Today, the only things that make some of the machines look like tractors are the tires and the operator position. It wasn't long before competitors were adapting jet engines from helicopters to their tractor frames. The organizers had to split their divisions into "stock," "modified" and even "super-modified." A four-wheel drive division was added and proved popular. Pretty soon, tractors with four engines were common and at least one machine got up to seven engines. In the 60s, two Ohio brothers figured out a way to add a crossbox gear system to allow several engines to connect to a common driveshaft. Gradually, competitors began modifying their weekday tractors and some built machines for the competitions only. In the 60s, most competitions divided the tractors into several weight limits 5,000 pound tractors competed against each other, with other classes of 9,500, and 14,000 pounds, for example. The inventor of one of the earliest sleds named the contraption the "Heartbreaker." As the tractor begins its pull, the weight is moved forward at a set rate, pushing the front of the sled farther and farther into the ground, increasing the friction that the tractor is pulling against. The sled starts out a pull with an effective weight of the sled plus zero. A moveable mass of up to 65,000 pounds (29,000 kilograms) starts at the back of the sled over the wheels. Basically, the sled is like a flatbed truck trailer with wheels at the back and a sled at the front. In the late 60s, a weight-exchanging sled was invented. "In those days, there were a few modifications done, but not too many. But, while that may have been a thrill for the spectators, it was a potential health hazard as well with tractors routinely rearing up under the strain of the pull.ĭan Stork (left) remembers tractor pulls at county fairs where the spectators became participants in ways that could have given new meaning to the term 'dead weight.' " that would be too hazardous, to have people stand on a moving tractor and sled," Dan says. Spectators were recruited to jump on the sled as the tractor moved down the track. So, organizers began to search for ways to progressively add weight as the tractor moved down the track. But as farmers began to modify their tractors, that didn't provide enough of a challenge and it was hard to distinguish the most powerful tractors. What was fascinating was to see machines that would "Pull on Sunday, plow on Monday."Īt first, the competitors pulled sleds that were loaded with a given weight as in the Rhode Island tractor pull photo at right. Event organizers at Bowling Green, Missouri and Vaughansville, Ohio found out the noise and smoke drew spectators.īy 1950, county fairs across the country featured tractor pulls. Nothing was said, but it was silently noted who "won" these calm competitions.īut there is one agricultural competition that is anything but calm the tractor pulling contest.Īs early as 1929, farmers began hitching their field tractors to weighted sleds and roared down a track to see who could pull it the farthest. When hybrid corn was introduced, idle conversation at the café would get around to how big a yield each farmer had. Going to church on Sunday with the family, a horse-powered farmer would probably check to see how straight his neighbor's furrows were. Members display antique John Deere tractors (1918-1976) and equipment.Farmers are usually quietly competitive. The show is held the last weekend of January at the Sunset Plaza Mall in Norfolk, Nebraska. The Cornhusker Two-Cylinder Club has sponsored an indoor tractor show since 1997. They also share information about parts they need or have for sale.Ĭlub Dues: $20/year Annual Indoor Tractor Show Benefits of joining the Cornhusker Two-Cylinder Club are members get to swap stories about the equipment they have owned and restored. We have 4 general meetings a year and attend numerous functions as a club such as plow days, parades, tractors pulls, and antique machinery shows. 4 of those charter members are still in our club today. The first meeting of the Cornhusker Two-Cylinder Club was held in April 1988. Welcome to The Cornhusker Two-Cylinder Club The Cornhusker Two Cylinder Club is a non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of John Deere Two-Cylinder tractors and agricultural machinery.
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