Few experiences in life resemble the county fair experience, from the food offerings like sausage grinders with peppers and onions, friend dough smothered in butter and confectionary sugar, French fries with vinegar, everything and anything someone could possibly want to eat, topped off with racing. Harness racing, up close and deeply personal on a half-mile track where only a few feet and a fence separate the spectators from the participants

Officially, the fair season started last week in Presque Isle. This week, closer to home in Topsham. Next week, folks will congregate in Skowhegan to sit in the new grandstand and watch (and bet on) the races.

Racing at the county fair level remains the lowest common denominator for racing generally. Last Saturday saw 35,000-plus folks congregate at The Meadowlands to watch The Hambletonian. Even though the fairs do not attract crowds of that number, nonetheless they occupy a hallowed place in the heart of not just this observer but in the hearts of many others.

Most people started attending the fairs with their parents, many of whom, after walking the midway with their children and touring the exhibition hall, then visiting the pulling arena, gravitated to the grandstand to watch the races. It used to be almost a tradition. That was then, this is now.

Though the crowds who attend the fairs stay fairly constant on a year-to-year basis, the crowds attending the races have, for the most part, dwindles to a precious few. Nevertheless, Maine fairs still resonate in the minds of those horseplayers who have attended, and continue to attend them.

A supreme irony attaches to the flagging attendance (and handle) for fair racing. The Maine Sires Stakes has always been an integral part of the fair racing program. With the infusion of slots money to augment the purses, The Maine Standardbred Breeders Stakes (MSBS) has seen a marked improvement in the quality of the competition.

Whereas, formerly (decades ago), final race times resembled calendar pages, today many races break the magic two-minute barrier. Quality has improved because the increase in purse money has helped elevate the levels of competition. Today, some race go faster than what track records were decades ago.

This week, for example, freshman filly and colt pacers compete at Topsham, unfortunately after this goes to press. Nonetheless, next week at Skowhegan will feature both freshman boys and girls of both gaits as well as their sophomore counterparts.

The fair season will help determine the qualifiers for the finals held in October at Scarborough Downs. For anyone wanting to catch a glimpse of these youngsters before the finals, a trip to a fair should be on the schedule.

BITS, BOOTS & BRIDLES: Even though the three year-old divisions of the MSBS have begun to identify the probable favorites for the far-off finals, the younger set has just about begun, so seeing them early could be, potentially, exciting and profitable. . . Muscle Hill, The Hambletonian favorite, won like the 2-5 shot he was, establishing himself atop the Breeders Crown standings for Horse-of-the-Year . . . people who may want to own a horse, but cannot afford one outright, may have an opportunity to become an owner by placing their names in an entry box placed at various racetracks around the state . . . How-times-have-changed department: years back, 14 year-old horses (last year of eligibility to race) always appeared on the program and attracted public attention; today, few, or none, appear . . . some earth-shaking news on the national level that will affect the entire industry should break in a couple of weeks, and the news may put a crimp in the style of racing chemists everywhere . . . though it seems that Neutralizer is the benchmark Maine pacing stallion, no member of the diagonal gait has established himself, but a trotting stud could be on the horizon for the state -- wait and see . . . . if there was a futures book on the MSBS, who do you suppose would have been the respective division favorites? . . .