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The heat makes its presence felt on Day 3 of Floyd County Fair

  • Contestants play in the Kidbucks game show on Thursday at the Floyd County Fair. Press photo by Kelly Terpstra

  • The crowd braves the heat to watch the Kidbucks game show at the Floyd County Fair on Thursday. Press photo by Kelly Terpstra

  • Contestants play in the Kidbucks game show on Thursday at the Floyd County Fair. Press photo by Kelly Terpstra

  • Contestants play in the Kidbucks game show on Thursday at the Floyd County Fair. Press photo by Kelly Terpstra

  • A 4-H member brushes her rabbit in anticipation of showing the animal at the Floyd County Fair on Thursday. Press photo by Kelly Terpstra

By Kelly Terpstra, kterpstra@charlescitypress.com

While thermometers gave a reading just shy of triple digits in the area on Thursday, the heat index rose well into the 100s.

If you were at the Floyd County Fair, you felt the burn.

Jim Lundberg, a Charles City High School FFA advisor who has been involved with the Floyd County Fair for almost four decades, said the air-conditioned Youth Enrichment Center at the fairgrounds will see a lot of foot traffic over the course of fair week – more so than usual.

The multi-purpose center has become the default location for many events and shows because of the loss of several other buildings to the Memorial Day tornado.

“For the 4-H to be able to run their food stand in here and to be able to have all these projects and the donation breakfast in the morning that the co-ops put on — everything’s happening in here,” said Lundberg. “I can’t thank the volunteers and fair board members enough with their leadership.”

“The heat worries me a little bit,” he said. “Boy, this building again is a lifesaver to have the air conditioning in here.”

He also noted it has the only flushable toilets on the grounds.

While the heat may force many inside to relax at the YEC at times to take a break from the glaring sun, Lundberg isn’t worried about overuse.

“There’s nothing in this building that can’t get cleaned or repaired after fair. If this is what we have to do to get through this fair, it will work,” he said.

The horse show was moved inside to the show arena on Wednesday after rain fell in the early afternoon. The early morning showers Thursday didn’t affect the bucket bottle dairy cattle and goat show, or the rabbit show.

FFA advisor Bret Spurgin said keeping a close eye on livestock is key when the mercury rises.

“You’ve got to make sure you have water always available for the animals. Have fans on them,” he said.

There will be a free pancake breakfast from 7 until 9 a.m. this morning (Friday) in the YEC. The Figure 8 races get under way in the grandstand at 7 p.m.

While the Youth Enrichment Center has helped out tremendously with the adjusted fair schedule, if it weren’t for hundreds of people pitching in to make a difference after the tornado struck, many 4-H or FFA contestants, along with their animals, may have been sitting this fair out.

“We’re talking thousands of man hours that have been put in since the tornado to get this thing put together,” said Lundberg. “It’s taken that to get this thing off and going.”

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