Pulling for a new world record at the Forest Heritage Festival
There are going to be some new surprises in store for the upcoming annual Forest Heritage Festival. The yearly festival has raised many thousands of dollars for the Children’s Miracle Network and Akron Children’s Hospital, and involves hundreds of volunteers. In addition to old favorites like chain saw artists, lumber cutting exhibitions, interesting displays, forest and wildlife management educational sessions and, of course, the charity auction on Saturday at 11 a.m., the Oct. 21 and 22 festival at the Tuscarawas County Fairgrounds has several exciting new events on the slate. One of these is the pursuit of a new world record for a small scale radio controlled truck and tractor pull.
“Everyone has seen radio controlled trucks, at about 19 inches long. These trucks we are bringing in are all hand machined, since no one makes parts for these. We make our own. Basically, it’s a radio controlled truck on steroids,” explained organizer Paul Dunlap, who is a member of the Northeast Ohio Tuff Truck Pullers. “I have a two-wheel drive truck that’s about 19 1/2 inches long, and it weighs 10 pounds. It will pull four to seven times its weight. We have pro-stock tractors, and those classes have to resemble a full size tractor. They are handmade out of balsa wood. The bodies are handmade, but the chassis are aluminum.”
“There is a 10-pound and 12-pound class out of that. We are actually going to be debuting four new tractors from just in our club here,” continued Dunlap. “There will be a 12-pound pro stock tractor; a 16 horsepower, 20-pound tractor; a nine horsepower, 25-pound gas class tractor; and a little garden tractor that is only four pounds, but it pulls 27 pounds. We are actually going to try and set the world record here for both the Gas and the Insane classes.”
The track will be a 40-foot-long dirt track that’s four feet wide, and will be set up in the Main Show Arena at the fairgrounds.
“Everything is scaled to a full size truck and tractor pull. They pull 300 feet for a full pull, and we pull 30 feet. The sled runs exactly like theirs does, and is chain driven, with chain and gear drive. As the box moves up, the more the weight goes up. We actually had the World competition in Toledo this past weekend, with people coming in from Holland, England, all over the USA, Canada, and more. They actually had a turbine powered, 20-pound tractor, too. We’d love to get that guy here, too, but he’s from Holland. It runs on jet fuel.”
Dunlap promises lots of excitement at the festival, with competitors coming in from several states.
“We sometimes have fires, gears shred, and motors blow up. We will be doing demos all day Friday, from 10 a.m. on, and then the contest starts at 9 a.m. on Saturday. We will make a full day of it, pulling until 4 p.m.”
“These are not toys,” added the puller enthusiast. “For example, you can tie up $250 in a small, four-pound garden tractor, and then for the really elaborate pro stock and heavy super stock tractors, you can tie up $1,500 to $2,000. And then the guy from Holland who built the turbine has about $7,000 in his tractor. So it’s a huge range.”
For the first time ever, the festival is bringing in the Great Lakes Lumberjack Show, with shows at 10, 11:30, 1, and 3 on Friday and Saturday at 9:30 and noon. The show is loaded with clean, family humor, as lumberjacks prove their skills at chopping, carving, axe throwing, log rolling, and more.
The classic car show returns on Saturday, with registration from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., and the show from 1-4 p.m.
Admission and parking to the two-day event is free, with activities running from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. each day.
“Everyone has seen radio controlled trucks, at about 19 inches long. These trucks we are bringing in are all hand machined, since no one makes parts for these. We make our own. Basically, it’s a radio controlled truck on steroids,” explained organizer Paul Dunlap, who is a member of the Northeast Ohio Tuff Truck Pullers. “I have a two-wheel drive truck that’s about 19 1/2 inches long, and it weighs 10 pounds. It will pull four to seven times its weight. We have pro-stock tractors, and those classes have to resemble a full size tractor. They are handmade out of balsa wood. The bodies are handmade, but the chassis are aluminum.”
“There is a 10-pound and 12-pound class out of that. We are actually going to be debuting four new tractors from just in our club here,” continued Dunlap. “There will be a 12-pound pro stock tractor; a 16 horsepower, 20-pound tractor; a nine horsepower, 25-pound gas class tractor; and a little garden tractor that is only four pounds, but it pulls 27 pounds. We are actually going to try and set the world record here for both the Gas and the Insane classes.”
The track will be a 40-foot-long dirt track that’s four feet wide, and will be set up in the Main Show Arena at the fairgrounds.
“Everything is scaled to a full size truck and tractor pull. They pull 300 feet for a full pull, and we pull 30 feet. The sled runs exactly like theirs does, and is chain driven, with chain and gear drive. As the box moves up, the more the weight goes up. We actually had the World competition in Toledo this past weekend, with people coming in from Holland, England, all over the USA, Canada, and more. They actually had a turbine powered, 20-pound tractor, too. We’d love to get that guy here, too, but he’s from Holland. It runs on jet fuel.”
Dunlap promises lots of excitement at the festival, with competitors coming in from several states.
“We sometimes have fires, gears shred, and motors blow up. We will be doing demos all day Friday, from 10 a.m. on, and then the contest starts at 9 a.m. on Saturday. We will make a full day of it, pulling until 4 p.m.”
“These are not toys,” added the puller enthusiast. “For example, you can tie up $250 in a small, four-pound garden tractor, and then for the really elaborate pro stock and heavy super stock tractors, you can tie up $1,500 to $2,000. And then the guy from Holland who built the turbine has about $7,000 in his tractor. So it’s a huge range.”
For the first time ever, the festival is bringing in the Great Lakes Lumberjack Show, with shows at 10, 11:30, 1, and 3 on Friday and Saturday at 9:30 and noon. The show is loaded with clean, family humor, as lumberjacks prove their skills at chopping, carving, axe throwing, log rolling, and more.
The classic car show returns on Saturday, with registration from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., and the show from 1-4 p.m.
Admission and parking to the two-day event is free, with activities running from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. each day.
Published: October 10, 2011
