Mighty MITES

The origin of the tractor pull predates the tractor. During the horse-farming era, farmers matched teams of horses against each other. A team would attempt to pull a heavy load a given distance or the horses would pull a sled for a certain distance while additional weights were added as the sled moved along. The weights sometimes consisted of rocks; other times, people stepped onto the sled.

Tractor pulls date to the early 20th century. Organized pulls were recorded as early as 1929 in Vaughnsville, Missouri, and Bowling Green, Ohio. Pulls became popular across the country during the 1950s and ’60s. The National Tractor Pullers Assn. was organized in 1969. Today, many state and local organizations sponsor tractor pulls.

As late as the 1970s, pulls involved two classes of tractors: stock and modified. Stock tractors were those placed in competition as issued from the factory, while modified tractors usually had different and larger engines mounted on them. Since then, many types of modifications have been approved.

During the past decade, increasing attention has been paid to lawn and garden tractors. Pulls for these tractors are often