Share ideas to entertain the fans and the kids at pulling events June 13, 2016 07:05AM
With every radio show/podcast that I do for Let's Grow Pulling there is a common theme: ENTERTAINMENT How do we as promoters, pullers bring/provide more entertainment for the fans. Please share what you have seen at pulls, rodeos, car races, etc that you think we as promoters, organizations can bring to the track.

I personally think every pull should have a kids pedal pull. Music has been a suggestion multiple times. Don did music in Hillsboro, WI 2015, I know other pulls have used music, in between hooks. The Missouri Invitational pull handed out business card sizes of all the pulling trucks that competed that night in the bracket, like a baseball card idea. What else do you think we should be doing to provide the fans with more entertainment at the pulling events? LETS GROW PULLING


Jason Schultz
Call or Text 608 604 5068
Email jason@beermoneypullingteam.com
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Re: Share ideas to entertain the fans and the kids at pulling events June 13, 2016 09:13AM
I think the pedal pull used in conjunction is a good idea to get more kids and families to show up. It would be nice if there was something to keep the wife, g/f or kids entertained between hooks. My wife could care less to go see a tractor pull because she thinks it is boring, yet she will go watch minor league hockey, baseball or soccer games and thinks it is more fun even though they all have beer and hotdogs in common. if you think about it, there is a lot more going on at those events than the boring amateur level sport being played- the entertainment is the friends you go with and the intermission activities.

Rodeo's have clowns doing magic tricks, stunts and jokes which passes the time between rides, I don't see why pulling couldn't have something similar though I almost always have a terrible time being able to hear the announcers at the pulls which makes any talking irrelevant at the time. One fun thing along the lines of performance stunts would be motorcycle/dirt bike stunts like a ramp to do freestyle tricks or the spherical cage of death when they have several bikes running circles. For some of the bigger events with campgrounds and open pits, BBQ smoker competitions that sell food to the public at the conclusion may pair well with the event. Other things I have enjoyed doing is beer tasting set ups where you pay a nominal door fee and then are free to go to different booths where local craft brewers and distributors set up tables with various samples, which could be done before the pull starts. Several area fairs have a concert at the end of the night that attracts lots of the younger crowd. For the kids, a local town has a yearly celebration where they enclose an area and have a bunch of inflatable jump houses and they kids buy a wrist band for $10 and can play for hours and it doesn't cost or take to much to go rent and setup the jump houses. How about a best of show type car show type of deal where everyone gets to walk around the pits and vote for the best dressed truck/tractor. I know these ideas aren't exactly watching tractors go down the track but if your wife and kid only wants to see a couple passes then they are bored how else do you expect get them through the gate more than once a year? Remember the people reading this message board aren't the people you are trying to sell a ticket to!

The last thing I want to say is that I was watching NHRA top fuel this past weekend and thought they did a wonderful job with their viewer tech sessions. The would take a few minutes and talk about what is so special about the tires, how they are made, the pressures they run etc. They did a demonstration of how big and the GPM a nitro funny car pump would do. They talked about different aspects of the superchargers, exhaust, body, suspension, etc which I thought was very fascinating for the avg viewer with little to no insider tech knowledge. Why couldn't PPL or NTPA set up a walk through tent exhibit with a junk turbo on the table with some interesting facts, or various parts sectioned out or mock up a big fuel pump with a water tank to show the fuel flow rates a signma puts out during a pass. I'm not asking for blueprints and specs on your heads but a general idea of what is done internally and an approx. part cost to put things into perspective goes a long ways in my mind.
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Re: Share ideas to entertain the fans and the kids at pulling events June 14, 2016 01:51PM
When I was a kid I always liked tractors so there wasntnt much of a problem .But I can remember the truck that would hook to the sled and come apart in the middle, and the guy who dressed as the Red Barren and pulled his M Farmall But to get more kids involved a few local farm classes should be pulled at about all of the county fair pulls Fairs have cut the people who live there out .Neighbor against neighbor is what got pulling started kids watching there dads ,uncles and grandpas
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Re: Share ideas to entertain the fans and the kids at pulling events June 15, 2016 07:00AM
Grow fans from when they are little and make the experience nice for our wives--

Alexander Steam show Pull in NY has a 100' long heavy rope that is hooked to a steam powered tractor, the kids all go out on the track and try to pull it backwards. My kids love it.
Good suggestion is to have a fenced in area "corral" that parents can let their kids run around and play that somewhat contains them. I am not suggesting day care, but there is so much going on at pulls that you cant let your kids get more than 5ft from you. It is tough for most kids to sit still for hours, and for parents to contain them.

Also should be a comfortable area the mothers/parents can sit and get out of the sun, change diapers, feed the little ones, etc. With Family bathroom facilities, even if its a clean Porta Potty. Someone should "police" the area to ensure it is kept for this purpose.

Would be nice if both the area for kids and area for parents could view the track as well.

Kids also like things thrown into the stands like shirts, footballs, or Frisbees. Autograph and meet and greet specific area, with little handouts (flyers, pics, etc). Petting zoo, pony rides, face painting, etc. Plus everything "Wannabe" mentioned.


Guys are easy: We are there to watch the tractors pull #1, keep the cold beer flowing, some Chicken BBQ and fries and we are all set.

Anything Promoters can do to enhance the professional image of pulling .Pullers/Builders have really stepped it up to a new level in the past 10 years. Nascar and its drivers do a great job of involving fans and making them feel welcome. They offer many "experiences", Meet and greet drivers, Behind the scenes tours with information on how everything works.

And what happened to Monster trucks at pulls???????
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Something tangible June 15, 2016 12:57PM
To grow pulling kids need something tangible in their hands that make them think of pulling year round. Take a walk down your local Walmart aisle and look at all the Monster Truck stuff kids can play with. Look at what pulling used to have: Micro Machines, Stomper Pulling Trucks and sleds, OBS, Bigfoot and Black Gold with a pulling sled, the Meister Brau model, Ertl used to have the track and grandstand, Lego Technic had a modified kit with actual working motors, the Flying Farmalls, etc. Now kids go to a pull in the summer and that's it. Outta sight outta mind until next year. The toys that exist now are awesome replicas but not built for childhood play. If you want to grow the sport you need merchandising beyond a onesie that says future champ. When I grew up as pulling season was over, I still had my toys and could use my imagination to go right back to the track.
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