|
Archived Past Pages:
2007
pages
2008
pages
2009
pages
2010
pages
2011
pages
2012
pages
2013 pages
2014
pages
|
W e e k l
y F e a t u r e P a g e
Links
to archived past pages on lower left
| The contents of the “Weekly Feature” page are
provided to you for your entertainment, amusement, and perhaps
information. Here you may find articles of interest, pictures,
historical information on the Club, or whatever shuffles to the top of
the pile on our desk. The only defined characteristic of this space is
that we will make every effort to change/replace it around the middle
of each week. Thank you for visiting, and please stop by again. Click
on any photo to see it larger in a separate window. |
Showing
Off Our Tractor Pulling Pride
re-posted
with permission from Rebekah Hornak, author
One thing for sure in the Midwest...
we sure do love our tractors.
Red, Green, Orange, Black, Blue, and my personal favorite
RUST; we argue over tractor colors like we do our football teams.
The Farmall boys laugh at the putt putt of John Deeres.
The John Deere boys are proud of their green. All
the while, the Oliver boys standby and take home the trophies.
There is no denying however, that at the end of the day, no
matter the color, we love to admire a shiny coat of paint and are
impressed with how each tractor maneuvers down the track.
Each year the Mid-Michigan Old Gas Tractor Association puts on a show
for people of all ages to enjoy. From the steam barn displays, to the
garden tractor pullers, there is something for everyone.
There are traditions in place and some still to be made.
I always make sure to get my homemade vanilla ice cream from
the local Amish and my baked potato with pulled pork and cheese on top!
In addition, I am sure one of these days my husband will let
me bring home a puppy from the petting barn:)
On Friday, the junior pullers get to show off how much they have
practiced and create memories with their parents. The
discussion of how to line up to the boat and the best way to watch the
track are fueled with pride of wanting your child to learn and succeed.
During the evening, it is time for the older daughters and wives to not
only show off the tractors, but show their dads and husbands how to
really pull. From the sideline, young girls watch their
mothers, patiently waiting for when they are old enough to pull the big
tractors.
As the evening winds down, we go back to our campsites for a fire and a
cold beer. Conversations over time have changed drastically
the older we become. What once was "Someone stop Tim from
driving his golf cart through the track", at 4:00 am, has now become
"Where's Tim?.....Sleeping with the wife and baby" at 10:30 pm.
Though the conversations may have changed, the friends and
good memories grow on.
Come Saturday morning, we scarf down the pancake breakfast and begin
prepping the little ones for the pedal pull. Young one's
stand along the track anxiously waiting their turn at what is hopefully
a full pull. The youngest of pullers are happy with their sucker as a
reward, while the older children have learned the concept of winning
and losing. It makes a parent proud to hear their child cry
not because they lost, but because they felt they did not try their
hardest.
The grounds quickly become alive after the pedal pull, as parade
tractors are lining up and weigh-in begins for the Saturday dead-weight
pulls. The steam engine sounds, the flag is raised and the
national anthem is sung. Everyone disperses to what interests
them or where the work needs to be done.
The Saturday pull brings on the purest of pullers; those who like to
focus on the challenge and the physics of pulling. Old rivals
meet up as friends to discuss the track condition, while old friends
meet up as rivals to discuss the performance of new tractors.
By Sunday, the sense that summer is coming to a close is lingering in
all our minds, as we prepare for the transfer sled pull. You
can feel people trying to enjoy the moment knowing that, come Monday,
real life and work begins again. As the State Championship
trophies are awarded, people begin to disappear to load up their
equipment and campers to head home.
As the last trophy is awarded, and the announcement booth is closed for
yet another year, the discussion has already started about what will be
done to the tractors for the following year.
Within the heart of this club, tractor pullers run deep, and as the new
generation grows, I hope we can keep it this way.
|
