News from Riverside County

Indio, CA: Supervisor V. Manuel Perez will welcome fairgoers at the opening of the Riverside County Fair & National Date Festival on Friday, Feb. 14.

The traditional opening and blessing of the dates ceremony will be held at 9:30 a.m. at gate 1 of the Riverside County Fairgrounds in Indio, 82-503 Highway 111.

“The Date Festival has a long legacy of many generations of families who have grown up with the Fair and its traditions,” said Supervisor Perez. “With fantastic food, amazing concerts, carnival rides, and features of our date-growing heritage that make Riverside County’s fair unique, there’s something for all our visitors to enjoy. I invite you to come out as we kick off ten days of fun and unforgettable experiences!”

The 74th Annual Riverside County Fair & National Date Festival starts Friday and runs through Feb. 23, with free opening day admission from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Veterans plus three guests are admitted free every day with proper identification.

This year’s entertainment includes concerts by George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic; Banda Machos; “I Love the 90s” with Vanilla Ice, Coolio, Tone Loc and Young MC; Chris Janson; and Mariachi Sol de México. These headline acts, along with monster trucks, freestyle Moto X, demolition derby, BMX pros stunt show, professional bull riding and other performances, are included with fair admission.

Monday, Feb. 17, is Veterans’ Appreciation Day with the annual President’s Day Grand Parade at 9 a.m., a flag raising ceremony for the fair’s U.S. flagpole at 1 p.m., and a special presentation on the pageant stage at 5:30 p.m. honoring veterans Edward Robles and Rae Lynn Munoz.

Information on special promotions, fair events and ticket prices can be found at www.datefest.org.