Kinetic Races & Ladies Hat Day
at the 2025 Humboldt County Fair
Ladies Hat Day
Where the glamourous and dramatic helps you win big.
A time-honored tradition with a fabulous twist! Ladies Hat Day, a beloved staple of the Humboldt County Fair, returns for the annual celebration—but this year, the fashion meets flair in a whole new way.
Kinetic Universe is bringing a new type of racing to the historic Ferndale racetrack this year! Join us on the first Saturday of the Fair, August 16th, where the elegant and flamboyant meet the grandeur and absurd as human-powered chaos collides with our time-honored tradition.
Don your most outlandish, elegant, or outrageous headwear and compete for serious bragging rights—and serious cash: a Grand Prize of $1000, First Runner-Up wins $500, and Second Runner-Up takes home $250! Let the hats (and the fun) fly!
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Enter on the day of to see if your hats or fasteners are a cut above the rest! No baseball caps or daily-wear hats are able to enter, this competition is for the absurd and fantastical.
Kinetic Obstacle Exhibition Derby
Where the absurd and fantastical hits the mud to win big.
Kinetic Spectacle Schedule of Events
As they stand at this moment – subject to a little chaos and creativity
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1:30 PM – Pageantry Parade
Unleash your imagination! Teams strut their stuff with dazzling dance routines, comedic mini-plays, or whatever theatrical brilliance they dream up. This is your moment to show off, show out, and bring the drama.
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2:30 PM – Rutabaga Royalty Hobby Kinetic Kreature Race
The Rutabaga Princesses and Queens take the field with their delightfully absurd stick-based creatures in this whimsical, wobbly, high-camp kinetic critter race. Hilarity is not only encouraged—it’s inevitable.
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3:30 PM – Ladies' Hat Day Competition
A Humboldt County Fair tradition and a true showstopper. From the elegant to the outrageous, competitors showcase their finest headwear in this beloved (and famously lengthy) spectacle of fashion and flair.
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5:00 PM – The Main Event: Kinetic Obstacle Exhibition Derby Begins
Let the games begin! Racers face mud pits, hay bale zigzags, hecklers, hills, and sheer absurdity in a test of artistry, endurance, and engineering. Estimated to run until 8:00 PM—or until the last sculpture triumphs.