The Daily Freeman is reporting the 176th annual Columbia County Fair will open next week, on August 31, and run through Labor Day, Sept. 5, at the county fairgrounds on Route 66 in Chatham. The fair is sponsored by the Columbia County Agricultural Society. The fair will feature a demolition derby and the “Columbia County’s Got Talent” competition on Aug. 31, the “Schoolgirl Queen” pageant on Sept. 2, a firefighters’ parade and a tractor pull on Sept. 3 and the “Cupcake Wars” cooking contest, hosted by Nancy Fuller of the Food Network, on Sept. 5. The 172nd annual Dutchess County Fair opens today, Tue., Aug. 23, and runs through Sun., Aug. 28, at the fairgrounds located on U.S. Route 9 in Rhinebeck. The opening day grandstand concert will feature Third Eye Blind.