<b>By MICHELE F. MIHALJEVICH<br>
Indiana Correspondent</b></p><p>

AUBURN, Ind. — Ford and Fordson tractors will be featured at this year’s Winter Tractor and Engine Show in Auburn.<br>

The 14th annual show is this Friday through Sunday at the Kruse Auction Park. The show is sponsored by the Maumee Valley Antique Steam and Gas Assoc. and the National Automotive and Truck Museum of the United States (NATMUS).<br>

More than 200 tractors and 50 gas engines are expected for display at this year’s show, said David Pence, president of the Maumee Valley Antique Steam and Gas Assoc.<br>

“This show opens the 2008 tractor show season,” he said. “All the people who are active in tractors will be there.”<br>

The idea of a late winter indoor show was prompted by the construction of the Kruse site, Pence said.<br>

“The winter show started about the time the auction site was started,” he said. “It was never really a good idea to try to hold anything outside in March. You have to worry about the weather. But now, we have a heated building with plenty of room for displays, and we have plenty of parking.<br>

“We used to just be in part of one building, and now the show takes up 110,000 square feet. The show has grown quite a bit over the years. People come from quite a ways away.”<br>

Last year, nearly 4,000 people attended, Pence said.
In addition to the tractors and gas engines, the show will feature vendors selling parts and literature, and a flea market, he said. Even though Fords and Fordsons are the featured tractors, all makes are welcome.<br>

A gas engine auction is scheduled for noon on Saturday, and a micro-mini tractor pull, featuring model tractors, will be at 2 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. Sunday. Toy and craft shows will take place each day, and a model engine show is scheduled for Friday and Saturday.<br>

Admission is $7, and includes a ticket to see the displays at the nearby NATMUS facility. Hours are 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Sunday. Food will be available.
The Kruse Auction Park is located at Interstate 69 and DeKalb County Road 11A, exit 126.<br>

For more information, see the steam and gas association’s website at www.maumeevalley.org or contact Pence at 260-341-9384.<br>