DEL MAR, Calif. (KGTV) - More than 1.5 million people attended the 2019 San Diego County Fair during its 27-day run at the Del Mar Fairgrounds.
Officials said 1,531,199 people went to this year’s Wizard of Oz-themed fair. Fair attendance in 2018 was at 1,561,236, while there were 1,565,933 fairgoers in 2017; the attendance record of 1,609,481 was set in 2016.
The fair in San Diego County began in 1880 and is said to be considered one of the top five fairs in the U.S. and Canada.
Some notable numbers from the 2019 edition of the County Fair, provided by fair officials:
FOOD:
-- Australian Battered Potatoes used 11,200 pounds of potatoes and 6,720 pints of oil for deep frying
-- Bacon-A-Fair used more than 31,000 pounds of bacon
-- Corn Star grilled approximately 47,000 ears of corn
-- Kettle Corn sold 53,700 bags of popcorn
-- Pink’s sold 6,000 pounds of hot dogs and 7,200 pounds of French fries
-- Squeezers Old Fashioned Lemonade used more than 14,000 gallons of lemon juice for their lemonade
-- Tasti Chips used 50,000 pounds of California-grown potatoes for their famous golden chips
-- Wicked Wahine Speakeasy increased its sales by 84% from last year
TOP 10 RIDES:
-- Sky Ride
-- The Big Wheel
-- Crazy Mouse
-- G-Force
-- Rave Wave
-- Fast Trax Slide
-- Magnum
-- Alien Abduction
-- Olympic Bobsled
-- German Funhouse
HELPING THE COMMUNITY:
-- The yearly Care N’ Share Toy Drive collected more than 12,000 stuffed animals for children in need
-- The 70th Annual Livestock Auction raised $482,776 for 4H and FFA youth
OTHER STATS OF NOTE:
-- 245 pies consumed at the daily Coco’s Pie Eating Contest
-- 37 babies entered into the three Baby Derby contests
-- 140 pieces of bubble gum chewed in the Bubble Gum Blowing Contest
-- 301 cars in the Car Shows at the Fair
-- 4,233 photos taken of Nick Chopper, the Fair’s mascot
-- 32 kids cried upon seeing the mascot
-- 1,808 entertainment shows scheduled at the Fair
-- 623 entertainment groups booked on the stages
-- 19,750 entertainers performing at the Fair
LOST AND FOUND ITEMS:
-- 132 credit cards
-- 69 IDs
-- 138 wallets and purses
-- 158 cell phones
-- 181 articles of clothing
-- 104 pairs of glasses
-- 46 items of jewelry
-- 89 sets of keys
-- 155 miscellaneous items, including: 2 retainers, 3 strollers, one cane, a seat cushion, lots of backpacks and lunch bags, a box of stuffed animals and a Lyft scooter
