Overall fair attendance up, per-day average down

The longer Indiana State Fair drew a record crowd of nearly 1 million visitors, although its daily average was far short
of previous years.

Fair officials announced today that 973,902 people came through the gates during the 17-day
run that ended yesterday. This was the first year that the fair was extended beyond the previous 12 days in order to add a
third weekend of activities.

This month’s fair averaged 57,288 people a day, compared to the 75,030 daily average
when the previous attendance mark of 900,365 was set in 2004 and also down from last year’s daily average of 71,635.

Fair spokesman Andy Klotz said the third weekend was needed because earlier starts to the school year hurt the size of weekday
crowds.