Marc Valdez Weblog: 2010 California State Fair

Since I'm planning to travel to NM this weekend, I pretty-much had to go to the State Fair this weekend, or forget about it. Usually I go with the DMTC crew, but this year I went by myself, which allowed me to see all the sort of things that the DMTC crew usually pass by.

This year I saw:

Sheep and Pigs: The State Fair is, first and foremost, about farm animals. Nevertheless, I arrived at 4:00 p.m., the brain-boilingest part of the day, and only a few sheep and pigs remained in their pens. They were very, very hot sheep and pigs. There were so few visitors way back amongst the pens that people mistook me for an authority figure (Where is the best place to put the sawdust dumpsters? How about over here? Can you help put a sun shade over this pig? Sure, why not?)

The way you keep your pig happy on a hot afternoon is to water it (water stream from the owner, off-right).

Hot sheep.

A Few Horse Displays: Miniature horses!

Horse kids bows.

Talking to the mini-horse!

Equestrians with flags.

Marc's Second Bungee Jump: Amusement Management International (http://www.gojump.com) sponsored a bungee jump 'ride' at the 2010 California State Fair, and I had to give it a shot!

The camera man is the same fellow who attached my hip harness and leg irons: an exchange student from Kazakhstan. For a fleeting moment, I wondered: "Why has fate worked in such a way that, today, I am placing my life in the hands of a Kazakh exchange student?" But sometimes in life, it is better not to ask too many questions.

That familiar ache I noticed after my first bungee jump at the Kawarau Bridge in Otago, New Zealand: that ache located around the liver, returned! Plus I got a new ache - a crick in the neck. But it was fun, a bit scary, and the thrill of plunging headfirst towards the ground took my mind off the heat for a few minutes. The height was 130' (I think Kawarau was 144'). Lost my sweat cloth afterwards, though.

Step Up Dance Show: I blundered through the heat over to the Promenade Stage and watched Keith Turk and many of the younger kid dancers from the KAST Performing Arts dance studio in Roseville, performing here as the Step Up Dance Show, live! I saw Sherrika and said hi!

Step Up Dance Show on the Promenade Stage (a Bollywood-inspired dance).

KAST performed this salsa dance on the Promenade Stage.

Here are bows.

After the dance show I wandered pointlessly around in the heat, and saw random things. Eventually I realized that there was something going on at the Golden One Stage.... Oh! Keith Turk, Sherrika, and everyone were already over there too. What was going on?

2010-11 Sacramento Kings Dance Team Auditions: At the end of the auditions, the women trying out posed for photos with the Kings Dance Team staff.

Oh! The 2010-11 Sacramento Kings Dance Team Auditions! Oh paradise! Fine, hard work from Sacramento's hardest-working women! According to Sherrika, five or six auditioners were known to her and her crew. I thought I recognized one dancer, but decided I was likely wrong. Three dances were given to be performed, and according to Sherrika, the dancers weren't good at all with the jazz routine. The hip hop routine went well, and I saw the final quick-burlesque routine too. Disaster struck just before the end: one dancer slipped, fell and hurt herself, but she still managed to make tomorrow's callbacks (provided she can walk, poor dear). For the last dance, the dance captain Stephanie gave many instructions regarding the routine - strut with emphasis, to make the routine hot; isolate the rib cage to emphasize the breasts, swivel the hips like this; arch all the way back; etc. Very hard to do it all correctly, with correct rhythm, during a quickly-learned dance. Nevertheless, I noticed only one dancer - #149 - managed to do it all exactly right. I have no idea who she is - tall, serious - I hope to attach a name to the number this week - but she is awesome! My heroine! I hope she makes it onto the team!

Sacramento Kings' coverage:

[Update: And it looks like a decision has been made: http://fullcourtpress.kingsconnect.com/archives/7198 ]

Here, in the last of three required dances, Choreographer Stephanie emphasizes body motion.

Here is a quick run through of a portion of the last of three required dances.

After sunset, a stroll on the Midway.

It was hard to choose the best ride (I didn't ride any). I liked the fact that the "Spin Out" ride, which rotated people along two different axes, made people drop two pair of thongs and an iPhone on the rotating metal turntable while I watched. None of the other rides seem to do this. I did notice that they had that other ride (I don't know what they call it, but it's like an ice tray full of people that they spin longitudinally) on the midway (one year I rode it, and heard all the coins hitting the pavement below after falling out of people's pcokets).