On Thursday I took a trip to The Altamont Fair. On the way to the fair grounds a large thunderhead was following. Sure enough, I parked and got in line just in time for the wind to kick up and for the sky to completely unleash. It was probably the worst thunderstorm of the summer. Thankfully I wasn’t completely soaked before I could take shelter in an animal barn.

The storm passed pretty quickly, but standing around with a bunch of sheep made it feel like forever. Then I headed down to the Reid F. Northrup Memorial Stage to catch 11-year-old child star Anthony Gargiula film his music video. Gargiula has been featured on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, The Today Show, and The CBS Early Show. He has been on the American Idol red carpet, has sung the national anthem for the Boston Bruins, the New York Knicks, the Jacksonville Jaguars, at the Belmont Stakes, the Kentucky Derby Festival and most recently The 25th Decatur Celebration. Plus he has opened for acts like the Jonas Brothers, Jordan Pruitt, and Lady Antebellum.

Why is this all cool? He is a rising star, plus a Capital Region local! He was discovered on YouTube where has over 4,000,000 views on his national anthem performance! Check out Anthony Gargiula on YouTube. If you like what you hear and have a minute to support him and his dreams, please go to the Anthony Gargiula Facebook Page and click the “Like” button. The more people he can get to like him on Facebook, the more gigs he can land.

Watch a preview of some of the footage shot at the Altamont Fair Grounds:

After snapping a bunch of photos of the performance and filming of the music video, I went off to check out what else the fair had to offer. There was a cool car show with lots of old-time and antique models on display. In front of the entrance was a car that the public could sign with permanent markers as it was being entered in the Destruction Derby which took place on Sunday – not sure how it did. If anyone knows, please let me know via comment. It was car #2.

There was a pig-show where they did tricks. A little odd, but cool. (Pigs are the fourth smartest animal.) The show’s host kept mentioning what great pets they make – no thanks. There was a freak show, which was a bit disappointing outside of the two-headed cow, but there really was a two headed cow. Then, the best of all, is the fact that this year at the fair the wristband you got for paying admission got you unlimited rides. The fair had all the classics: The scrambler, the ferris wheel, starship 2000, swings, slides, haunted house, fun house, mini-coasters, etc, etc.

Check out all the photos in the 2010 Altamont Fair article.

If anyone else went to the fair, please share your experiences here.

Thanks.

-Ed
AlbanyAlive.com