21st Annual Fall Tractor Show & Pull

MORROW — For the men and women who participate each fall and spring in a tractor pull at Nolen Farm in Morrow, it’s all about having fun, not about the prizes.

“It’s just a hobby, obviously,” said J. S. Flynt, a member of the Rustic Relics Antique Tractor Club. “If you win your class, all you get is a hat. So there’s no incentive. It’s just for fun.”

Most of the people who compete in the tractor pull are members of Rustic Relics. The club has about 35-40 members and most come from Lincoln and Prairie Grove area.

A tractor pull is along the same lines as people who ride horses and four-wheelers, Flynt said.

“Most of us grew up on farms and drove tractors as kids,” he said.

The tractor pull is divided into classes, based on the weight of the person and the tractor. The smallest class is 2,600 pounds and the heaviest class is 7,000 pounds.

Windy, sunny conditions helped the tractor club sponsor another successful tractor show and pull earlier this month. The 21st annual show was held Oct. 15-16 and visitors could watch the tractor pull, the kiddie tractor pull and view many show tractors as well as antique tractors and farming equipment.

Jack Norton, club president, said the show is held twice a year because many people like to see the old equipment.

“We don’t have anything else to do,” Norton joked.

Noah Scott, 7, of Prairie Grove, participated in his first kiddie tractor pull at age 2. The family does not live on a farm but they enjoy coming to the tractor show and pull each year, said Noah’s mom, Nicolle Nelson.

“It’s country and it’s fun,” Nelson said. “The kids like the ice cream and they like to watch the tractors.”

Both Noah and his younger brother, Luke Scott, competed in the kiddie pull on the first day of the show.

Nolen Farm is owned by Bob Daugherty. The farm is a working cattle farm but Daughterty keeps antique farming equipment on the farm year-round. He also has many storage buildings filled with old farming equipment. One building has an antique horse-drawn hearse.

Members of the club bring their own tractors each year as part of the show. Most of these tractors are used in parades and at festivals, Flynt said. For the pull, club members compete with their working tractors.

Each show, the club sells raffle tickets to give away a refurbished tractor. This year, Terry Martin won the raffle tractor, a 1953 Farmall Super C.

The club meets 7 p.m., the first Thursday of the month at Nolen Farm and anyone interested is invited to attend. The farm is located at the intersection of State Highway 45 and County Road 3.

Daughterty allows Rustic Relics Antique Tractor Club to use the farm for its tractor show each year.

Above, left: Winners from the kiddie tractor pull at the 21st annual Fall Tractor Show and Pull included Jayden Rushing, Clayton Barlotta, Taryn Rushing, Luke Scott, Noah Scott and Jeremiah (last name unknown). Above right: Luke Scott, 5, of Prairie Grove, competes in the kiddie tractor pull at the Tractor Show and Pull earlier this month.

PHOTOS BY LYNN KUTTER ENTERPRISE-LEADER Jay Norton drives aG Farmall Alice Chalmer garden tractor in the parade of power at the Fall Tractor Pull and Show, sponsored by Rustic Relics Antique Tractor Club.

Left: Don Carte of Lincoln drives an Oliver Row Crop 77 in the parade of power at the Tractor Show and Pull on Nolen Farm in Morrow. Above: One of the antique items at Nolen Farm in Morrow is this horse-drawn hearse, protected in a storage building on the farm property.

John Marney participates in the tractor pull competition held both days at the annual Fall Tractor Show and Pull.