Another fair season is in the books in Pleasanton as the Alameda County Fair closed its gates for the final day on Sunday.
Wild rides, a wide range of food and hot weather awaited visitors on the 18th and final day of the annual fair.
“It's been pretty nice, it's really hot, but other than that it's pretty fun,” said Ramtin Moghadam of Danville, who attended the fair with family.
It's not the only fair in the Bay Area, but it is one of the hottest, literally. A heat wave stretched through many of the prime fair-going days this year.
The surrounding area has been under an excessive heat warning for days. Sunday, high temperatures in the Tri-Valley were in the mid to upper 90s. At the Livermore Municipal Airport, which is eight miles away from the fairgrounds, the National Weather Service reported temperatures above 100 degrees for the previous five days.
"Well, it did hurt attendance during the day, because it's hot, right? It’s 105 degrees," said Harry Daviess, the year-round events manager at the Alameda County Fairgrounds.
However, Daviess said attendance picked up in the evenings once things cooled off.
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Daviess said organizers have been working to keep all the animals at the fair hydrated and cooled off, from the horses racing on the track to the livestock animals.
While the fair has had misters, water refill stations, and sunscreen stations in years prior, officials increased the numbers of these stations this year to combat the heat.
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Additionally, the Alameda County Fire Department is on-site for the fair and helps keep an eye out for attendees' health.
"They have their own area where people can go to cool off and they can hydrate, so that’s been a big priority," Daviess said.
he added that total attendance numbers for the fair this year aren't available, but, "I can tell you this, we’re happy with the attendance numbers we have, they’ve been strong."
On Sunday, many attendees used umbrellas to block out the sun, held fans to cool themselves off, and grabbed cold beverages from the food stands.
"It's hot, but it is manageable, luckily they’ve got a lot of shaded areas," said Romel Lucas of Oakland.
Lucas went to the fair this year with his family, including his own children.
"We wanted to make sure we allowed our kids to enjoy the fair like we’ve done for so many years since we were kids growing up here in the Bay Area," Lucas said.
