Do you wanna go faster? The Ex to hold Fall Fair

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This article was published 03/06/2021 (1945 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Red River Ex, for decades a June fixture on Winnipeg’s entertainment calendar, is looking towards autumn.

The Ex announced Thursday it will hold the Fall Fair, a carnival that will offer a similar combination of midway rides, local music, entertainment and food options as its regular June event, except it will take place Aug. 27 to Sept. 6.

The plans hinge on provincial government approval and a significant easing of Manitoba’s COVID-19 pandemic health guidelines, which rule out virtually all public gatherings, indoors or outdoors until June 12.

There is no guarantee the restrictions will be eased, but Garth Rogerson, the chief executive officer of the Red River Exhibition Association, said Ex staff has met with provincial health officials and he believes the carnival can be held safely for visitors and staff.

He said the number of positive COVID-19 cases will be lower as the year progresses and more Manitobans become fully vaccinated.

“It really looked like beginning of September and the end of August there was a chance we could do something,” Rogerson said. “A couple of months ago, we started going along that path because it was pretty obvious that June was a non-starter.”

Rogerson said the Ex lost about $1 million in 2020 when it had to shelve last year’s event and he expected the annual fair to incur a similar loss without an event in 2021.

“It’s hard on the staff, mentally, of course,” he said. “Everybody is worried for their job and how much money can you lose before you pack it in?”

In addition to the pandemic threat, the closure of the Canada-U.S. border meant the Ex’s rides and carnival games, owned by Indiana-based North American Midway Entertainment, and the people who operate them, couldn’t make their way north in 2020.

The border remains closed, but that hasn’t stopped the Calgary Stampede from going ahead with its planned July 9 to 18 event, the Saskatoon Ex to take place Aug.6 to 8 and Aug. 11 to 15, and the Queen City Ex in Regina (Aug. 20 to 22 and Aug 25 to 29).

K-Days in Edmonton, which usually runs in mid-July following the Calgary Stampede has been cancelled.

“We’re jamming up a little bit in the fall because every national fair wants to go,” he said.

The Red River Ex is part of the same Prairie fair circuit and Rogerson said it will have to share rides with the Regina event because of the conflicting dates. The Ex has hired two Manitoba travelling carnival companies, Garson-based Select Shows and Selkirk’s Canuck Amusements, to add to the number of rides and games of chance.

The Fall Fair will have two more music stages that will feature local music, but the event will likely have to be held outdoors, even if COVID-19 numbers decrease.

“We have 150 acres we can work with so we can stretch out (the distances between) the rides to make it very safe, to keep the crowds from interacting,” Rogerson said.

alan.small@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter:@AlanDSmall