The Wood County Fairgrounds roared to life once again for the 57th Annual National Tractor Pulling Championships (NTPC), presented by Maxam Tire, Thursday through Saturday.

Pullers and fans from across the United States, Canada, Germany, the Netherlands, and as far away as Australia gathered at “Pulltown U.S.A.” – as the event is affectionately known – to witness massive levels of competition.

Recognized as the world’s largest outdoor tractor pull, featuring 13 classes across five sessions of action, it is more than that; it is a “happening;” an event of monumental proportions under the guidance of the 225 members of the Northwestern Ohio Tractor Pullers Association (NWOTPA). For the week of the event, the fairgrounds and adjacent property owned by the NWOTPA becomes a city-within-a-city, with 2,100 campsites that were claimed months before the event. The NTPC also plays host to pedal pulls for children, a toy tractor display for the young and young-at-heart, nightly concerts, and the annual “Rusty Tailgate” gathering of retired pullers to share pulling stories and honor new inductees into the NTPC Hall of Fame.

This year’s Hall of Fame inductees included NWOTPA members Burdette Rathge and Eldor Gerken, both of Napoleon, renowned for their track building legacy; and the late John Hileman, a past champion at the NTPC in Modified and Two Wheel Drive Truck competition from Rockford, Ohio.

With an event of this scale there is also an abundance of outreach with local and regional partners. Local high school clubs and boosters are an integral part of the program, while the regional impact of the event is a partnership with Make-A-Wish through an auction and other activities that raised close to $160,000, granting wishes to children in Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana.

With rain forecast in the days prior to the event, the NWOTPA’s club members, known as the “Blue Shirts,” made plans to handle any challenge from precipitation. The initial Thursday evening session and the Saturday afternoon session both had weather impact that shortened or cancelled classes altogether but did not cancel any session entirely because of the herculean efforts of the Blue Shirt track maintenance team.

Getting the competition in is critical to the Blue Shirts, pullers, and pulling fans, as the pullers come to the NTPC with one goal in mind: to win the coveted “Bowling Green Ring,” awarded to the competitor who attains the lowest average placing across two rounds of competition.

This year’s Ring winners were a mix of new and returning contestants:

Local pullers Jim and Paul Holman of nearby Wauseon, won their 10th Ring this year in the Four-Wheel Drive Truck class with the “4-Play” vintage Chevrolet machine.

The Mini Modified division was dominated by 84-year-old Ken Veney of Wadsworth, and his “Funny ‘Lil Farmall” entry, besting the efforts of more than 50 other entries in the class to attain his fourth career ring win.

Brook Ferris Jr. and the “Absolutely Nuts” CaseIH entry from Addison, Michigan claimed their third straight Ring win in the Super Farm Tractor division.

Johnny Payne drove the twin-engine “Limitless” entry from Shandon, Ohio to the ring win in the Light Modified class in his first appearance at the National Tractor Pulling Championships.

Another first-time winner in the Two Wheel Drive Truck division was Mason Theobald in the “Wicked” Ford T-Bucket from Shelbyville, Indiana, overcoming the efforts of 65 other entries in a class limited to one round of competition due to rain.

Plagued by a rainout in the Thursday session was the Light Super Stock Tractor class. In its one session of competition on Saturday afternoon, the John Deere-based “Let-R-Buck” machine of Rex Kuhn from Morristown, Indiana, took the ring win and an additional $10,000 prize courtesy of event sponsor Lincoln Diesel Specialties.

Battling for another $10,000 prize on the weekend was the Diesel Four Wheel Drive Truck class. In that class, Jonathan Woskob and his “Rollin’ Coal” Dodge of Warriors Mark, Pennsylvania, won the final session of the class and the $10,000 presented by BAD Gear, while the “Angry Shine” Chevrolet of Todd Dugan from Bladensburg, Ohio claimed the class ring through consistent top five finishes.

Super Stock Open Tractor action saw John Strickland as the ring winner in 2024, piloting the “GALOT II” AGCO from Harrells, North Carolina, to the overall title.

Winning a ring in two different divisions was R.J. Simon of Farley, Iowa. Simon’s phenomenal feat saw him excel in the Super Semi division driving the “Drivers Wanted” Peterbilt and claiming the Light Modified overall win piloting the “Simon Sez” machine.

Simon’s brother also claimed the Modified tractor ing win at the wheel of “Simon Sez.”

The Super Stock Diesel Tractor division featured Colin Ross and the “Triple Bypass” McCormick from Waynesburg, Pennsylvania, sweeping both sessions for the overall ring win.

In a class that has been dominated as of late by John Deere-based machines, Brian Shramek, Williamsburg, Missouri, and the “Youngblood Pro” AGCO clinched the Pro Stock Tractor Ring based on a first-place finish and a sixth-place finish in two sessions at the NTPC.

The Unlimited Modified tractor division shook the earth in two sessions, where Ricky Rose and the “Giddyup” machine from Glencoe, Minnesota, took the ring win on the strength of his top three placings in both sessions.

Preparing for the event is a year-round endeavor; action is already underway for the 58th edition of the National Tractor Pulling Championships to be held on Aug. 14 -16, 2025.