Diego County Fair and has expanded to 9 locations. We talk about how the event came into existence, the pandemic and what 2021 could hold.

Matias and Jamie Martinez are the owner/operators of the Three Ring Super Circus. The show wows audiences with incredible stunts and circus feats. Based out of Georgia, the show travels across the country to the delight of audiences everywhere. We sat down to talk about the pandemic, Matias' injury that nearly took his life and the joys of having a new baby.

In April of 2001, Chad Hymas disregarded the hydraulic fluid warning light on his tractor. That decision lead to a 2,000lb hay bale crashing down on him, breaking his neck and leaving him a quadriplegic. His story will inspire you.