Young farmers’ tractor events pull in cash for four charities

Young farmers from across the north and north-east of Scotland have taken part in various tractor challenges to raise funds for charity.

First up, a group of 40 members from all three young farmers clubs in Orkney took part in a tractor pull from Stromness to Kirkwall.

It took the group five hours to pull the Fordson Dexta Tractor along the 15mile journey. A group of 13 pulled the tractor at any given time, with 10 pulling at the front and three pushing at the back.

“It rained a lot of the way but didn’t dampen our spirits. Everything went smoothly throughout the day with no hiccups at all,” said Orkney District club secretary Erin Stout.

“There were a few tougher parts where we had to travel up braes but the majority of the way was quite flat. When we made it to Kirkwall around 2pm, we then went up the street to catch shoppers and tourists from the cruise liner that was in on the day. Despite just having walked 15 miles, the members took a burst of running as they came up Broad Street. I think everyone was pretty achy after the day, but it was well worth it for the amount that we have raised.”

In total the Orkney young farmers raised just over £2,000 for two charities – rural hardship charity RSABI and local mental health charity the Orkney Blide Trust.

Meanwhile, the north region of the Scottish Association of Young Farmers’ Clubs (SAYFC), took part in a vintage tractor relay to raise funds for charities.

The four-day drive included five vintage tractors each taking part in a section of the route from Laurencekirk to Kirkwall – travelling more than 300 miles in total.

The drivers who took part in the challenge included: Derek Anderson from Mearns JAC; Stephen Eddie from Vale of Alford JAC; Aidan Stewart from Strathbogie JAC; Michael Gunn from Forss YFC; Greg Robertson and Murray Coghill from Bower YFC; and Cameron Linklater from Sandwick YFC.

SAYFC north region chairwoman Kim Taylor said: “A huge part of SAYFC is engaging with the local community and this is why we decided to hold the tractor run from Laurencekirk to Kirkwall, raising money for Cash for Kids and Are Ewe Ok – SAYFC’s metal health campaign, while raising the profile of Young Farmers in the north.

“The run itself was very successful. The weather mostly held out for us and thankfully there were no breakdowns.

“It was great to get a toot or a wave from fellow road users.

So far more than £1,000 has been raised.

Further donations can be made online at https:// mydonate.bt.com/events/ northtractorrun.

Orkney young farmers on the tractor pull challenge