Bruce Rye waves flags indicating the end of a pull by Mickayla Fegan during the Hay Days garden tractor pull Saturday afternoon, August 4. "There is actually quite a lot of skill to driving, especially on a track like this," said Andy Thompson, a member of the Eastern Upper Peninsula Antique Equipment Association that ran garden tractor pulls at Pickford Hay Days. "As you can see, the kids have several different strategies they use when they are pulling."

Under the blazing sun Saturday, August 4, the young competitors in the tractor pull drove their machines over a dry, grassy lawn, kicking up dust clouds when they spun their wheels on the track. Trevor Rye squinted at the track from beneath a straw hat while waiting his turn to pull. Mickayla Fegan turned cartwheels in front of the line of tractors to kill time. Dylan Bjunes waved his hand across the track at family members seated with a line of spectators. The sound of Mr. Thompson's voice was barely audible over the din of tractor motors revving on one side of the track.

Dylan Bjunes (in foreground) waits his turn to pull in a line of garden tractors at the Pickford Hay Days garden tractor pull at Pickford Township Park Saturday afternoon, August 4. Mr. Thompson was the announcer at the track in Pickford Saturday, where nearly 20 garden and lawn tractors were operated by some of the youngest participants in association-hosted pulls. Many are members because of their parents, who also maintain and operate antique machinery as members of the club. Tyler Rye of Pickford, for instance, restored an antique, 1947 Case tractor with his father, Bob, and rode it through the Hay Days parade with his brothers, Travis and Trevor, in tow earlier that day. At the tractor pull, Tyler had the responsibility of operating the large, "pull-back" tractor used to pull back the weight transfer machine, or "sled." As competitors pull the sled down the track, weight is transferred forward on the frame of the sled. This transfer of weight creates friction between the sled and the track, making the sled increasingly harder to pull, and eventually stopping the tractor. The winner of a pull is determined by who drags the sled the farthest.

That task was more difficult Saturday because the grassy field track was quite different from the hard, red clay surface they typically pull on, Mr. Thompson said. The clay, he said, creates a hard surface similar to asphalt. To cope with different conditions, more experienced drivers try different strategies to gain traction, he said. Some lean back in their seats to put more weight over the rear wheels. Some select a path up the track that appears to have the least wear and ruts from other machines. Others simply drive straight up the track, grinning with the delight of operating machinery as the crowds around the track cheer. The operators are careful not to exceed 3.5 miles per hour, or they may be disqualified.

"They know not to race," Mr. Thompson said.

Mr. Thompson said garden tractor operators cannot exceed a speed of 3.5 miles per hour, and if they go faster, a horn will sound. Tractors are equipped with a number of other safety features to stop the machines and prevent rollovers, although Mr. Thompson said "the kids already know that if they keep the tractor balanced out it will give them a better pull."

Of the many pulling events hosted by the association in the Eastern Upper Peninsula and northern Lower Peninsula, Mr. Thompson said the children's pulls are the most fun for members. The association appreciates supportive fans and people like Pickford's Dennis Skinner, who donates the use of equipment every year to the pulls, Mr. Thompson added. They are all helping to build an interest in tractors and antique machinery used on farms, he added, which has been part of the association's mission since 1989.

The EUP Antique Equipment Association will host local tractor pulls in the upcoming Chippewa County Fair at the end of August, and at Stalwart Fair the second weekend of September.

Garden Tractor Pull Results from Pickford Hay Days 2007

0-600-Pound Class: 1st - Megan Logan (visiting family in Kinross);

2nd - Mickayla Fegan of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario;

3rd - Logan Fegan of Brimley.

601-800-Pound Turf Class: 1st - Jake Batho of Pickford; 2nd - Trevor Rye of Pickford; 3rd - Caitlyn Hancock of Rudyard.

601-800-Pound Bar Tread:

1st - Tyler Rye of Pickford;

2nd - Mickayla Fegan of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario;

3rd - Travis Rye of Pickford

801-1,000-Pound

"Heavyweight" Class: 1st - Logan Fegan of Brimley; 2nd - Mickayla Fegan of Brimley; 3rd - Travis Rye of Pickford.