By CELESTE BAUMGARTNER
Ohio Correspondent COLUMBUS, Ohio — Tractor pullers and farm bureau make a good pair. The Ohio Farm Bureau Federation (OFBF) and the National Tractor Pullers Assoc. (NTPA) have teamed up to form a partnership.
“We feel like there is a natural affinity between the two organizations, said Seth Everitt, OFBF communications specialist.
“Ohio was one of the founding states representing pullers that wanted to get uniform rules across the country in 1969,” added Gregg Randall, general manager, NTPA. “NTPA was created so pullers could go from state to state and run under the same rules. Here we are 41 years later still going strong. “
Still going strong, but dramatically changed.
“It was a pull on Saturday, plow on Monday situation back in those years,” he said. “Innovations and American ingenuity took over rather quickly where they would be doing all kinds of technical advances to the power plant (engine).”
There were two categories – super stock and modified. Super stock was the farm type tractor.
“The modified type of tractor was taking a Chevy or Chrysler engine and putting it in the frame rails in the tractor so it wasn’t an agricultural power plant,” Randall said. “Things really took off on the super stock side; they decided to start putting on multiple turbo chargers and all kinds of exotic things; they started running them on methanol alcohol.”
The modified tractors went from a single engine like a V8 out of a truck or station wagon to exotic engines like aircraft engines or even jet turbine style engines, Randall said. Then the modified pullers began to use multiple motors.
“Actually they did four motors so all of a sudden you had the motor wars where you’d see somebody with five Chevys or a twin pair of aircraft engines,” he said. “At the height of the motor wars we had seven super-charged engines on one vehicle (around 1988).”
In 20 years, tractor pulling went from being a sport that almost anyone with a tractor could participate in to a sport that was technically-advanced, Randall said.
“It continues to be cutting edge technology of what you might see in the drag racing world on the supercharged motors,” he said. “On the agricultural side there are some classes that the only thing that is stock is the engine block itself; everything else has been to a high performance shop. The tires are Firestone 2000s – not something you’re going to see in the field.”
But the appeal remains – taking these different types of engines and categories and being the person who can have the farthest pull of the night in your classification.
Randall sees two things that draw spectators and participants into the sport.
“One is the just incredible looking pieces of equipment that produce a mind blowing amount of power,” he said. “And then they’re pulling things that are as heavy as a typical two story home down the length of a football field that is as wide as a two lane highway.”
Normally the runs are in the 12 to 15 second category and the rear tires of the vehicle may be going in excess of 100 mph. The sled that the tractors are pulling gets increasingly heavier because of rolling resistance.
“Top speed going down that track is maybe 30-35 mph,” Randall said. “At 250 feet they pull the ripcord and it brings them to a quick stop. It is exciting, there is an adrenaline rush.”
OFBF members will have a chance to experience that adrenaline rush at a discount at select pulling events. They can also receive discounts on some items on the website such as calendars, DVDs of tractor pulls, hats and T-shirts, Everitt said. Farm Bureau will promote NTPA through their newspaper and magazine.
“We offer a lot of credibility to their events by using our logo,” Everitt said. “We’re excited about this partnership. It will provide an opportunity for our members to gain access to NTPA.”
NTPA has a weekly championship pulling series on RFD-TV on Saturday nights. Ohio has over 20 NTPA events |
