CALHAN, Colo. — This heat wave is coming as several county fairs are set to kick off this weekend, including the El Paso County Fair. I have been talking with people setting up at the fair about how to stay cool. I found out several ways folks plan on staying cool at the fair. Most people we talked to said the best way to stay cool is hydration. Still, I prefer a fan.
Yesterday when the heatwave began, photojournalist Shawn Shanle and I made our way to Calhan. We wanted to take a closer look at people setting up for the fair. Right off the bat, we met Tiffany, Ava, and Lakeshia with a concessions stand. Their crew is from Texas and say they're used to even higher temperatures than here. They're still taking precautions to make sure they don't overheat though.
"I just drink a lot of water so I don’t get dehydrated. I think it’s worse than home so it’s a different kind of heat but I just stay hydrated honestly with some water cause I’m from Texas so we have like brutal heat so when we just left it was like 109.
The group tells me they use 14 cases of lemons for their fresh squeezed lemonade- another tasty way to cool down. Be sure to bring those hats, put on plenty of sunscreen, and hydrate often. I also learned some of the buildings here at the fairgrounds have a/c
We were also wondering how the animals are kept cool out here.
After a while, we met Sonya Vandergriff, the superintendent of livestock for the fair, and her daughter Ireland. I asked about the heat being an issue for the animals. She assured me that being at the fair is actually luxurious for the animals. That's because not only does the holding area provide shade, it's ventilated as well. Plus, Vandergriff says they even give cool baths for the animals.
Vandergriff also says animals that compete are like athletes and are better conditioned to handle higher temps like these. They even get a fancy electrolyte drink, similar to Gatorade.
Whether you're headed to the fair, or out on a hike, make sure you stay hydrated and wear plenty of sunscreen!
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