Guests at this year’s 50th State Fair, which gets started Memorial Day weekend at Aloha Stadium, will have the opportunity to try two new rides along with a number of new attractions.
The nearly 150-foot-tall Speed is a “tower ride” with a gondola attached at each end. Up to eight people can ride at a time and experience up to 3.5 G-force. Speed will operate only on Oahu for the 50th State Fair before being shipped back to the mainland.
Another ride, called Seven Seas, will make its debut June 8 and become a permanent part of the E.K. Fernandez collection, according to company vice president Donna Smith. Riders are seated on a platform that swings into the air, giving them a free-falling sensation.
50TH STATE FAIR
>> Where: Aloha Stadium
>> When: 6 p.m. to midnight Fridays, 4 p.m. to midnight Saturdays and noon to midnight Sundays, from Friday to May 29, June 2 to 4, June 8 to 11, June 16 to 18 and June 23 to 25; special hours from noon to midnight May 29, 6 p.m. to midnight June 8, and 4 p.m. to midnight June 11.
>> Admission: $3 before 6 p.m. and $5 after
>> Info: ekfernandezshows.com/events/206
“We’re buying that ride,” Smith said. “There’s nothing like it on our midway. It’ll be a brand new experience for our customers.”
Other attractions making their debut include the Altervision 3D Black Light Experience, which features hand-painted artwork enhanced by the use of 3-D glasses, and a pair of monster trucks owned by All Star Motorsport Productions, with one designated to crush cars and the other set up for guests to ride.
Smith was also excited to share the history behind Les Kimes’ Pork Chop Revue, a variety show featuring pigs from Florida. Kimes’ father, Boyd Kimes, was part of the 50th State Fair when he brought Oink the Singing Pig to headline in the early 1960s.
“This fella was out here with his giant hog and now his son his doing it,” Smith said. “And his son is also coming out to help this time around, so it’s a three-generation connection. We’ll be the first fair in the country to see them perform.”
The Anastasini Circus returns to the fair, featuring longtime fair ringmaster Giovanni Anastasini and an international cast of performers, some of whom have never performed locally.
The 50th State Fair begins May 29 and continues through June 11. Admission is $3 before 6 p.m. and $5 after; an E.K. Fernandez Fun Pass is required to purchase nearly everything at the fair. Smith said lines for the cards should be shorter this year with the addition of 30 card-dispensing machines.
