It’s Day Three of the week-long Cumberland County Fair, but this year’s event already seems to be living up to expectations.

“It’s been fantastic,” Liz Tarantino, secretary of the Cumberland Farmers’ Club, which organizes the annual agricultural fair. “It was definitely a really good opening Sunday.”

The fair opened on Sunday and runs through Saturday, Sept. 30. Tarantino said attendance figures for Sunday were not yet available, but anecdotally she and other fair staff said attendance was strong. The weather, she said, was perfect, and undoubtedly a factor in the good turnout.

“Not too hot, and no rain, nice breeze, it’s been great,” she said. 

In a typical week, Tarantino said the fair can expect as many as 70,000 ticket sales, and so far she believes the fair will hit that target this year.

“Everybody’s been happy,” she said.

On Monday, attendees milled around the collection of vendors selling crafts and all manner of fair food, including fried dough and Italian sausage sandwiches. Carnival rides pinwheeled through the air, and barkers invited passers-by to try their luck at various games.

Tarantino said there are more than 200 vendors with booths and rides this year. On the agricultural side, she said about 500 exhibitors are bringing livestock of all kinds to be judged and shown off. 

Another returning favorite, All American Rodeo, will be putting on shows on Wednesday and Thursday this week. 

“The public absolutely loves it,” she said.

Tarantino said no one else in Maine puts on a rodeo show of this scale every year. The fair has held rodeos in the past, but it was only when she brought the company on board in 2018 did the shows make a regular appearance at the fair.

“I really love a rodeo,” she said. 

Tickets are $12 for attendees age 13 and older. Kids 12 and under get in free. Tickets are $5 for seniors on Tuesday and Thursday. Parking is free.