DECATUR - The Decatur-Macon County Fair came in like a lamb last week with the Junior Miss Pageant and went out with a tiger show and demolition derby Sunday night.

In between, vendors said, business was sluggish.

Rising gas prices have caused people to travel less and budget more, and the fair could not escape the state of the economy.

Food vendor Kenny Ryals rejoined the fair this year after a six-year absence.

Ryals, of Tampa, Fla., brought his Lemonade and More stand, serving pizza, calzones and lemonade. Ryals' business was just OK compared to what he remembers of years past.

"I think it's just the economy right now," he said.

Ryals has been working with Lemonade and More all of his life. The business is based in Florida and travels to several states.

Cell Phone Access had a hard time at the fair as well. The business was at the fair each day, some days beginning at 8 a.m. and others at 1 p.m. Bill McLaughlir of Missouri was on the fairgrounds most days.

"The time didn't make any difference; it's just been slow with the way the economy's been," McLaughlir said.

The company has been coming to the Decatur-Macon County Fair for 10 years.

The petting zoo saw more problems with the weather than with the economy.

The week started with the community rebounding from flooding and culminated with high temperatures nearing 90 degrees.

Mark Ottinger of St. Louis ran the petting zoo at the fair for the first time this year. He also helped out with the tiger and elephant shows. The recent weather made the fair less enjoyable for the elephants.

"The ground has been soft recently, and (the elephants) have had a hard time walking around," Ottinger said.

Although Ottinger stayed busy with the wildlife shows and the petting zoo, Sunday was missing one favorite attraction: the pony rides.

"They were calling for bad weather, so we didn't want to risk it," Ottinger said.

Kristy Mellendorf can be reached at 421-6977 or kmellendorf@herald-review.com.