Racing Pigs, Mounted Police Return as Topsfield Fair Kicks Off

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Robinson’s Racing pigs will be two of the popular Topsfield Fair attractions that will return again this year, when the fair open on Friday, Oct. 3.

The 2014 fair runs for 11 days, opening at 1 p.m. on Friday, with the opening parade making its way from Topsfield Village to the Fairground on Saturday morning at 9 a.m.

There will also be parades on the fairgrounds at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and the second Sunday. The fair ends on Columbus Day.

The Topsfield Fair is owned and operated by the Essex Agricultural Society and it serves as Essex County’s agricultural fair. It was founded in 1818 and is the oldest agricultural fair in the country.

Unlike past years, there won’t be any paid concerts - just free shows in the grandstand included with the price of general admission to the fair. Among the performers will be 1970s rockers “America” and American Idol star Kelly Pickler.

Other shows will include a Touch-a-Truck event in the arena, as well as a polo match.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police make an appearance in alternate years, and 2014 is a “Mountie year,” according to James O’Brien, the fair’s general manager.

Robinson’s Racing Pigs are also returning.

“We didn’t have them last year and there was a huge outcry,” O’Brien said.

Fiesta Shows, which runs the midway, has also added two new rides. Along Arena Road, where a diver lit on fire performed last year, a show called “Nerveless Nocks” is scheduled for this year, where performers will be atop two 85 foot tall poles.

Around the fairgrounds, an additional 50 sinks have been added to give visitors more spots to wash their hands.

Anyone headed to the fair on a weekend day, or Columbus Day, can avoid traffic congestion on Route 1 and park at North Shore Community College or Masconomet Regional High School and take a bus to the fair. There will be 30 buses running and the wait will not be long, O’Brien said.

Attendance at the fair in 2013 was 468,000 people and as many, or more, people are expected this year. The busiest days are always the last weekend, O’Brien said.

Tickets are $11 on weekdays, $15 on weekends and under age 8 are free. Active duty military are free on Tuesday, Oct. 7 and tickets are $8 for senior citizens on Monday, Oct. 6.