When the Grandstand goes away, the big vehicles come out to play at the Great New York State Fair. The final two days of the Fair will feature the All Star Monster Truck show on Sunday, August 31 and the New York State Championship Demolition Derby on Monday, September 1, State Fair Acting Director Troy Waffner announced today.
Tickets to either event are $13.25 and include admission to the Fair if bought in advance. The monster truck show features a pit party. Tickets to the monster truck show that include the pit party are $15.50. Tickets are available through the Fair’s only official online ticket seller, etix.com, or at the State Fair Box Office, which is open every weekday from 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
“These two shows bring great excitement to the Fairgrounds and we’re so pleased to have them back. I can’t wait to watch the monster trucks go wild, and it’s always great to crown another New York State champion in the demolition derby. If you haven’t seen these shows, this year is the year you should go,” said Troy Waffner, Acting State Fair Director.
The All Star Monster Trucks return for a ground-pounding night of excitement on Sunday, August 31. For the first time ever at the State Fair, 2-time World Finals Freestyle Champion Jim Koehler in Avenger will battle a field of elite All Star Monster Trucks.
“These are the best monster trucks in the entire country, including some of the trucks that our Syracuse fans see battling it out at the Carrier Dome” says Bryan Wagner, President of All Star Motorsport Productions. “Our fans know and love Avenger. Jim Koehler has captured dozens of freestyle victories at major stadium events all across the United States and Canada, including two World Finals Freestyle Championships. He’s been seen competing against the best on national television for over 15 years, and we’re proud to have him at the All Star Monster Truck Tour event at The Great New York State Fair.”
Joining Jim Koehler and Avenger will be a competitive field of All Star Monster Trucks, including Jim’s brother and team mate, Steve Koehler in Wrecking Crew. Also competing will be Brutus and Spike, two trucks with wild 3D dog-style bodies that are both crowd pleasers. Wrecking Crew, Brutus, and Spike have all also been featured on national television and have a customized line of Hot Wheels toys modeled after their incredible All Star Monster Trucks. Rounding out the field will be the Saigon Shaker, a 1967 Army Jeep dedicated to POW-MIA Veterans and driven by Ryan Disharoon of Delaware.
The All Star Monster Trucks will be joined by a special feature courtesy of Wild West Entertainment: the 30-Foot tall car-eating, transforming, robotic dinosaur Megasaurus. Weighing more than 50,000 pounds with 15,000 pounds of crushing and biting force, Megasaurus will eat and tear a junk car into two pieces.
The event begins with a meet-and-greet pit party from 6:00 – 7:00 p.m., with the show beginning at 7:30 p.m.
Demolition Derby
JM Productions of Hamburg returns the New York State Championship Demolition Derby to the Fairgrounds starting at 4:00 p.m. Labor Day, Monday, September 1. It’s actually three events in one. There’s a demolition derby for full-sized cars, one for compact cars, and a double figure 8 feature race championship.
The demolition derbies feature the winners of the derbies held all summer at county fairs across the state. The field of up to 150 cars for the full-sized derby, which determines the state champion, is filled out by the winners of qualifying heats that day. There’s a special heat to determine the Onondaga County champion, but anyone who has a car that can meet the requirements of the derby are eligible to apply. Full rules and requirements are available at the front desk of the Fair’s administrative office or by visiting http://wwwjmproductionsinc.com.
The state champion receives a trophy and up to $1,500 in prize money, part of a total prize pool of $9,000.
The New York State Fair, operated by the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets, runs from August 21 – September 1, 2014. The Fair’s mission, reflected in its 2014 theme, “Summer’s Best in Show,” is to showcase the best of New York agriculture while providing top-quality entertainment. This year’s tagline – “New Attractions, Old Favorites, Timeless Fun” – highlights the more than two dozen new events and attractions and the expansion or enhancement of several Fairgoer favorites.
In addition to the annual New York State Fair, the Fairgrounds host dozens of agricultural events throughout the year, including some of the Northeast’s most prestigious horse and livestock shows.
The home of the Great New York State Fair is a 375-acre exhibit and entertainment complex that operates all year. A year-round schedule of events is available on the Fair’s website. Find The Great New York State Fair on Facebook, follow @NYSFair on Twitter, and enjoy photos from the Fair at Flickr.com/photos/nysfair. Also, New Yorkers are invited to send their ideas for the Great New York State Fair at [email protected].