2023 Fair Royalty recall past year

All too often, good things must come to an end, and for Mitchell Ruff, 2023 Fair King and Samantha Mayhugh, 2023 Fair Queen, this year’s Pickaway County Fair will bring an end to their reign. Before the new King and Queen were announced on Sunday evening, they shared their background stories and experiences. Their duties as County Fair Royalty include attending other county fairs and festivals, such as the Pumpkin Show.

Ruff enjoyed visiting other fairs because he was always tied up showing cows at the Pickaway County Fair, and the opportunity to visit other county fairs gave him a chance to watch other students and their projects. Ruff is a member of the Jackson Livestock 4-H Club, but is also pleased to represent Westfall FFA.

He works on the family farm with his father, managing the beef cattle operation.

For Mayhugh, coming to the Pickaway County Fair is much more than just the King/Queen selection. Her father, Sean Mayhugh and his business partner, Jim Pollock, are very involved with harness racing in Pickaway County, and they have entered horse #8 in this year’s feature race, the Steamin Demon. Their horse is named “Really Sam” and Samantha claims to be involved in the naming decision, explaining that her father’s most common phrase expressed during their trips to Scioto Downs and around the state was, “Really, Sam?” Unfortunately, Really Sam was not the winner of the 2024 Steamin Demon; that honor went to the #2 horse, Burnout.