DOSWELL, Va. (AP) — Fans of family-friendly agricultural expositions and legendary thoroughbred Secretariat had much to cheer Thursday as the new partners in the State Fair of Virginia stressed both attractions during their first joint public appearance since they announced their enterprise this month.
Leaders of the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation and Universal Fairs LLC discussed their plans for the 150-year-old fair during a news conference on the 331-acre property called Meadow Event Park. The partnership is a marriage of the state’s largest farm lobby and the operator of fairs in several states.
The State Fair of Virginia is scheduled to run from Sept. 28 through Oct. 7 under a partnership called Commonwealth Fairs and Events LLC.
Wayne Pryor, the Farm Bureau’s president, quoted his counterpart at Universal, Mark Lovell, when he summarized the fair’s attraction.
“There are three types of people who go to the fair: one who goes for the rides and the midway, one who goes to see agriculture, and the third that goes to compete,” Pryor said. “It is our intent to satisfy all three.”
Pryor also said the Farm Bureau has had preliminary talks with proponents of a state equine museum about the creation of the museum at the site, the former home of the legendary Triple Crown winner Secretariat. The great thoroughbred’s breeder and owners have publicly expressed their desire that the site pay homage to Secretariat and the state’s equine industry.
“We want people all over the nation to recognize the importance of this property and its legacy,” Pryor said.
A grandson of Secretariat, Covert Action, grazed just beyond the audience at the news conference.
Universal Fairs purchased the rolling green acres at auction in May for $5.67 million from the debt-ridden former operator of the fair.
“I’ve got one simple rule,” Lovell said. “Make more than you spend. I think households can learn from it. I think municipalities can learn from it.”
Lovell, a showman to Pryor’s more reserved personality, said he and some pals rode motorcycles from Tennessee to Virginia for Thursday’s appearance. During his brief remarks, he recalled his message to his wife Linda when he made the winning bid for the fair. “I said, honey, I bought a fair.”
Lovell said he’ll apply the same successful formula he uses to operate his other fairs. “They’re clean, they’re safe and they’re family friendly,” he said. “We want to expose people to great entertainment, great attractions, great rides and, of course, great competition.”
Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry Todd P. Haymore said the marriage of two of the state’s largest industries — agriculture and tourism — creates and “economic powerhouse.”
The Farm Bureau claims more than 150,000 members in Virginia while Universal operates fairs in its home state of Tennessee, Georgia and the state of Washington, as well as other festivals and events around the U.S.
State Fair of Virginia Inc. acquired the Meadow Farm property in 2003 for $5.3 million and moved the annual fair from Richmond, where it had been held since 1854, about 25 miles north to Doswell. The nonprofit defaulted on about $80 million in financing from a group of creditors and was forced to liquidate.
After the site underwent nearly $100 million in construction projects, the fair debuted in Caroline County in September 2009. Attendance hit a record 250,000 last year, but the group was unable to make money after the fair left Richmond.
Lovell’s winning bid gave him the event park as well as the State Fair of Virginia’s trademark, name, Web presence and some equipment. It included a 12,900-square-foot manor house, a 76,000-square-foot exhibition hall, a 9,700-square-foot pavilion and an extensive equestrian facility.
Secretariat’s owner Penny Chenery was concerned that the farm where she helped train the thoroughbred would lose its connection to horses. The fabled horse was born there in March 1970 and won the Triple Crown in 1973.
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Steve Szkotak can be reached on Twitter at http://twitter.com/sszkotakap.
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Online:
Universal Fairs LLC: http://www.universalfairs.com/
Virginia Farm Bureau Federation: http://vafarmbureau.org/
