“Cheers to 170 Years” is the 2026 Utah State Fair theme, featuring retro-inspired programming and techy innovations for a 21st-century midway experience.
The Utah State Fair is older than the State of Utah. In 1856, 40 years before we joined the Union, “The Deseret Fair” was held inside one building in downtown Salt Lake. It included displays of very large English hens and a suit of buckskin; LDS president Brigham Young won first place for “Best celery exhibit.”
In 1902, the fair found a much larger, more permanent home at North Temple and 1000 West. Originally called “Agriculture Park,” the 65-acre Utah State Fairpark is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places and hosts events all year, including Kilby Block Party.
The most epic event of them all, of course, is the Utah State Fair. This year, it opens on Sept. 10 and runs through Sept. 20; tickets start at $10 for a day and go up to $60 for a season pass. Along with old faves like the Flying Aces Pig Race, organizers included special programming for the fair’s 170th birthday.
Nicki Claeys, Deputy Executive Director and Marketing Director for the Utah State Fairpark, says that milestone inspired some hat tips toward America’s 250th. “We wanted to include a patriotic feeling,” she says, and so invited performers like Tribute to the Troops and Amirrorcan Men.
“We also decided to bring in old-time, retro kinds of things,” she adds. For instance …
1. Mighty Mike
Mighty Mike is “an old-fashioned strongman with the mustache and the red and white striped 1920s swimsuit—and he’s the real deal,” Claeys says. “He’s incredibly strong…. He bends rebar and juggles bowling balls.” Matter of fact, he scored a Guinness Book of World Records entry in 2022 for most bowling balls juggled. As Mike notes on his site, he’s “been trained in a line of performing strongmen going back four generations, and stays true to this age-old craft while keeping things fresh, funny, and family friendly.” Unlike a 1920s Coney Island strongman, Mighty Mike has a robust website and a huge social media presence. You can watch him waxing his mustache—and juggling bowling balls—in this YouTube video.
2. The Mobile Dairy Classroom
The Mobile Dairy Classroom is a traveling milking parlor. “It’s a farmer that brings his milking cow in, and does a whole demonstration about cow milking and how the process is done, and facts about dairy production,” Claeys explains. “He parks, and opens it up, and people can watch milking live, and ask questions. You can actually see the tubes that hook up to the cow’s udder, and the farmer talks through the whole process. It’s very educational.” During the 30-to-40 minute presentation, the dairy farmer talks about the biology of dairy cows, modern milking techniques, and food safety. Find the classroom schedule here.
3. The Butter Cow
Once you’ve hung out with a live dairy cow, the logical next step is to take in a whole other level of dairy artistry and check out The Butter Cow. First introduced at the Iowa State Fair in 1911, these life-sized, buttery bovines soon became a traditional part of state fairs across the country (though we were late adopters; we didn’t get our first state fair butter cow until 1989).
“So, one thing we’re really excited about, and I think everyone will notice it, because it makes a big difference—we’ve always had three glass panels in front of the butter cow,” Claeys says. “But this year, it’s one pane of glass, so there won’t be those disruptive bands of metal. It’s going to be one big, pretty pane of glass.” You can find the Butter Cow in the Promontory Building.
4. Fair Food Fight
A lot of fair food is provided by traveling vendors, but you’ll find locals only at the Utah Eats Food Court. And for the past few years, local restaurants vending at the fair have competed in a culinary showdown, with the winners decided by fairgoers.
“On the first weekend, we have our Fair Food Fight,” Claeys says. “We have two categories, savory and sweet. People can go buy smaller portions at each of the participating vendors—they get four tickets for $25. It’s just a fun way to sample some of the fun things they have without having to buy full-sized products at every stand.” Not that people don’t take voting seriously; they browse all weekend until the winners are announced on Monday.
Last year’s savory winner was Proper Burger’s “Flareground Burger.” “It had a toasted marshmallow on it, which you would think would taste bizarre,” Claeys says. “But it was so good.” Bevvy’s, a dirty soda brand, won in the sweet category with a drink called “Poppin’ Off.” “It was just this fun creation, with a bunch of candy on top,” Claeys says.
5. Live music in the arena
What’s a state fair without legendary Top 40 titans playing an arena? This year’s State Fair Concert Series includes Lynyrd Skynyrd on Wed. Sept. 16, Darius Rucker on Thurs. Sept. 17, and Matchbox Twenty with Dashboard Confessional on Fri. Sept. 18. In between concerts, the arena will be active with monster trucks, demolition derbies, and Utah’s Own Rodeo.
6. Extreme Lumberjacks
“It’s four guys, and they do all the craziest stuff you’ll ever see with an ax,” Clayes says. In other words, “something you shouldn’t do at home.”
Think a woodsier, more rustic version of circus performers: guys throwing sharp axes at each other, balancing on rolling logs, climbing trees, chopping and sawing wood…
You can find the ’Jacks on Mall 1, doing multiple performances a day for the duration of the 2026 Utah State Fair.
7. Digital ride wristbands
“I’m really excited about this,” Clayes says. “We’ve always had wristbands for rides, and the two thrill rides were an additional fee. This year, it’s digital, and all the rides are included with the digital wristband. There’s one new thrill ride this year that will require an extra ticket buy. “I’m not sure what the price will be yet,” she says, “but we’re really excited that the rides that people want to ride the most will be included with the wristband.”
