Hickory – High-powered tractors and trucks will test their strength at the second annual Foothills Antique Power Association of North Carolina-Hickory American Legion Fair Association Truck and Tractor Pull set for Saturday, Oct. 22, at the Hickory American Legion Fairgrounds.
Complementing the pull, the fourth annual Foothills Antique Power Association Show and Swap Meet will be held earlier that day and Friday, Oct. 21, at the fairgrounds at 1 American Legion Ave., Newton.
The gates at the truck and tractor pull open at 4 p.m., and the event starts at 6 p.m. Admission is $15 for guests 13 and older, $5 for children ages 6 to 12 and free for those 5 and younger.
The inaugural 2021 pull was a standing-room-only event, said Wilson Sigmon, vice president of Foothills Antique Power and a member of American Legion Post 48. Interest was so high that the two groups have added many more bleacher seats to accommodate this year’s expected crowd, and guests are welcome to bring chairs.
“I probably expect 3,000” Wilson said, referring to the number of guests. “We had over 2,000 last year, and I’m telling you, it was a hit.”
The vehicles will pull a weight-transfer sled carrying industrial-strength weights that vary by class. The sled alone weighs 30,000 pounds, and up to another 23,000 pounds can be added.
The pull will feature competition in seven Carolina Truck & Tractor Pullers and Lucas Oil Pro Pulling League classes. For tractors, there will be light pro stock, super farm, hot farm, and mini rod classes, while trucks will compete in pro stock 4×4, super modified two-wheel drive, and pro street diesel classes.
There also will be competition in six classes in the Carolina Outlaw Pulling Series: classic modified and small block mini rod tractors and small block gas 4×4, open street diesel, street stock gas, and work stock diesel trucks.
The mini rod class is one of three new competitions added this year. The minimalist vehicles are mostly wheels and engines – big engines that produce “super horsepower,” Sigmon said.
Another attraction to guests will be the roar of the mini rods’ engines.
“They eat that up,” Sigmon said.
He did not know many competitors will sign up for the pull, but said the 2021 event brought six to eight vehicles in each of 10 classes.
The show and swap meet will start at 8 a.m. Oct. 20 and 7 a.m. Oct. 21 at the section of the fairgrounds that hosts the weekly farmers market. The meet will run until business slows each day, likely about 3 or 4 p.m. Friday and 1 or 2 p.m. Saturday, Sigmon said.
Admission is $5 for guests 13 and older and free for those 12 and younger.
Vendor spaces are available on a first-come, first-served basis, Sigmon said. After paying their admission, vendors can stake out their own spaces.
“You’ll have a few dealers,” he said, “but mostly individual club members or the public selling what they don’t want … or need.”
He emphasized that the meet was not the place to sell routine household items.
“We want to keep it farm- and tractor-related,” he said.
The truck and tractor pull is sponsored by Sig’s Tire Center Inc. and Schronce Used Parts and Cars Inc. Co-sponsors are Connelly Springs Electric, Hosstyle Diesel Performance Shop, JLS Machine Inc. and Dellinger Fabrication.
For information about either event, visit foothillsantique.com; for the show and swap meet call 828-310-5525, and for the truck and tractor pull call 828-855-4767.
