Tag: gate 9

The questions keep coming at the fair information booths

  “Where’s the bathrooms?” “Where’s the pig races?” “Where can I get tickets or redeem my ride wristbands?” Paul Brown, who mans an information booth near Gate 9,  ranks those as the top three questions he gets on a daily basis. This is Brown’s third year working an information booth and the first for Trish Boone, who is sharing the booth with him. Boone would also add to the list, “Where’s the gate that I came in?” The two pass out a lot of daily schedules with maps, and offer directions to the pig races, specific food booths, different gates,…

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Behind the scenes with…Carol Turner, livestock office manager

What began as a temporary gig helping a friend, has turned into 25 years of service for Carol Turner, the N.C. State Fair livestock office manager. Carol oversees a six-person staff and coordinates with superintendents for each of the animal species during the Fair. For the past several weeks, she has been camped out in the Gate 9 ticket booth preparing for this year’s show. Her staff will join her in the Graham Building after Labor Day, where they’ll remain throughout the Fair.  One of the biggest challenges for Carol this year is converting the old entry database to new software. The software, Blue Ribbon, will be used to…

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Barrel monster takes a bow

By now, most North Carolinians are aware of the Barrel Monster. (If not, check out New Raleigh’s story on the local celebrity.) Barrel Monster’s creator Joe Carnevale has been busy since his first construction-barrel creation this summer. Since then, a variety of monsters have appeared at SparkCon, atop buildings on Raleigh’s Hillsborough Street and, starting today, at the N.C. State Fair. Fairgoers will have the chance to see two barrel monsters on the fairgrounds. One is located beside the giant Adirondack chair at the Flower Show, and the other will be on display near Gate 9. The Gate 9 barrel monster…

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