Good weather helps Indiana State Fair set crowd mark

The Indiana State Fair has closed out this year with a record attendance of more than 978,000.

Fair officials announced Monday that the crowds for the 17-day fair totaled about 4,000 more than the previous record in 2009.

This year's fair, which ended Sunday, benefited from mostly unseasonably cool and dry days — a major change from last year's high heat and thunderstorms that saw the fair draw some 120,000 fewer people.

Fair executive director Cindy Hoye said organizers knew they faced challenges drawing crowds with many school districts having already starting classes and fewer major events as the fairgrounds coliseum undergoes renovations.