By ANN ALLEN
Indiana Correspondent

LEBANON, Ind. — Bringing with him a fleet of tractors that neither rumble, roar nor consume expensive fuel, Troy Zahner of the National Pedal Pullers and Racers, encourages Midwestern youngsters to compete for the title of champion in Farm World Expo’s Kiddie Tractor Pull on Sept. 6 at the Boone County Fairgrounds in Lebanon.

His tractors are of every make - John Deere, Ford, Case, etc. Powering them will be youthful contestants pulling weight transfer sleds. “Whoever pulls the most weight the farthest wins,” Zahner said.  “If we have a tie, we will have the kids compete again while we keep upping the weight to see how far they can pull.” He recently had a youngster in the 11-12-year old class pull 600 pounds to win his event.

Zahner will offer two competitions for youths ages 3-12 at the Expo with classes broken down into 3-4, 5-6, 7-8, 9-10 and 11-12 age groups. Registration for the first pull will begin at 9 a.m. with the event set to begin at 10 a.m. Registration for the afternoon pull is at 1 p.m. with the pull set for 2 p.m. There is no charge to compete. Winners will receive prizes.

In addition, if the winners want to advance and Zahner can find a spot for them, they can go on to national competition. “Normally, we have a champion of champions pull in Lawrence, Michigan,” he said, “and then we take the winners to national, which this year will be at the Corn Palace in Mitchell, S.D.”

Zahner’s father, Jerry, started the business in the late 1970s and continues to be sanctioned in Indiana and Michigan. In addition, Troy operates pulls in Ohio, Kentucky and Illinois.

Between father, son, a brother and a cousin, they have been known to have concurrent pulls in three states.

And that is in addition to the 5,000 acres they farm in Indiana’s Elkhart and St. Joseph counties. “We keep busy,” Troy said. “Timing is everything. I finished disking 300 acres of wheat stubble on July 17 so we could double crop soy beans.”

Between now and the date of the Expo pull, Zahner will have a fleet of tractors at the Riley Fun Park at the Indiana State Fair for a state championship pull on August 17. “All first and second place winners in any county fair, whether they pulled through my system or another one, can enter,” he said.

Zahner estimates he will manage 35-40 pulls this year, down somewhat from past years but still enough to keep his family busy. And to help youngsters throughout the Midwest have fun. “Fun, that’s what it’s all about,” he said.

He can be contacted at 877-633-4873 or pedalpullers@fourway.net
Meggie Foster, operations manager for the Expo, said there also will be a petting zoo and other activities for the younger set.