Meet ‘Wild’ Bill Weber, a man who enjoys his big three at the Minnesota State Fair

Falcon Heights, Minn. — This Minnesota native has made it a tradition to visit the State Fair for more than five decades with family and friends. He makes three stops an absolute mission every year: Sweet Martha’s Cookies, a Dairy Barn malt, and renewing his Outdoor News subscription.

Bill Weber, 79, is a familiar face at the fairgrounds. He started his tradition when he was still in high school. Throughout the years, as his family grew, he shared the tradition with his two daughters and late wife.

“I’ve been going since high school, back in the ’60s. And it changes. You get used to all the stuff that goes on, and there’s a lot of stuff. A lot of walking and a lot of eating foods,” Weber said. “I like to look around a lot, people watch, then go have my Outdoor News and read that.”

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In keeping with tradition, his daughter Amy Weber-DeRaad joined in for the fun again in 2026. But this year, a friend in the design business was customizing State Fair T-shirts.

Amy suggested they highlight three things at the fair. After many years together, she knew exactly what was going on the shirt.

“We made this as a birthday gift for Dad, and every year he talked about the same things,” Amy said. “He’s got to have a bucket of Sweet Martha’s, he’s got to get his Dairy Barn malt, and he’s got to get his Outdoor News. There was no question which three things were going on the back of his shirt.”

Outdoor News staffer Aaron Geddis and his daughter, Witney, were working the State Fair booth Tuesday when the Webers visited. They loved the shirt, snapped a picture, and it quickly went viral on social media. Amy introduced her dad as “Wild Bill.”

Outdoor News loved being part of the shirt, but couldn’t help but notice we ranked third after a couple of sugary snacks.

Bill and Amy responded that they simply were saving the best for last!

After graduating from Southwest High School in Minneapolis, Bill served in the U.S. Army in the late 1960s in Germany. After his military service, Bill worked at Our Home Hardware in Burnsville in the warehouse for 20 years before finishing his career with McGlynn Bakeries in Fridley.

Though three highlights on the shirt are Bill’s “go-to’s,” he enjoys lots of sites at the Great Minnesota Get-Together. Another personal favorite is the Epiphany State Fair Diner, where Bill and his family volunteered and developed a small following for their love of the location.

His other outdoorsy stop this year included the DNR fish pond with all of native fish species. Growing up, Bill was an avid angler and hunter.

Amy said in the past they had a tough time getting to the edge of the DNR pond because of how many people were there. This year, Bill got the opportunity to be up front and named many of the species to his daughter.

When Bill is not at the fair, Amy and her aunt, Jane Murschel, have created another tradition of traveling throughout the country to visit some of Bill’s favorite places. These include Bass Pro Shop headquarters in Springfield, Missouri, and the Browning Firearms Museum in Ogden, Utah, as well as trip to South Carolina.

While there, he got to target fish a little bit larger than his hometown favorites of walleye and pike.

“I only wanted to fish for a shark, and I caught three of them. They were all bull sharks,” Bill said.

Though new memories are being made, Amy said her dad is a very traditional person with a bit of a mischievous streak. He has always been focused on his goals and finds joy in the simple things. And more often than not, she said that joy never goes away.

So long as the State Fair exists and still offers some malts, cookies and Outdoor News, Bill will be there year in and year out.

“It’s one of those annual things you look forward to, even as an adult daughter it’s still joyful to get ready to go to the Fair and to ask my dad, ‘What do you want to do,’” Amy said. “And to know he’s going to tell me the same three things every year, it’s a ritual.”

Outdoor News encourages anyone at the State Fair the final few days to visit the booth at the corner of Judson and Nelson behind the DNR stage and pick up a free copy of the paper, visit with staff, and get a free hat by renewing or starting up a new digital or print subscription.