Friday and Saturday are the final two…and busiest two…days of the Sheridan County Fair in Gordon with rodeo, dances, a parade, the Mac carnival rides, and a concert by country music favorites Restless Heart.

Rodeo action begins Friday morning at 9:00 with slack featuring many, if not most, of the competitors. The first formal session of the Open Rodeo is Friday night at 7:00 with the final round of action Saturday afternoon at 1:00.

Friday also has the Fair and Rodeo Queen, Princess, and Junior Princess contests. They begin at 8:00 at the Methodist church for the modeling, speech, and interview events before moving to the fairgrounds for the horsemanship. The winners will be crowned at 6:30, just before the rodeo.

There are 3 candidates for queen this year: 16-year old Jessica Hurd of Gordon, 17-year old Shontell Roseberry of Ashby, and 17-year old Katie Compton of Kilgore…last year’s runner-up.

There are also 3 candidates for Princess: 12-year old Paige Linders of Gordon, 13-year old Reann Ferguson of Gordon…whose older sister Robin was crowned Miss Teen Rodeo Nebraska last month…and 13-year old Dali O’Neill of Kilgore…the Princess two years ago.

The Junior Princess contest has attracted 6 young women including two sisters from Crawford…8-year old Mahayla and 10-year old Brylee Allred. Brylee was Queen of the 2011 Crawford and 2012 Harrison Junior Rodeos.

The other Junior Princess contestants are 10-year old Kadence Hooper of Gordon, 10-year old Hannah Hoos of Rushville, 10-year old Josie Shadbolt of Merriman, 8-year old Sierra Cain of North Platte…the 2011 Ak-Sar-Ben Little Miss.

Friday’s fair schedule also has the Cat Show at 8 am and the Dog Show at 10:30, while there are two dances that night…the Teen Dance at the Fairgrounds at 8:30 and the Rodeo Dance at 9:00 at the American Legion with music by Seth Turner and the High Desert Drifters from Las Vegas.

Saturday starts with a Cowboy Breakfast at 7:00, followed by the parade on Main Street at 10:00. The rodeo takes up the afternoon to clear the arena for the 8 pm concert with Restless Heart.

The group is celebrating its 30th Anniversary this year with their Still Restless Tour. John Dittrich, Greg Jennings, Paul Gregg, Dave Innis and Larry Stewart have enjoyed one of the most successful careers in Country Music history, placing over 25 singles on the charts.

Restless Heart had 6 straight songs hit #1,  four of their albums have been certified Gold by the RIAA, and they have won a wide range of awards from many organizations – including the Academy of Country Music’s Top Vocal Group trophy.

Wrapping up this year’s Sheridan County Fair will be two more dances shortly after Restless Heart finishes…the Teen Dance at the Fairgrounds and the Rodeo Dance at the Legion with Bree DeNaeyer and the Haywaddies.

        Saturday’s rodeo session will also include presenting the Ak-Sar-Ben Pioneer Award to the Kime Ranch, 36 miles southeast of Gordon in Cherry County, which is celebrating its centennial this year.

The Kime Ranch is now owned by cousins Steve and Don, both grandsons of Clyde and Maude Kime who purchased the land on January 8, 1913. More than 8,000 Nebraska families have received the Pioneer Awarded since its inception 60 years ago.