DENTON – Aspiring farmers Hagan Kiser, 16, and Landon Russell, 13, love riding their tractors. Kiser has a bright pink 1949 Farmall Super A while little Russell sits high on a big 1953 Farmall Super M. Both will be participating in a new tractor ride through the rolling Uwharrie Mountains.
The first annual Denton FarmPark Tractor Ride which will be held on Friday, June 29, beginning at 9:30 a.m. It is a new component of the Southeast Old Threshers’ Reunion which is always held June 30-July 4.
The fee is $20 per person and includes a T-shirt and a barbecue meal at the conclusion of the trip. Each driver is encouraged to bring along a small cooler with refreshments. Only tractors manufactured in 1965 and earlier may participate. The ride is open to drivers who are 12 years of age or older. Parents or guardians need to either ride with the child or be on a separate tractor in front or behind them. .
Retired New York Giants football player, Madison Hedgecock, will be the grand marshal of the ride. He is originally from Davidson County and is a local farmer.
The ride sponsor is OASIS, LLC – Organic Agra Soil Improvement Solutions of Denton.
“This is a ride, not a race. Tractor rides are pretty common out West,” says organizer Tim Loflin. “This is a fun, new component to the Southeast Old Threshers’ Reunion, where we normally see around 1,000 tractors of all sizes. We hope some of the owners will want to experience the countryside and ride. Everyone will want to bring a camera. People living along the route will want to take pictures, too. Quite a few of the residents along those roads are elderly, so I think they’ll enjoy seeing new faces and shiny, old tractors.”
He anticipates the ride will take around 2 ½ to 3 hours to complete and there will be a couple of stops along the way. He told me that the tractors will probably average around 10 to 15 mph.
The 25-mile trek showcases beautiful country vistas in rural Davidson, Montgomery and Randolph counties. Tractors will pass by picturesque pastures with a variety of grazing cows and horses, lush fields of corn, wheat and soy beans. The route goes up and down hills, crosses babbling waters and passes under large shade trees. Some roads are paved, some gravel. Some have hairpin curves. You’ll see a windmill, an old store, ruins from an old country home and ponds.
One of Loflin’s favorite places along the route is at the Low Water Bridge in Montgomery County. He says, “It’s like a little paradise. We’ll have a scheduled stop there so people can get off their tractors, cool off their feet and relax for a bit.”
The Denton FarmPark is located at 1072 Cranford Road in Denton, N.C., just off NC Hwy. 49 between Asheboro and Charlotte.
The Route
Exit Denton FarmPark left onto Handy Road
Cross NC Hwy. 49 to Volunteer Rescue Road
Right onto Wilkes Snyder Road
Left onto Chapel Hill Church Road
Fork left onto Bell’s Grove Road
Right onto New Hope Road
Left onto Burney Mill Road
Right onto Low Water Bridge Road
Right onto Coggins Mine Road – at the county line, Coggins Mine turns into New Hope Road
Left onto Charles Mountain Road
Left onto Volunteer Rescue Road
Cross over NC Hwy. 49 to Handy Road
Right into Denton FarmPark
For Information
336-859-2755
www.farmpark.com