Roaring good time: Tractor, truck pull draws generations of families
Sep. 20—Plumes of smoke, flying gravel and the roar of juiced-up engines could only mean one thing Monday night.
The tractor/truck pull had begun at The Great Frederick Fair.
"It's sort of hard to explain," Jim McKenzie said as he helped his son Jason prepare to pull his modified tractor.
The competition pits tractors of all shapes and sizes against each other. Drivers are tasked with pulling heavy weights across the track in front of the grandstands. Some make it as far as 300-plus feet.
Jason McKenzie, 37, of Thomasville, Pennsylvania, said the tractor pull provides quality time for the family. He has been pulling since 2006.
Jason was joined by his wife, Krista, and children Whitney, 11; Jordy, 8; and Chesney, 4.
Chesney, with smudges on his cheeks, grinned as he played in the dirt before the competition. He said cleaning the tractor is his favorite job.
Jason was the first to take off Monday. He sat behind the wheel of a 7,200-pound modified beast with two enormous wheels in the back and two small wheels in the front.
The green-painted vehicle was emblazoned with the words "Never satisfied" above twin images of muscular bulls.
The McKenzies were not the only ones cheering for a family member.
The Moores, of Boonsboro, are familiar faces around all things tractor at the fair.
Dave Moore, 64, prepared to take his 47th trip down the Frederick Fairgrounds track. He pulled out his cellphone and proudly displayed a picture of himself atop a tractor at the fair in 1973.
"I love this fair," Moore said.
He planned to pull his daughter's usual ride, a giant modified John Deere christened Moore Agitation.
Tara Britner, 35, has been pulling since she was 16. Since she has a baby on the way, her dad decided to drive in her place this year.
"I like seeing him back in the seat," Britner said of her father.
Tara's brother Davey, 40, was set to pull a John Deere named One Moore.
Before the event kicked off, Dave Moore helped run the drivers meeting. He stood on a set of giant tractor-sized scales and handed out verbal reminders to a few dozen men gathered around.
When the pulling got under way, Moore pushed a small cart across the track to redraw a chalk boundary. He was not scheduled to compete until later.
The Tipton family, of Union Bridge, had four generations present for the tractor pull.
Four of them have the same name — Clarence Tipton.
Clarence Tipton IV, 27, was joined by his father, grandfather and 3-year-old son. Clarence IV and Clarence III would be competing against each other. The relatives donned matching blue, yellow, orange and red shirts with the family name across the back.
Clarence III has been pulling tractors 34 years, while his son has 10 years under his belt.
"He got me into it," Clarence IV said, pointing at his dad. "It stuck ever since."
And it appears Clarence V already has a hankering for tractor pulling.
"I'm sure he will be [pulling] at some point," Clarence IV said of his son.
Onlookers filled the grandstand seating across the track. Some lingered closer to the finish line.
Brothers Bruce and Jim Densmore found prime seats on a pair of Jersey barriers by the track's exit.
Bruce came from Alabama and Jim from Georgia. They are in town visiting their other brother. Jim said it has been 25 years since he attended The Great Frederick Fair.
Asked what they enjoy about the tractor/truck pull, the brothers replied, "Everything."
Bruce did not wear ear protection — a must-have for most spectators. He said his years as a mechanic have worn out his ears.
Bruce gave a thumbs up to a driver who had just finished his pull with a roaring finish.
"When I hear it, I'm happy," Bruce said.
Follow Mary Grace Keller on Twitter: @MaryGraceKeller
