UNITED TRUCK AND TRACTOR PULLERS
More than 70 competitors make up the UTTPI, coming
from as far north as Montana, clear to Southern Utah. We pull everything from stock gas and diesel pickups to mountain
motor four wheel drive trucks and supercharged two wheel drives with
excess of 2,000 horsepower. We strive to provide good, quality
entertainment for our fans.
The sport of pulling can trace its roots back to the early days
of draft horse pulling at the county fairs in the early part of the 20th century.
The first recorded "motorized" pulling event took place in 1929
at Bowling Green, Missouri. As man and machine grew together, the sport of pulling started taking shape. It grew throughout
the 50's and into the 60's. By the 70's different associations across the country were formed to establish uniform
rules and to give the sport the structure it needed.
In early years of pulling, the mini rods, whose ancestor is
the family garden tractor; evolved into a chassis with a supercharged V-8 providing the power. The another group of vehicles
entered pulling and captured fan loyalty immediately. This new division was the four-wheel drive. This was the first truck
division to be associated with pulling. As competitors looked for the competative edge in this division the size of the engine
grew from the 450 range to 600 and 700+. They are naturally aspirated, no blown engines. To find blown engines, fans need
only to look at the two-wheel drive division. This division became official in 1982 and the wheel standing action makes
it one of the crowd's favorite.
In the early years of pulling, the tractors used were no more
than farm vehicles; pull on Sunday, pull on Monday. There were basically two divisions, stock and modified. The tractors
in the stock division were standard types, John Deere, International and others. Modifieds then were single-engine tractors
that were powered by non-tractor type engines. As the competition got stiffer, the modifieds kept adding more engines. Aircraft
engines were introduced and the horsepower wars continued until limits were finally placed on the modified tractors.
The stock division soon caught up as well when the word "super"
was added and the "pull on Sunday, plow on Monday" idea slipped quickly into history. Still wearing the sheet
metal of John Deere Green or Case Red, it's what's hidden underneath that counts. With only six huge pistons these machines
now have exotic billet aluminum heads and high tech fuel systems with as many as 4 turbochargers pumping fresh air into
one and another and finally into the cylinders. Many other modifications have been made to strengthen the remaining drivetrain.
A recent change has many of the Super Stocks now burning alcohol instead of diesel fuel increasing the power even more.
Milder versions of the Super Stock Tractors can be seen at many Outlaw Events. They are called Super Farm and Pro Stock.
Several limitations such as a single turbo and smaller tire sizes plus a diesel fuel only rule limit horsepower somewhat but
still makes for very exciting pulling action. With the changes in the modified and super stock division, the sport really
rocketed.
The other actor in the story is the other half of the pulling
equation- the sled. Starting out in the early days, sleds were simple deadweight pulling. Another early type was the step
on , in which people were positioned along the track and would "step on" the sled as it came by. In these early years, vehicles
had to maintain a speed limit as part of the rules. This is a far cry from what takes place today, with top modified
vehicles turning their tires in excess of 100 MPH. But of course sleds are marvels of engineering technology, with sophisticated
gearing systems that move up to 65.000 pounds of weight to stop the powerful modified tractors that prowl the tracks every
summer. What began back in infancy has grown into a major motorsport.
