Article Launched: 08/16/2005 07:12:00 AM
Solano Exhibit Wins Award at State Fair
By Reporter Staff
Solano's exhibit at the state fair won both Best of Show and a gold ribbon. (Courtesy photo)
Solano County is again the top award winner at the California State Fair's counties exhibit.
Solano's display took the coveted "Best of Show" award as well as a gold ribbon and the awards for best use of technology and the "Best Use of Experience" award.
This year's display was again the brain child of designer Paul Curtis. It is a tribute to the roadside stops of yesteryear, with a huge 14-foot high tractor-shaped building with a "walk through" feature. The tractor sports 8-foot high foam wheels that actually rotate and behind the tractor is a billboard with moving landscape. Poppy, the California golden bear, is driving the tractor.
Inside the tractor walk-through, there are two interactive control panels where visitors can flash the lights and honk the horn. Whimsical chickens are riding on top of moving pistons. There is an exhibit of Sallie Fox, the young woman who traveled in 1858, at age 12, in a Conestoga wagon from Iowa to California. En route, she was attacked by Indians. Her father was killed. She was shot with an arrow. When she arrived in Vacaville, she planted the walnut seed she had carried which became the world-famous "Nut Tree" roadside stop.
At the front of the display is a garden scene with a smiling scarecrow and six moving birds. The garden also features a stage area where kids can step up, place their heads through a cowboy cutout and sing along to tunes like "Old MacDonald had a Farm" while watching themselves on a nearby screen.
Solano's display has another feature that makes it unique and available for all to view. The county is webcasting the display live, through Labor Day. Visit www.solanocounty.com and click on the State Fair icon to see a live video feed of the display.
