By KAREN BINDER
Illinois Correspondent

VERGENNES, Ill. — What better way to rev up a bunch of young farmers than playing with loud toys that have wheels? That’s what the 20 or so members of the Jackson County Farm Bureau’s Young Farmers Committee recently did with their second Tractor Pull.

“This is so great. We can see that we’ve more than doubled our entries and our sponsors from last year,” committee member Josh Sayer of Murphysboro said. “This is just a fun way to have the family and friends come out for a day away from work and socialize.”

More than 50 entrants pulled their machinery July 19 to Vergennes Equipment in central Jackson County. The tractors registered in three classes. They ranged from older working tractors that do their share of mowing around the farm to customized antique workhorses bulked up with plenty of extra pulling power.

While the day’s tractor pull was the main event, committee chairman Gary Tretter II said it is the showcase event for the Young Farmers Committee, a group which has reinvigorated itself in the past two years. Tretter works on the family farm, G&J Tretter Farm, in rural Murphysboro where they have corn, soybeans and some livestock.

“We’ve always had a Young Farmers Committee, but they weren’t real active,” he said. “We’re always looking for new members. There are always going to be family farms.”

Sayer quickly added that Tretter “brought a spark” which was missing from the committee’s work. The group’s membership ranges in ages from 16-35. Certainly many of them are neighbors, but their circle is growing.

The idea for a tractor pull evolved when the committee wanted to host an event involving their families and other farm folks, Tretter said. The pull’s entry and sponsor fees are applied to making the day’s events work. Everyone placing first, second and third received a prize. Any leftover money goes to the committee, with most of it going toward next year’s pull.

“This is just a good, wholesome activity for the whole family,” Sayer said.

Tretter’s family entered their Oliver tractors into the pull, including an Oliver 88 that baled hay just days before. “Some people are surprised to learn we still use it,” he added.

And equally popular is the kids’ pedal tractor with its own version of a weighted sleigh. Inside one of the work sheds, children found their way to the miniature pedal-powered tractor.

“We like to start them out young,” Sayer said.