The Chilton County Fair had a good opening night, according to fair officials.

Fair management chairperson Melinda McCullough said they had a steady stream of patrons all night.

“It was a good opening night,” she said. “It was a lot better than some years.”

The fair entertainment for the night consisted of Chilton County High School’s Blast From the Past, an antique tractor show and the annual farm exhibit that allowed visitors to pet some farm animals.

McCullough didn’t have any definite numbers immediately available, but she does expect the turnout to increase tonight.

The second annual demolition derby will be held tonight beginning at 7 p.m.

Gates will open at 6 p.m. McCullough stressed that no one will be able to enter the gates until that time.

“If you arrive at 5 p.m., you will not be able to enter the gates early,” she said.

Traffic was a major concern on the derby night of the fair last year, but McCullough said off-duty law enforcement officers will be on hand to help control traffic.

“We encourage everyone to be patient as they are coming to the fair [tonight],” McCullough said.

In addition to the derby, the annual goat and lamb shows will be held in one of the exhibition halls on the fairgrounds.

This event can attract people from as far away as Dothan who come to enter the lamb show. The goat show features youth ages 9-19 from across the county.

Admission to the fair is $3, and armbands are $15 each. Armbands are required to ride all of the rides, but tickets are also available.

Southern Pride will take the stage Wednesday night.

A new event for 2008 is Gospel Night, which takes place Thursday night. Also, the steer show will be held on Thursday.

Friday night, the fair will be open as usual.

On Saturday, however, the fair will begin early at 5 p.m.

The beef and heifer shows will be held, but they will begin early at 3 p.m. and continue throughout the day.

Also, judging for the fair entries – including cooking, sewing, photography, etc. – will be held on Saturday.

– Brent Maze can be reached at brent.maze@clantonadvertiser.com