Decision of the judges will be final, and no appeal will be considered except in cases of protest in writing, with strong evidence of fraud or violation of the rules of the Fair. Protests must be filed with the Division Superintendent no later than noon of the day following the award, and must be accompanied by a protest fee of $5 which will be retained by the Fair if the protest is not sustained. The Division Superintendent will appoint a committee to consider the protest, and all interested parties will be notified of the time of the hearing and will be given an opportunity to be heard. The rules of the International Association of Fairs and Expositions governing appeals will be those of the North Carolina Mountain State Fair.
Judges will not award premiums to any article or animal because of its mere presence. It must be individually worthy. It is not the policy of the Fair to encourage indifferent production of any kind, or to distribute premiums equally among exhibitors. No premium will be awarded to any exhibit that does not possess high intrinsic merit.
Unless otherwise specified in the Department Rules and Regulations, no exhibitor may be paid more than two premiums in any one individual class.
No exhibitor may accompany judges during their deliberations except such attendants as are necessary to handle and show livestock and other such exhibits. A Judge cannot judge in a department that he/she has entered an exhibit in. Any exhibitor attempting to interfere with adjudication, or who publicly expresses disapproval of the decision of the judges, will be excluded from further competition and any premiums previously won will be forfeited.
The judge will have the right not to award a first place ribbon/premium if the item does not merit the placing. Awards in any class will be given only if merited.
Fraud or deception as to breeding, or in any other form, will be exposed and exhibitor guilty of such violation will be excluded from further participation in the Fair and all premiums previously won will be forfeited.
Premiums will be paid only on the basis of the records of the judging reports, which will be signed by the judge and by the Department Superintendent or Director. Ribbons will be securely attached to the articles upon which they were awarded, if possible, but the ribbons and pins have no value in the payment of premiums.
Online Entries Only!! Be sure to fill in the online form completely and accurately. Give your rural route number, post office box number, or city street address, zip code, Social Security Number on the W-9 form, and telephone number, including area code. Note that exhibitors who choose not to disclose their full Social Security Number or Federal ID on the W-9 form at the time of registration, even if they have submitted an entry in the past, forfeit any and all premiums.
NO PREMIUMS WILL BE RELEASED WITHOUT SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER OR TAX ID NUMBER PLACED ON A W-9 FORM. IF THE NUMBER LISTED ON THE ENTRY FORM DOES NOT MATCH THE NAME ON THE ENTRY FORM WHEN GIVEN TO THE IRS, YOU COULD BE SUBJECT TO IRS FINES.
Entries made in wrong classes may be reclassed by the Entry Department Staff. Records must be changed when entries are reclassified. If the records are altered and the entry department files are not changed, premiums will be withheld.
"Any other" or "Miscellaneous" categories at the end of each area are only for items that are not listed in preceding categories. They shall not be used for duplications.
Judges, when requested, may give the reasons for their decisions embracing the value and desirable qualities of the exhibits to which they have awarded premiums.
Judges will not award premiums or ribbons to any article or animal that does not qualify for one of the classes in the North Carolina Mountain State Fair Premium List. There will be no additional prize money for given places, in the event of a tie. There shall not be more than one ribbon awarded and premium paid for each placement in a class. This does not include Judge’s Choice or Best of Show.
Premiums will be paid to winning exhibitors immediately after the awards are made and all reports are compiled and checked. This process can take up to ten weeks. Premiums will be mailed to the exhibitor at the address given on his or her entry form. Errors in premium statements will be corrected until December 1, 2022 after which time the books of the 2022 Fair are closed.