wow stereotypes are funny....i grew up in dixon and never rode a tractor or cattle at all...let alone to the fair...lmao
anyway advise from a local&fun facts:
*i beleive the dixon may fair is californias oldest fair, or county fair =)
*they always have a parade on saterday morning i beleive it is...in downtown dixon
*this fair has grown in size of attendance, people come from all around, sometimes i am surprised...but the location itself has not grown...luckily parking options have. for those who say they came in on the recommended exit, that is just the easiest straight shot route, but that one lane road does get packed! i suggest you take sidestreets, or the country route (use google maps, spair yourself the line of cars)
parking has grown to help match, which is a good thing. you may not know that one little parking lot in the front of the fair is NOT all the parking. there is a large park behind the fair, with lots of parking, its a park and a community center, swimming pool...ect ect...with lots of spaces. there is also a new high school built close by, which i beleive is being used for parking as well. us locals likely carpool, and dont pay for parking if we can find a spot on a side street. no you wont get towed (unless you are blocking a DRIVEWAY or in someones driveway ie private property. areas you cannot park are clearly coned off.
there isnt necassarily a different exit for the high school, persea...(i-80 is the other side of town from the high school...is what i mean)you just have to look on a map i guess...there is a country exit you can take to avoid the traffic, and a country side street to cross from the first one that can bring you to the high school area =) (i looked, if you take pedrick road from i-80 and head south, go all the way to midway road, and make a right, then a right on 113/1st, that will bring you to the fair/high school) and you will bypass all traffic of in town.
furthermore you can take that same pedrick road, but cut right on dixon ave E or E. A st it may be marked as, and look for s. 5th street, that will take you by the park area where there is parking. and the may fair has entrance from the back as well as the front. there are MANY side streets to park on from this area, or s 8th street (which is before s 5th street) that road dead ends at hall park. which is a very short walk across the park, and the fairgrounds is right there. i mean short walk. dixon is small, and the area i speak of is small. there are also many side streets in front of/sides of the fair.
dixon may fair is awesome in its own ways. it has alot of agricultural value. its a family fair. there is a petting zoo every year. mini/horse rides for kids. all kinds of animals in the barn areas. for how small of a town dixon is (appx 16,000 ppl) they have gotten surprising names to play at the concerts. the concerts arent the best set up, but its intimate. you can see the singers better than anywhere else! i do also suggest bleachers if your short...haha...the chairs on the feild, people stand up and you cant see as well if you are short.
the derby is one of my favorite things, probably bc my dad runs them every year, and my brother and husband have as well. im not sure if it costs more or less than other derbies nearby. but they sell out EVERY YEAR. people love the destruction. haha. your paying for people to risk their bodies, and insurance for the event incase something goes wrong/fire etc ect. it may seem redneck to out of towners, but i assure you these people most of them are regular white colar/blue colar guys. and dixon is not the only place nearby which does them. woodland does as well. and roseville, and santa rosa, ect ect....its not just a small town redneck community thing. lol.
i also suggest pre-sales on EVERYTHING. tickets are cheaper, to get in, ticket books for rides, concerts, derby, .....online. and your assured not to sold out =)
its no state fair, but the state fair should be spectacular, being as it is the STATE FAIR and in a huge city...lol. this is a small town feel, family event...i go every year and now enjoy taking my daughter where i grew up. read more