CEDARBURG, Wis. — Summer in Wisconsin is synonymous with the Wisconsin State Fair.

It’s the first weekend of the big 11-day event, but it’s not the only place to find lots of food, animals, carnival rides and live music. More than nine county fairs are going on in different parts of Wisconsin this weekend.

The Ozaukee County Fair is one of Wisconsin’s last county fairs of the summer. Organizers and attendees in Cedarburg say it’s all about the people and affordable, good old-fashioned fun.

Ozaukee County Fair Director Jamie Nevins travels the grounds to make sure everything runs smoothly.

“Throughout the grounds you will find plenty of entertainment and things to do that don’t cost any money,” said Nevins. “Also, our prices we try to keep as fair as possible. You can come here and buy a beer and soda for like eight dollars. It’s five bucks a beer. Three dollars for soda. Water is a buck. You can bring your own water in.”

The lower prices and no fee to get in are huge selling points to visit the Ozaukee County Fair, and there are still opportunities to show animals.

Audrey Hosseini has been competing in the fair’s dairy show for the past seven years and says it’s smaller and less intimidating than the state fair.

“Here it’s like, you know these kids and they’re all your age and you can kind of just relate to them all and you can just like, ask them for help if you really need it,” said Hosseini.

Hosseini’s friend, Emlyn Schuster, also loves the more local community feel.  

“I know while I’m here I definitely see a lot of people I know and can get together with people I haven’t seen in a while,” said Schuster.

This fair is run by a team of mostly volunteers, with dozens of people donating their time and hard work to keep the tradition going.

“Let’s be honest: Wisconsin summers are kind of short, so we all have to cram in as much as we do,” said Nevins. “And that’s the one thing about our fair being free. You can come here and then go down to state fair all in the same week, and it will remain affordable.”

The best of both fair worlds.