Classic cars, carnival rides, bull riders among Saturday favorites at the Kane County Fair

The 155th Kane County Fair showcased classic cars, live music, bull riding and animals of all kinds Saturday, July 20, in St. Charles.

Professional championship bull riders and cowgirls were the main event Saturday, bringing authentic rodeo action to the midwest. The Miller Lite Soundstage featured Mark Atkins from 5 to 7 p.m., followed by Hillbilly Rockstarz from 8:30 to 10:30 p.m.

Anna Campbell was at the fair with her 7-year-old granddaughter, Cali. Campbell moved from Batavia to Detroit in 2019, but said she has returned every summer since to attend the fair with Cali, who enjoyed the Swifty Swine pig races just after noon on Saturday.

“I always plan my annual summer visits around the fair,” Campbell said. “I’ve been taking [Cali] here since she was a baby, so I have so many great memories here, and and we always have such a great time.”

Maple Park resident Ron Bychowski was at the fair, showing his Ford T-Bucket in the classic car show. He said the T-Bucket is a variation of the Model T that was popular in the 1960s, and his was remodeled from the body of a 1924 Model T.

Bychowski has owned his T-Bucket for 36 years and said he loves taking it on drives with his daughter. During the summer, he takes it to car shows once or twice a week all season long. He said the vintage car gets only about 15 miles per gallon, but he prefers to measure the rides by smiles per mile.

“[The T-Bucket] is family. I’ve had it longer than I’ve had my wife,” Bychowski said. “The Kane County Fair is always on my ‘don’t miss’ list.”

Burlington residents Zach and Taylor Johnson were at the fair Saturday afternoon with their kids Cody, 5, and Kelsey, 9, who were enjoying the rides and carnival games. Taylor said her favorite part of the fair so far was the 4-H rabbit exhibits, while Zach was partial to the bull riders and was excited about coming back Sunday for the demolition derby.

Cody Johnson said his favorite is either the Pharoh’s Fury or the Sizzler, while his sister Kelsey said she likes winning prizes at the games and petting the baby goats in the petting zoo.

Kane County resident Reed Peterson, 11, was brushing his cow, Sky, after the 4-H cattle show Saturday. The Kane County Fair was Peterson’s second showing this summer and he said he hopes to also take Sky to Elburn Days in August.

Peterson said his favorite part of the fair was showing Sky, but he also enjoys the rides, his favorite of which is the Zipper.

Shawn and Jean McAllister were enjoying corn on the cob while watching the bull riders and cowgirls Saturday afternoon. The McAllisters live in Seattle, but were in town visiting family, who were riding carnival rides while they watched the rodeo show.

“The kids have been running around all day, so we needed to get off of our feet for a while, but [the bull riders] aree really something,” Jean said. “We don’t see many cowboys in Washington.”

Still to come this weekend are more live music, animals, carnival games and a demolition derby from noon to 10 p.m. Sunday. The demolition derby will be Sunday’s main event, with shows at 2 and 5 p.m., and the 4-H auction will begin at 1 p.m.