The grandstand will boast three fun-filled nights of crowd-pleasing entertainment at the Greene County Fair. A variety of performances and events take place July 11-13, including a Gunnar and the Grizzly Boys concert, fireworks, the Iowa-Missouri Truck and Tractor Pull and the Grand River Rodeo.
Gunnar and the Grizzly Boys kick off the show Friday night at 8 pm with free admission. The band formed in 2009 and originates from Kent City, MI, a small town in the heart of Michigan’s Apple Country and not unlike Greene County towns. The band has performed at every major fair in Michigan. Lead singer and songwriter Gunnar Nybald writes most of the band’s material from the seat of his tractor while tending his family’s apple and plum orchards.
The band released its first album in 2010. It is currently on a summer tour across the U.S. in states including Wisconsin, Michigan, Iowa and Texas. The group has played alongside Colt Ford, Brantley Gilbert, Lady Antebellum, Kip Moore and Joe Connolly. They are known for their energetic stage presence, “providing a dose of Michigan country built on good times and wanderlust.”
The band’s music is a combination of rock and country; the goal is to get the crowd involved and enjoy the show as much as they do performing it. “There is no experience as true to American country music as a Gunnar and Grizzly Boys show.” To sample some of their work, check out on YouTube their creative video, “Could Be Me,” a spoof on the Google Maps, Street View system.
Following the show, stick around for a colorful fireworks display which will light up the night, put on by Flashing Thunder Fireworks. The company, started in 1981 with small hometown displays, is based out of Mitchell. The company is exclusive importers of Class B fireworks, otherwise known as display or special fireworks, from China, Japan and Spain.
A truck and tractor pull headlines the grandstand Saturday, July 12, starting at 7 pm with a show for the whole family to enjoy. Since 1997 the truck and tractor pull has entertained thousands of spectators and competitors alike, bringing an array of new classes of tractors to compete each year. Recently, a class was opened in which any safety certified vehicle from any recognized association can compete, bringing in a wide range of challengers and vehicles. “With seven available classes, IAMO offers a class for every pulling appetite.”
The Grand River Rodeo will take to the grounds with exciting action on Sunday at 7 pm. The audience will watch in amusement and wonder as cowboys and cowgirls masterfully perform with the chance to win prize money as a reward for winning the event.
A total of $2,000 in prize money is available to contestants in bareback riding, saddle bronc, bull riding, calf roping, breakaway roping, steer wrestling, barrel racing and team roping.
Admission to the event is $5 for spectators.
