Hermiston Chamber of Commerce members and their guests were treated to a sneak preview of the upcoming Umatilla County Fair and Farm-City Pro Rodeo during the chamber’s monthly Business to Business Luncheon on Tuesday.
Guest speakers at the luncheon, held at McKenzie Park, were Farm-City board member Jon Bill and the Umatilla County Fair Court.
Gill said the 27th annual rodeo, set for Aug. 6-9, will have about $250,000 to give out to the contestants.
“We’ve got all the top names in the sport coming to Hermiston,” Gill said, adding that each night will feature big names going for big money.
“Wednesday night’s performance will be just as strong as Saturday night’s,” he said. “The money might be won on Wednesday or Thursday.”
Entertainment during the rodeo will include Hermiston’s Donnie Griggs, who Gill called one of the best cowboy protection specialists in the sport. John Harrison of Oklahoma will be the barrelman. Harrison has performed three times at the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas and has been nominated seven times as Comedy Act of the Year.
Gill said a word of thanks to each of the rodeo’s sponsors.
“Hermiston adds a lot of money to the purse and we couldn’t do it without our sponsors,” he said.
Each member of the fair court took turns with the microphone to highlight entertainment and events taking place during the fair, which kicks off on Tuesday, Aug. 5. Wildhorse Stage entertainment includes Uncle Cracker on Tuesday, the Oak Ridge Boys on Wednesday, Latino Night on Thursday, Foghat on Friday and Phil Vassar on Saturday.
The Froghollow Band and Ian & The Crushers will also be performing throughout the week. The carnival will be open daily and the whole thing kicks off on Saturday, Aug. 2 with the fair parade at 6:30 p.m.
For more information, visit the fair website and the Farm-City website.
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