Southwest Washington Fairgrounds — Attraction in Centralia

I really enjoy the fair every year and this year was no exception. However we had real issues when it came to the rodeo ticket process. I called ahead of the fair even starting to find out where the best seats were and what were the perks of each location since I had never been in the grandstand arena before. The man who answered had very limited knowledge and it was as if he hadn't been in the grandstands before either. He finally grabbed some specs and gave me a rough idea of where each seating option was and that box seats would have seat backs. What he failed to mention is that the closest wall of the arena is a good 100 feet away from even the start of the grandstands. Well I buy my ticket and we show up, ready for the rodeo. Well, apparently if you buy once fair week has begun at all then your rodeo ticket won't get you into the fair- an aspect that was not mentioned when I was on the phone. Its also silly because here so am, with a ticket to an event that I can't even get to without shelling out another $14 each to get to the gates of the event I have already paid for!!! This is NOT the way that the state fair is run and while I get they are different fairs, you would think that the state fair has more of a leg to stand on charging more just to get to your event than a little county fair. Well we pay and all is well until we go to take our seats. We bought box seats, a $20 a piece ticket, and the most expensive option without sponsoring the event itself. Well I see that I am going to be way too far away from the arena to see well and try to get us switched to the bleachers up front, a $15 a piece ticket. I'm not even asking for a refund, I just want to go sit down there. The lady checking tickets wont let us sit there and has no idea of the pricing anyways. So I talk to the original ticket takers and they radio for a superior who never comes. So I go to the ticket counter, thinking that she will be able to help since I paid for more expensive seats and just want to sit in cheaper seats that are still available over 30 min into the event. NOPE. She says box seats are sold out before it started so she doesn't even know how much they were. And apparently, no, she cannot let us sit there either. Never in my life have I paid (twice) to go to an event and then been surrounded by so many unknowledgeable people and people who wouldnt let me sit in the cheaper seats than...

I like garlic. Do you like garlic? Well, you won’t find the fair lacking. There’s a place that boasts a “Mega” Philly cheesesteak for $14, which I didn’t think was mega and don’t think was worth the cost. Maybe that was the mega part🧐. That being said, it was a good cheesesteak. Not great, but good. This place does have good garlic fries. I had Uncle Joe’s last year, they make their own sausages, which are very good, and they had great garlic fries. I think my favorite thus far is the Frying Dutch Girl.

Other than food, there are livestock, chicken/ roosters, etc. There are rides (of course) notably a Ferris wheel which is good romantic excursion at sunset.

The grandstand is where a lot of the product vendors are. A/C vendors, soap and beauty products (the Cocosheama booth stood out to me), cutlery from CutCo , Tupperware (I didn’t realize that brand was still a thing), jewelry, etc. There is also a booth that has multiple businesses (Strong Tower painting & siding, Azurguard Roofing, Alpha Y La Omega landscaping and Bethel Remodel), she was super nice

There are also Republican Party booths, a VA booth looking for signatures for a petition to reopen a closed location (I signed). There’s a booth that educates in gun rights (it is helpful info)

All in all, great fun. Hot days that are cooling...

Each year the 4th of July derby seems to get more lame. At some point the fair board needs to get someone in there that knows how to run a derby so Lewis County doesn't completely die. Why did the big cars not get to run this year? There were 5 of them that showed up but none got to run. HUGE disappointment as this is what we paid to come watch. I even went and asked the announcer and got two of the lamest excuses! The 1st one being that there were so many other events in town that not enough cars showed up. The 2nd reason I was told is that they decided they didn't want to do it! Worst excuses in my opinion! These people wouldn't have spent countless hours to put a car together to show up with their car to say they don't want to run it. I'd say the current people running the derby need to lighten up and quit trying to start drama with the people who are trying to keep this 4th of July tradition alive for...