Cosmo returns

• Cosmo Demonstration

Spray paint artist Todd Kenyon, also known as the Cosmo Kid, entertains a crowd at the Cottonwood County Fair on Saturday as he creates a painting in fewer than five minutes. (Laura Grevas/Daily Globe)

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• Gallery: Cottonwood County Fair 2009

WINDOM — From cows to colossal rock walls to the Cosmo Kid, this year’s Cottonwood County Fair had something for everyone.

And with Mother Nature’s cooperation on Saturday, the fair grounds were filled with families enjoying carnival rides, food, 4-H shows and live entertainment.

One of the weekend’s highlights was the Cosmo Kid (real name Todd Kenyon), a New Jersey- based spray paint artist who returned to the fair for the second time this year.

“This time I have help,” he said, referring to Texan Jason Christensen.

“I do most of the painting, and he does the narration,” explained Kenyon. “He’s like the front man.”

Christensen, a new addition to the team, explained Kenyon’s technique to a crowd of onlookers Saturday.

“Does anyone wonder why he goes so fast?” He asked. “That’s just the way his mind works. He’s four steps ahead of himself.”

And he may have been right. Using several cans of spray paint and blotting paper, Kenyon took just a couple minutes on each of several detailed paintings depicting the twin towers against an American flag background.

“I have one rule at my shows,” joked Kenyon, who has painted more than 100,000 pieces since he began 13 years ago. “If you like what you see you applaud. If you don’t, you do anyway.”

At the nearby rock wall, fairgoers were impressed with one young climber who nearly reached the top.

“She’s such a daredevil,” said Paige Collin of the 5-year-old from rural Windom, Danielle Schrupp, whose fearless attitude encouraged sister Serenity, 6, to try the wall as well.

Dad Daniel Schrupp reported that both girls also braved the Bullet, a carnival ride that flips riders upside down.

“We’ve been taking advantage of the unlimited ride wristbands and having some food and enjoying the time,” he said.

Shows and judging for local 4-H clubs also took place throughout the week.

“It’s been busy,” said Emily Remmers, a recent high school graduate and 4-H Springfield Sparklers member of nine years, as she fed her hungry horse Annie with large bale of hay. She was used to showing beef and dairy cows after growing up on a dairy farm south of Storden, but, she added, “My favorite is horses. Because you do more activities with them and they’re fun to play around with.”

Tags: state and region, cottonwood county fair, news