Colorado State Fair: Guide to tickets, events and concerts

Get ready for funnel cake, jumbo corn dogs and giant turkey legs.

What's happening: The 151st annual Colorado State Fair kicks off Friday in Pueblo, where thousands of people will come together to celebrate the Centennial State and one of its largest and longest-running traditions.

• The festivities — featuring rodeo shows, concerts, carnival rides, monster truck competitions, and heaps of fried food — run through Labor Day.
• General admission tickets are $15 for adults and $7 for kids age 5 to 12. Additional tickets are available for purchase for carnival rides and live music access.

Zoom in: Fair organizers told the Pueblo Chieftain that concert ticket sales are up compared to last year — a signal that attendance could exceed last year's roughly 461,000 people and close in on 2019 levels, when more than 466,000 people visited the grounds.

• Last year's fair generated an estimated $43.7 million in direct and indirect spending, Scott Stoller, the fair's general manager, told the Chieftain.

If you go: The 11-day schedule is full of down-home fun, including performances by headliners comedian Gabriel "Fluffy" Iglesias and rapper Lil' Jon.

Here are five other can't-miss events:

1. Colorado State Fair Parade, Aug. 26: One of the oldest parades in the state takes place in downtown Pueblo.

2. Food truck competition, Aug. 29: Six food trucks from across the state will each prepare one dish and compete to wow Gov. Jared Polis, earning the official "Governor's Plate" award.

3. World Slopper Eating Championship, Sept. 2: Now in its fifth year, this classic contest challenges the globe's top eaters to eat the most open-faced cheeseburgers smothered in pork green chile — a Pueblo delicacy. (Geoffrey Esper, the 2020 event winner, holds the world record at 37.5 9-ounce sloppers.)

4. Paul Bunyan Lumberjack Show, daily: A new attraction to the fair, this action-packed lumberjack competition tests the muscle power of some of the best sawyers around. Located in Triangle Park.

5. High Flying Pages Trapeze Show, daily: Also in its first year at the fair, this show features acrobats on a high-flying trapeze completing plenty of daring feats. Located in the new State Fair Plaza, west of the Ag Palace.

Go deeper: The best deals and discounts at the state fair