Big tractors, big trucks pull big crowds at Lebanon Area Fair

Nearly 7,000 fans of all ages packed the track at the Lebanon Valley Expo Center & Fairgrounds on Wednesday evening to watch a spectacular tractor and truck pulling competition put on by the Maryland-based Atlantic Pro Pulling League.

Speaking to LebTown in the pits, APPL’s Tara Moore said the evening’s event was part of a summer-long points competition held by the league at tracks in Maryland, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia, and Delaware.

Tractor pulls are a combination of raw power and driver skill. Tractors and trucks hook up to a sled that looks like a flat-bed trailer carrying a large weight. As the tractor pulls the sled down the track, the weight steadily moves forward, in effect making the sled heavier. Eventually, the sled and tractor dig into the ground and stop. The further the tractor gets down the 100-yard track before stalling, the higher it scores.

31 tractors and trucks, each packing 1,500 to 6,000 horsepower, were scheduled to compete in seven classes, according to Moore.

For the first time in about 25 years, “modified” class pullers competed at the popular annual fair event.

Modifieds like those kicking off Wednesday’s competition resemble drag racers more than souped-up farm tractors. Some are powered by jet and rotary engines – sometimes more than one – and run on alcohol and other exotic fuels.

And they are loud. Very loud.

There’s something simple and satisfying about displays of raw horsepower. There’s no need to think a lot. Just sit back and experience the ground shaking, the ear-shredding roar of enormous machines, flames, flying dirt, belching smoke.

Like all fair events, the pulls are an all-age family staple.

Local farmers Delmar and Lynette Martin and their three children were in the stands half an hour before the first pull. The Martins said they had been watching pulls at the fair “for about 25 years.” Why do they keep coming back? “We’re farmers,” Delmar Martin said. “It’s an agricultural event. We’re here tonight for the food and the tractors.”

Competing in pulling can also be a family affair.

Michele Abshire, her husband, Kevin, their grandson, and family friend Troy Nails hauled three trucks to the fair from their Inwood, West Virginia home. Michele, Kevin, and Troy then competed against each other.

Pulling is an expensive hobby. Michele rolled her eyes when asked how much the three trucks cost. “You can’t put a price on it,” she said. “We built these from the ground up in our garage, including the chassis. We didn’t hire a frame builder.”

“I’ve been pulling for a long time,” Michele said. “I got [my husband] into it. My mom and dad used to do it when I was a kid.”