One of the things that the Colorado State Fair is most known for is the wide variety of fun and exciting competitions!
Every year, talented people from around Colorado travel to the Colorado State Fair to take part in a wide variety of competitions.
In this article, we’ll go over some of the most popular competitions at the Colorado State Fair.
Fine Arts Competition
The fine arts competition is an incredibly valuable opportunity for both amateur and professional artists alike.
For amateur artists, the fine arts competition offers an incredible opportunity to get recognized and show your talent to the world! Professional artists, on the other hand, get a chance to sell their art, make money, and get additional exposure.
There are many categories that artists can compete in. Whether you’re an artist who wants to compete in the exhibition, or simply an art lover who appreciates seeing beautiful works of art, you’ll love the fine arts competition at the Colorado State Fair.
Arts & Crafts Competition
Arts & crafts are similar to fine arts, except that it emphasizes more hands-on, functional, and “physical” forms of art, such as industrial metalworking, leatherworking, woodcarving, etc.
If you’re a skilled craftsperson who enjoys making things with your hands, the arts & crafts competition is a great way to show off your handiwork.
Needle Arts Competition
For those that are skilled with a needle and thread, the needle arts competition at the Colorado State Fair gives you an opportunity to showcase your best works — from crochet, sewing, knitting, embroidery, quilting, and everything in between!
Floriculture Competition
If you’ve got a green thumb, try your hand at the floriculture competition, where you can submit various flowers, herbs, potted plants, bouquets, and more to be rated in a contest for skilled gardeners and plant lovers!
Farm and Garden Competition
For those who prefer to grow delicious food rather than beautiful flowers, the Farm and Garden competition allows you to show off your large and impressive seasonal bounty.
Alternatively, if you’ve got any oddly-shaped fruits and vegetables, you can submit them to our fun Nature’s Oddities division — where only the weirdest and wackiest-looking produce wins!
Pantry Competition
If you’re a skilled home cook, the pantry competition gives you a chance to compete for the coveted Queen or King of the Kitchen award and win a prestigious rosette to commemorate your cooking skills!
There are many different food categories that you can choose to compete in, including:
- Baked Foods from Natural Ingredient
- Baked Goods for Special Diet
- Baked Goods made with Honey Butters and Jams
- Cakes
- Candy
- Canned Fruit
- Canned Vegetables
- Cookies
- Dried Foods
- Heritage
- Jellies
- Nutritious Snacks
- Pickles and Relishes
- Pies
- Preserves and Marmalades
- Quick Breads
- Round the World Baked Goods
- Yeast Breads
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(If you’re aiming for the prize, be prepared to cook a lot of food! To win the Queen or King of the Kitchen award, you’ll need to compete in at least 12 of these categories.)
World Slopper Eating Championship
No list of competitions would be complete without mentioning the World Slopper Eating Championship, which is a nationally-renowned eating contest hosted at the Colorado State Fair!
Sloppers are an open-face cheeseburger smothered in green chili, and they’re local to Pueblo. Every year, some of the nation’s top eating champions travel to the Colorado State Fair to see how many of these delicious local burgers they can devour in record time. The current world record is held by the competitive eating champion Geoffrey Esper from Massachusetts, who in 2020 wolfed down an incredible 37 and a half sloppers in only eight minutes!
If you think you have what it takes to compete among these super eaters, you’re welcome to enter the competition! If you’re like most people, you’ll prefer to simply take a seat in the audience and watch in awe as these eating champions devour a mind-blowing (or, more accurately, stomach-bursting) quantity of food.
Other Fine Arts & General Entry Competitions
- Talent contests, where skilled musicians, dancers, comedians, and much more can share their talents with the world and get exposure!
- Poetry competition, where eloquent wordsmiths compete for who can come up with the sweetest-sounding rhymes and verses.
- Coloring contest, where artists of all ages take part in a friendly competition to see who can make the most vivid and vibrant coloring.
- Pet rock competition, where competitors paint and decorate their pet rocks with creative adornments to turn these cold, inanimate objects into cute and endearing works of art!
- Funniest pet photo competitions, which will have you laughing so hard your stomach will hurt! (Past contenders include a dog with glasses and a mustache, an adorable teacup chihuahua sitting in a literal teacup, etc.)
- Plus much more!
Let Your Talents Shine in Our Fine Arts & General Entry Competitions
As you can see, the variety of competitions offered at the Colorado State Fair is massive, and this article doesn’t even include the wide and extensive range of animal shows and contests.
Whatever your passion is, there’s a good chance that the Colorado State Fair has a competition where you’ll be able to display your unique talents.
If you’re looking for a place to compete, win prizes and recognition, and have your talents be noticed, the Colorado State Fair is the perfect place for you.
