By a Staff Correspondent of the Post-Dispatch.
PINCKNEYVILLE, Ill., Aug. 24Concluding competition in a series
of championship tractor pulling events is scheduled for tonight as
part of a power progress show at City Park running through
Sunday.
Along with the demonstrations of tractor might go such related
events as horseshoe pitching, parade of steam thresher engines,
sawmilling and shingle making with power from the steam
engines.
Two major classes of tractor competition were run off last
night. For a weight of 5500 pounds or less, first place was taken
by George Coffey, Hindsboro, who traveled 139 feet, 8 inches.
In the heavier class for a weight of 10,000 pounds for tractor
and operator, the winner was J. A. Harriot,- Piper City, who
traveled 51 feet, 6 inches. Tonight it will be a free-for-all for
all wheel tractors with a permissible weight of 16,000 pounds.
The competition is staged on the dirt race track of the grounds
in front of the grandstand. Last night the vehicles started with a
sled behind them carrying another tractor weighing 550 pounds. Each
10 feet thereafter two men mounted the sled.
In Harriot’s case, he ended putting 50 men on the sled,
having exceeded the last point for adding men. Placing behind him
was Maris Schirer, Roanoake, Ill., 246.4, and in third was Coffey.
The latter won both classes last year when the event was staged at
Highland.
In the lighter class, Coffey was followed by Glen Bauersachs,
Pinckneyville, 130 feet, 9 inches, and Roy Fallon, LeRoy, Ill., 110
feet, 11 inches.
The crowd got an obvious kick out of a concluding demonstration
when Shelby Brown of Jackson, Mo., used his steam engine to pull
the sled and its human passengers. He failed to exceed
Harriot’s distance, the record for the evening.
Mayor William Cunningham interrupted selling souvenir programs
long enough to estimate that more than 3500 persons were on the
grounds for tike evening activities.
