State Fair Kicks Off This Week

Fans of rides, animals and fried food are looking forward to the start of the North Carolina State Fair later this week. Organizers expect another good crowd after last year's attendance topped one million people. Brian Long is a spokesman for the fair. He says music is also a big attraction at the annual event.

Brian Long: The big news is Scotty McCreery, the home-grown idol. He has sold out both of his shows here at the fair. But we also have an assortment of country artists; Jake Owen, Billy Currington, Jason Michael Carroll and for the first time we're doing an a cappella night featuring groups from UNC, Duke and NC State.

Long says he's looking forward to trying some of the new food offerings including deep fried cinnamon buns sprinkled with bacon. The fair opens Thursday and runs through October 21st.