Business Name: Indiana State Fair
Location: Indiana State Fairgrounds, Indianapolis, IN
Date: 08/14/2012
- Accessibility- **1/2
- Performance/Reliability: - **1/2
- Problem-Solving/Conflict Resolution: **1/2
- The Intangibles- **1/2
- Overall Experience- **1/2
Not quite everyone goes to the Indiana State Fair, but I do believe it’s a fair statement to say that it is one of those true Hoosier traditions. From the always popular elephant ears to the fairly recently developed state fair tradition of deep frying an odd assortment of baked, unbaked and just plain strange goodies, the Indiana State Fair is a treasured part of the life of an Indiana resident. Given that the Indiana State Fair is grounded very deeply in farming and food, it’s always seemed more than a bit odd to me that the Indiana State Fairgrounds just happens to be located smack dab in the center of the city of Indianapolis surrounded by urban areas on all sides.
But it works.
Of course, for many the Indiana State Fair has become synonymous with last year’s concert tragedy when a freak storm swept through the fairgrounds and demolished the staging area during a Sara Bareilles/Sugarland concert. The tragedy killed seven people and injured dozens more, and this year’s concert tradition has been moved to downtown Indy’s Conseco Fieldhouse.
I’ve attended the Indiana State Fair since I was a young boy walking on crutches, and while it has always worn me out it has been an experience worth the exhaustion I feel when I arrive back home. As I get older and am now, of course, in a wheelchair, I’ve found that handling the rigors of the Indiana State Fair is a bit more challenging and I’ve become more in tune with the significant number of architectural barriers one faces as part of the state fair experience.
Truthfully, I wasn’t planning to go this year but the opportunity to see Christian artist David Crowder in a free concert (the free concert stage is smaller and still on the grounds of the fair) was too much to resist after a rough day at work. Plus, today was a special admission price of $2 for those who had a special voucher sponsored by Turkey Hill. So, despite my exhaustion, off I went after work to the Indiana State Fair.
Ugh.
First off, let me state without hesitation that no concerns exist with the performance of David Crowder, who was a delightful stage presence and who comes off even better live than he does on record (and I really like his music). I enjoyed his music immensely, and while the concert could have been a tad longer my concerns are not with Crowder.
It’s worth noting that a study of the Indiana State Fair’s response to the tragedy found, overall, a marked lack of preparedness on the part of the fair and a deficiency of leadership. While these things didn’t “cause” the tragedy, they could very well have contributed to the severity of it. In response, the Indiana State Fair Commission developed what has been called one of the more comprehensive emergency preparedness plans, a plan that has already been put to use this year when a stagecoach accident injured 5 people during a special event during this year’s fair.
While I applaud efforts to improve the safety of the fair, one of my first observations upon driving up to the fairgrounds and then entering was just how non-hospitable it all felt. I drove into the $5 parking area across the street from the fairgrounds and, as I’ve done nearly every year, I requested accessible parking. This area is typically off to the side of the parking area where I’d been motioned into, but I patiently waited until I could ask someone. I was promptly told that “handicapped parking is full” and that I could “park wherever you want.” Theoretically, this is fine because, of course, it gives tremendous freedom. I was fortunate to find an end of the row parking spot where I could pretty much guarantee that no one would park close enough to block the wheelchair. However, this is ultimately poor planning because there’s always that risk of being blocked in when insufficient accessible parking is available. Plus, this particular area was farther away and could have proven challenging for someone less mobile.
I also couldn’t help but notice that the police, who are normally quite friendly and relaxed despite the seriousness of their jobs, were more terse tonight and even impatient with people.
Again, the Indiana State Fair has always been a symbol of Hoosier hospitality. Tonight, that just wasn’t the case.
I wheeled up to the ticket booth to get my ticket (which, by the way, is NOT wheelchair accessible and it took me a couple minutes to get someone’s attention despite the obvious crowd that was behind me), and then entered the fairgrounds.
To be fair, the $2 entry is a tremendous deal and definitely leads to bigger crowds given the usual ticket price of $10 (though discount tickets at $7 can be easily obtained). Thus, there’s no question that tonight’s crowd was bigger than I usually deal with at the Indiana State Fair.
There are certain challenges that cannot likely be overcome easily. The simple truth is that someone with severe mobility issues should not attend the Indiana State Fair alone, as the fairgrounds is an immensely large area with varying surfaces ranging from gravel to concrete to grass to modest inclines. While the state fair does offer scooter & wheelchair rentals, the simple truth is that a certain degree of planning is required and strongly suggested. Of the wheelchairs that I saw around the state fair, I was the only one attending alone.
Due to having arrived after work, I had very little time before the David Crowder concert to attend fair events beyond some basic looking around and, I admit sheepishly, indulging myself in my beloved elephant ears. Other than that, I wandered around for a little bit and plotted what would be a brief post-concert enjoyment of the fair. Then, I headed over to the free stage to get a decent place for the concert.
A few observations right off the bat:
1) The Indiana State Fairgrounds does offer fairly regular curb cuts, however, whoever designed them should be fired. They are poorly designed, poorly placed and frequently unavailable when one of the large tractors comes along that transports fairgoers from place to place (for the record, not accessible). I’m also amazed at how often someone in a wheelchair will have difficulty accessing food vendors because of inadequate curb cuts. At the vendor where I purchased an elephant ear, I was required to wheel down the curb then come back on the curb and I couldn’t possibly have gotten in line if it was any longer. This issue is so easily address that I am appalled it hasn’t been (by either moving the vendors back even further from the curb or, adversely, placing them directly on the curb and towards the edge so that someone in a wheelchair can wheel up to it).
Or, another idea would be for the Indiana State Fair to actually designate wheelchair friendly vendors that would include both accessibility options and/or adapted service options.
Again, easy to solve.
The majority of the buildings do have ramps so that one can enter them, even the older buildings. This is a major plus. The coliseum, which also hosts sporting events, is getting ready to undergo a major renovation that will make it even more wheelchair friendly. Our local hockey team, the Indianapolis Ice, hosts their games at this location and it will nice to be able to attend more regularly.
The free stage is a uniquely situated area that sort of closely resembles an amphitheatre type setting. While there’s no specifically designated wheelchair seating of which I was made aware, there are a few places where someone in a wheelchair can get a decent seat and actually has hope of not falling victim to the “general admission” course – people randomly roaming and standing up and blocking one’s view. I was able to arrive 40 minutes early and found a decent seat right next to the sound table and next to the front section seating. I had a great view of the stage – as long as crowd control was in place and I didn’t get blocked. For the most part, Christian audiences tend to be respectful of this type of issue. On the flip side, there was a point where Crowder encouraged everyone to have a “hoe down” when he covered a Hank Williams Sr. song…from that point forward, my view was almost 100% blocked.
While there was symbolic crowd management, it was symbolic at best.
I also couldn’t help but notice, with the memory of last year’s concert tragedy still fresh in my memory, that given the crowd design had there been a tragedy I, quite literally, would have had no way to exit safely.
Again, quite simply, bad planning.
As I noted, the concert itself was fantastic (I will note that the vendor tables required wheeling through grass and were too far away from the crowds. If I’d been Crowder, I’d not have been happy with it). I exited after the concert and had hoped to grab dinner before leaving and enjoy a few stops. Unfortunately, the crowds were out in full force and weren’t as polite as one usually experiences at the fairgrounds. Due to the previously mentioned curb cut issues, I could never work my way into a line at one of the food vendors and I frequently found myself struggling to not be pushed into the path of a tractor. On the flip side, one of the clean up crew was also trying to work his way through the crowd and at one point I simultaneously found myself struggling to avoid both this large trash container and a tractor.
It was stressful and exhausting.
After about a half hour of trying to find a way to maneuver the crowd, I gave up.
I can say unequivocally that it was the least enjoyable experience I’ve had EVER at the Indiana State Fair. The staff lacked the usual hospitality, the crowds kept what accessibility was present from being accessed and given the natural challenges already in place I simply found myself worn out by the time I finally left and returned to my car.
A side note – In terms of restrooms, there are limited family style restrooms available and some accessible stalls. It would be nice to have these more clearly labeled, but this has been a fairly recent improvement and I do want to acknowledge them for addressing that issue. As someone who can get exhausted from over-exerting myself, it’s nice to know that should I require assistance of a personal nature that it could be arranged.
In virtually every way, the 2012 Indiana State Fair was average. The accessibility and adaptability were modest at best, and the usually helpful staff was far less helpful than usual. I’m sure it would have been better had I not been alone, but I suppose the notion of independence should be that I’m not always required to have someone with me. The concert itself was terrific, but everything else about the 2012 Indiana State Fair left The Gimp searching fro some of that good ole’ fashioned hoosier hospitality.
