Hutchinson ? A soggy September dampened attendance at the 2008 Kansas State Fair, which closed Sunday.

The fair opened Sept. 5, and only three days of the annual event’s first eight days went without measurable precipitation, while daily high temperatures for the week averaged only 70 degrees.

Revenue at the gate through Friday was down about $99,000, 21 percent from last year, but that does not include advance ticket sales. Gate ticket sales on Friday alone were down $42,744, a 65 percent drop from last year.

“That’s what happens when you get 3 inches of rain,” said Fair Manager Denny Stoecklein. “What we can control has been great. The external factors do cause some frustration.”

From the fair’s kickoff through Thursday, Hutchinson received 1.44 inches of rain. Another 3 inches of rain fell Friday alone.

Water overflowed streets and soaked bleachers. A number of fair-goers’ cars were stuck in the muddy parking area.

In fact, it was such a muddy mess that fair officials were busing visitors to the grounds from Kmart on Saturday and Sunday.

On Friday, Stoecklein said numbers could turn around if they had good weather during the weekend.

The weather finally cooperated by mid-morning Saturday. Clouds parted, a sunny blue sky appeared and families were out en masse.

“Today has been a fabulous day,” Stoecklein said Saturday evening. “There was a great crowd and great weather; things couldn’t have been better.”

Overall, it’s been the longest-lasting rain event during the fair that Stoecklein has ever seen. Former manager Bob Gottschalk also said he didn’t remember a fair during which so much rain fell.

Yet dark clouds haven’t been a big worry for some fair-goers, said Hutchinson resident Gerald Drake, who was taking tickets at the fair’s Gate 9.

“I haven’t missed many since I crawled over the fence to get in,” he said of one of his early fair experiences.

“This is unusual,” he said of the weather, but added, “Rain or not, they will be here this weekend.”