New fair assistant manager ‘a great fit’
There is something new every year at the Steele County Free Fair – this year, there is someone new.
Zach Rinehart is the new assistant manager, joining manager Scott Kozelka in putting together the largest county fair in Minnesota.
Though he grew up in Kiester, Rinehart is no stranger to the local get-together.
“I grew up going to the Steele County Free Fair to watch a mechanic from my hometown race stock cars,” he said.
The Faribault County Fair was the first fair Rinehart was involved with, both as a volunteer and an employee. He was a board member for eight years, as well.
He now lives near Eagle Lake, serves on the Blue Earth County Fair Board and is District 2 Director of the Minnesota Federation of County Fairs.
“With Zach’s knowledge in the fair industry, it’s just a great fit,” Kozelka said. “He wants to learn more, and when he’s able to get that manager position, he’ll be ready with what we can teach him, and go from there.”
Kozelka mentored Rinehart in the weeks leading up to the 2025 fair, “just to get my feet wet a little bit, but then show the rest of the (SCFF) board what my ability and capabilities are – just to make sure that everyone is like, OK, this is the guy we want to bring on for right now.”
At 32, Rinehart’s history in the fair industry goes back 15 years or so.
“It’s that classic scenario where everyone says in order to get a job, you have to have 10 years’ experience,” he said, “but if you’re young, how do you get the experience? Well, you start when you’re a kid.”
Though not a member of 4-H, Rinehart was involved in agriculture through FFA.
“Growing up on a Christmas tree farm, there’s not a lot of livestock to show,” he laughed.
Rinehart met Kozelka through their shared work with the International Association of Fairs and Expos, and continued to work together at the state level of the Federation of County Fairs.
“Scott wants to give back to the industry the best way he can,” Rinehart said, “and part of that is teaching me what I can learn and what I can bring to the table as a younger generation,” in addition to helping grow the SCFF.
Part of that, he said, is helping “upgrade and update and make a user-friendly experience in the technology,” including the website.
Rinehart knows, though, “when something’s not broken, you don’t try to fix it, right?”
And Kozelka knows his desire to learn will be an asset for the 2026 fair – and beyond.
“If somebody called and said they wanted Zach as a manager tomorrow, I’m not holding him back, because that’s his goal,” Kozelka said. “I want to help him in any way I can to get to the next level.”
For Rinehart, being a part of the SCFF “is essentially a dream-come-true scenario for me,” he said. “I get to eat, sleep and breathe fairs, and help advocate and provide youth development opportunities at a large scale.”
As of Monday, the countdown was on.
“Two hundred eight-eight days to the fair,” he said.