Mike Roth watched the contestant in front of him struggle to maneuver the large tractor and four-wheel trailer between poles Tuesday.
Roth, who didn't place, said he was nervous to take part in his first FFA Tractor Driving Contest at the MSU Agricultural Equipment Exposition. Only the first five to finish out of 27 participants placed in the event.
"I don't know why," he said. "I back in wagons at home all the time, so I should be able to get it in there without hitting the poles."
The exposition runs July 18-20 and is located at the corner of Farm Lane and Mount Hope Road near the Pavilion for Agriculture and Livestock Education.
Roth, who will graduate from Lowell High School next spring, has been coming to the Ag Expo with his family for four years, but this is the first year the FFA, a national organization for agricultural education, has held the competition at the expo.
"About half of the kids here have participated in (a) state competition before," said Dave Wyrick, state FFA
project consultant and 1976 MSU graduate.
The objective of the competition was to back up a four-wheel trailer into a space between four poles — with only 1 inch allowed in the rear and 12 inches on either side of the vehicle. Time is also a component, with a minute breaking down to about 30 points each, so the faster the better score, Wyrick said.
The FFA Tractor Driving Contest was the first of the many events Tuesday that followed an invitation-only breakfast, where Stephen Johnson, the administrator for the Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, presented a research grant for nearly $127,000 to the MSU Integrated Pest Management Program.
Johnson said a partnership between the agency and agriculture is extremely important to find innovative ways to help the environment and the economy. He also said the agency recognizes the role MSU plays in the national agricultural community.
"Here in Michigan we've seen the fruit of that partnership," he said. "Without a strong and growing agricultural community, our economy suffers, and the president knows this too."
Agriculture is the second largest industry in Michigan, said Laura Probyn, Ag Expo spokeswoman. She said the exposition attracts farmers from around the state.
Lennon residents Dennis and Eva Graham said they bring their family every year to see the new technology presented at the exposition.
"We're farmers looking at the new ideas," Dennis Graham said.
Tents lined the roads where the Graham family walked, featuring both real and toy tractors, a composting demonstration and livestock feed.
"There is something for the whole family here," Eva Graham said.
A Blackhawk helicopter, also featured at the exposition, was provided by the Michigan Army National Guard Armory in Grand Ledge and flown in by the 238th Aviation Battalion. First Lt. Trish Fritz, the pilot, said the helicopter has appeared at many different events to show firsthand what its crew does.
Children climbed into the helicopter, smiled for pictures and pretended to fly the aircraft.
"It's really, really big, and it seems it would be easy to crash," 11-year-old Grant Beach of Belding said. "It's very cool — there's lots and lots of buttons."
The arrival of the helicopter was a part of Operation: Military Kids, an effort sponsored largely by the Army National Guard, Boys & Girls Club, the 4-H Club and The American Legion, said Sheila Smith, co-director of the program.
The goal of the operation is to raise community awareness about what families go through when a loved one is deployed or returns from deployment, as well as what the community can do to help, such as baby-sitting and gardening, said Tina Fleming, who is also a co-director of Operation: Military Kids.
"It's to help support the kids, get the kids involved in 4-H," Fleming said.
FFA formerly stood for Future Farmers of America.
