TRACTOR PULL RAISES MONEY FOR AIR AMBULANCE…

Tractor Pulling is a sport which the people of the Ards Peninsula don’t often get the chance to take part in, so Kirkistown man, Stevie Evans organised an event that saw the Glenshane Anchor and its team of volunteers join the Peninsula Pull team at Mullens Farm, Kirkistown, on Saturday 24th August 2024.

With seven various classes on the day, there was sure to be some great camaraderie and banter amongst those entered. In the spectator car park there was cars from all over the Island in attendance. Adrian Tugwell even traversed the Irish Sea from Gloucester to compete with his New Holland, aka Tuggernaught.

It soon became apparent that this is a popular sport. For me, it was a first. And I was impressed!

Having spent some time as a lad on an arable farm, my experience of tractors is limited to a Massey 35, as that was the only machine I was trusted on as a young teenager. It was idiot proof, as proven by me, but machinery has moved along quite a bit and the modern stuff costs more than a high-end supercar, and equipped with more toys, too.

Having chatted with Stevie Evans a good few times in the lead up to this event, I had a bit of a grasp on what it was about. I am more accustomed to several hundred horsepower battling the clock at the likes of Stanta Pod Raceway, where the less drag the better.

For the tractor pull though, drag is added the further you travel. With the aim being to travel the full length of 100m, rather than beating the clock. This added drag will soon bog down a tractor, and there is a real skill for man and machine to align as one to overcome the drag and get as far as possible down the course.

Once launched off the line, the sledge that is on tow lifts its wheels and the weight of it soon pushes the sledge downwards. Now in a dragging state, a weight box moves forward on the sledge in sync with how far the tractor has towed it. When eventually at the very front of the sledge, that is when the most weight is active and with it, the front of the sledge slowly bogs into the terrain.

Depending on the drivers ability with gearing steering and throttle control, as well as the active technology and aids in much of the fresher stuff, it was anyone’s guess as to how far each would travel.

Some of those competing in older tractors have built them specifically for event like this, and although they may look like they have lay in the corner of the yard for decades, are actually powerhouses with weight blocks spread around the front and rear to spread weight, or maybe allow them to compete in a heavier category.

The best looking tractor on the day for me was the grey coloured Valtra, with a black Massey Ferguson 7719S a close second. On completing a ‘full pull’ commentator, Ernie Burrows commented of the latter, “Once you go black, you never go back.” Which not only gained an appreciation from the crowd, but was a nice variation on the usual red/blue/green agri jokes.

On the course, the battle between Cooke and Tugwell was nail biting, with both drivers fully getting into it. Several men brought the sledge the full length, but the most effortless pull for me was the John Deere 8360RT in tracks, it was just a walk in the park for this machine, even lifting the back of the sledge a few feet off the ground was its ability.

The final amount raised for Air Ambulance NI is yet to be confirmed as donations are still coming in.

RESULTS:

2WD < 5T…
1^st Andrew Mongtomery, Fiat 880.
2^nd Barry Mullen, Massey Ferguson 3065.
3^rd Matthew Magowan, International 650.

2WD > 5T…

1^st Shane Hanna, Massey Ferguson 1135.
2^nd Ken Cooke, Ford 9700.
3^rd David Simpson, Massey Ferguson 2640.

4WD 5.5T…

1^st Malcolm Cooke, County 1374.
2^nd Dean Lawson, Ford 8210.
3^rd Bobby Purdy, Ford 8340.

4WD 7.5T…

1^st Kyle Hegarty, 3125.
2^nd Matthew Morton, International 1455XL.
3^rdBertie Arthur, John Deere 6820.

4WD 9.5T…

1^st Andrew Brown, Valtra T234.
2^nd Barry Brooly, Fiat 180/90.
3^rd Andrew Simpson, Massey Ferguson 7719.

4WD 12T…

1^st Allistair Cooke, Ford 8970.
2^nd Adrian Tugwell, New Holland 8970A.
3^rd Toby Magee, John Deere 6215R.

4WD 14T.

1^st Trevor ‘Cleet’ Thompson, Claas Xerion 330.
2^nd Aaron Connery, John Deere 8410.
3^rd Kenneth Hegarty, Massey Ferguson 7726.

SHOW PULL 14T++.

1^st Ryan White, John Deere 8360RT.
2^nd John Houston, Komatsu 65.
3^rd Trevor ‘Cleet’ Thompson, Xerion 3300.