Big Tex is slumbering and the State Fair of Texas is finishing hauling away its hundreds of vendor tents, breaking down dozens of rides, and putting Fair Park back the way it was. Fair officials say about 2.4 million people visited during the 24-day run, which is a slight increase over the 2.34 million who came in 2023. The most popular day does not come as a surprise: 211,000 people poured through the gates on Texas OU weekend, even though a measly 144,000 attended the game in the Cotton Bowl.
The Rousso vendors had to blowtorch more than 100,000 strips of cotton candy-coated bacon. Fletcher’s vendors dipped about 550,000 wieners in corny dog batter and needed more than 1,800 gallons of mustard. (Don’t worry about the ketchup.) The Grand Champion Market Steer set a record at the youth livestock auction when it sold for over $18,000 to a man named Frank Deel. And over 71,000 people attended rodeo events at the fairgrounds.
One of those attendees was the photographer Jason Janik, who, once again, had the herculean task of capturing each day of the fair. Head to the gallery below to see what he found. (Including one local rapper.) See you next September, Tex.
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