Eastern Idaho State Fair — Attraction in Blackfoot

We have enjoyed the Eastern Idaho State Fair every year. I do have some suggestions though. This year we scored tickets to the demolition derby. First off, they don't let you in with derby tickets until 6:30 pm, with the derby starting at 7:30 pm, but that is not nearly enough time to get food, especially when we have kids who want different things from different places, let alone do anything else. They need to let people with derby tickets (or any other events) in earlier. The lines were crazy, and extremely unorganized. They need to have serpentine line ropes to add some order, like the ones at theaters that compress lines into flat rows. They also should figure out walking lanes, because the general traffic was also crazy. Maybe compressing the food lines will fix this, but it was just total chaos and everyone was getting really frustrated. We witnessed two fights break out that were started by the impossibility of moving through the food area, one when someone knocked food out of someone else's hands and another when someone forced their way sideways through a tight line of food orderers (that were completely blocking the way) to get to the grandstands as the event was starting. The drone show was impossible to see from probably 80% of the seats. It needed to be low and right in the arena. My other suggestions for the derby itself come from previous derby experiences elsewhere. Big events back home were the 4x4 derby, the RV derby, and the trailer derby. Also they had a derby with ramps and trains (engine car in front, dead car in middle, brake car in rear). The arena isn't big enough for that, but maybe a smaller version would be doable. Otherwise we had...

We had loads of fun at the fair. The kids had a good time. The food was yummy. The service was good, too!!

So why the low two star rating?

It is because of a VERY serious safety issue. I will be happy to change my review when they rectify this situation.

At the fair you have loads of parking on both sides of that main highway. They absolutely need to put up a well-marked temporary crosswalk during fair days.

You've got people dodging traffic traffic crossing the road, sometimes with small children. Often times some cars will stop to let people pass, but there's no guarantee that all cars will stop, especially as it gets dark and people get tired.

PLEASE start providing a crosswalk. They make solar powered lights that flash when you push a button. For the cost of the rides and the entry fees, perhaps fair staff could hire a crossing guard. This would give a perfect balance between pedestrians and traffic, as a crossing guard could let traffic flow freely most of the time and have people cross in large groups.

I ask anyone reading this to please add your voice to my voice and request a crosswalk or crossing guard of some kind to keep people and drivers safe...

I used to love the fair, but it has turned into an absolute money pit. It has fun rides, but most of the Carney games are just repeated booths of the same thing, there's no variety anymore and it cost 3x as much as it did 5 years ago. Even the funnel cake was subpar... edible but sub par, as in no one really wants a chewy funnel cake. It should almost melt when you eat it. Corn dogs that tasted like they had been sitting on the warmer for at least an hour... and personally witnessed the selling of one I saw sit for at least two...Cell service was so bad that no one could make a phone call, which is scary when you're trying to round up a large group that has split up using the buddy system and you've got that Mom panic happening. Seemed like half the horses would get dropped less than a minute prior to the start of the horse races... So no changing your bets. I did enjoy spending time with my loved ones, but the amount of money that feels wasted, alongside all the many disappointments just ruined my experience with this fair I'm...