By Ben Antonius | Daily Republic | August 19, 2009
The midway at the Solano County Fair last July was operated by Fairfield based Butler Amusements. Butler is now operating the midway at the California State Fair for the first time. Photo by Brad Zweerink
FAIRFIELD - There are few frontiers left on the west coast for Fairfield-based Butler Amusements, which on Friday crossed one of the biggest items off its list.
Already the biggest carnival business in the western United States, Butler is for the first time running the midway at the California State Fair. The company serves about 135 events each year across six western states, but it had never done this one before.
'Whenever you put another feather in your cap like the California State Fair, it is certainly something people notice,' said Richard Byrum, vice president of booking.
The state fair opened Friday and runs through Sept. 7 at CalExpo event center in Sacramento. This year is the first in a 10-year arrangement for Butler to operate dozens of rides, games and concession stands.
The initial setup began more than two weeks ago and started in earnest a few days before the beginning of the fair. Once the event winds down, it will take only two or three days to take everything down, Byrum said.
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