Money Maker Tractor Pull

[Anonymous-0]

Went to the matpa pull at booneville mo. There were 4 tractors that I took, and 3 drivers for them. Paid $15.00 per hook and $5.00 x 3 drivers for insurance. All told we spent $140.00 to their club to pull. Now the part that gripes my A&*! They charged everyone $3.00 to get in to the pull on top of that. 3 drivers plus 9 family members for an extra charge of $36.00! I wonder if anyone else thinks that its not right to make people pay to put on their own show! I didnt mind paying for tha family members, but ill be damned if its right to charge the drivers. Ill never go back to their pulls. Idont care if it was $3.00 or $30.00,, It just wasnt right!

 

[George MacPherson]

I agree 110%! It is the pullers and the fellers with the fancy display tractors who put on the show why should they have to pay to get in? At our club in South Carolina we allow two people per tractor free entry.

 

[ricky c]

most individuals feel that way and i also felt that way until i was incharge of organizing something and with the ever increasing commercail insurance rates on a yes "dangerous sport in the insurance eyes". i look at things differently. if the place is WELL ORGANIZED with all the needed things for everone there i will be willing to pay to get in. if it is a half a@@ run place where everyone in the club is argueing i will not pay and most likely will not go to that event. some time the older folks use the fraze walk a mile in my shoes and it will change you mind. everyone is hurting with the economy and i hope it turns north fast. my opinion. thanks

 

[Drew]

I dont like paying to get in anymore than anyone else on here.

I'm sorry you had a bad experience at our pull. MATPA was NOT the one collecting the gate fee. The assn. that owns the facility was the one collecting the gate fee. They have stuff to pay for like: the light bill, the brand new restroom facilities, general maintance of the grounds, as well as what ricky c mentioned, insurance for when someone stubs their toe and decides to sue.

The hook fee went to payback for placing in the top 3, the sled, scales and paying the insurance for MATPA, which doubled since last year. NO ONE made money off either the gate fee or entry fee, just trying to pay expenses, which are ever increasing these days.

I hope you will reconsider and give MATPA another chance and see we arent out to gig you out of extra money. The gate fee is up to the group hosting the pull, not our association. None of us really like paying to get in either, but see it as a necessary evil.

I'm sure I echo many members of our club when I say that we would welcome constructive criticism to help us run a better pull, but would ask that if you are going to criticise, please tell us who you are instead of hiding behind a computer screen.

Thanks,
Andrew Moore
MATPA member

 

[Anonymous-0]

(quoted from post at 23:30:49 05/18/09) Went to the matpa pull at booneville mo. There were 4 tractors that I took, and 3 drivers for them. Paid $15.00 per hook and $5.00 x 3 drivers for insurance. All told we spent $140.00 to their club to pull. Now the part that gripes my A&*! They charged everyone $3.00 to get in to the pull on top of that. 3 drivers plus 9 family members for an extra charge of $36.00! I wonder if anyone else thinks that its not right to make people pay to put on their own show! I didnt mind paying for tha family members, but ill be damned if its right to charge the drivers. Ill never go back to their pulls. Idont care if it was $3.00 or $30.00,, It just wasnt right!

I think tractor pulling should become like other motor sports with contingency money and a purse espicially if out of pocket to pull is close to 200 bucks. we are allready spending the money for engines.

 

[ricky c]

it would be wonderful for everyone to get money out the pulls but there are no big sponsors at the pull level that we are and even at the level of the bigger boys and girls pulling like nascar foot ball and drag racing. i for one have scouted around to try and get sponsors for different things and it like asking some one for the last ice cream cone they got. if aint happening ha ha.

 

[Anonymous-0]

it depends on if there is a good payback. i pull at a fair that charges everyone 5$ to get in the grandstands, and 20$ per hook....but its worth it if you have the chance to win 200$ for 1st, and 150$ for second..so on.....that 5$ isn't bad...but it is bad when you pay 20$ per hook, 5$ for stands, and 30$ to park....that pisses me off...and i won't go back....and that pull only paid 100$ for first..and it only had 5classes...

 

[Anonymous-0]

The pull at the Rose City Mn threshing show, charges regular admission, 7 or 8 bucks to get in. There's no payback, only a trophy, and they aren't shy about hook fees either, not the highest, but not on the bottom either.

Most other threshing/antique shows I pull at would just as soon you didn't stop at the gates and wave you on through if you're hauling a tractor. It's only a few miles from home (I usually drive the tractor), so I imagine I'll be back this year.

Farmer Wheels

 

[MATPA President]

The Club that owns the ground (MRVSEA)- just spent almost $25,000 building a new set of restrooms - complete with shower facilitys and all. They also pay the light bill, and the water bill, the fuel for the tractors running the pull, and any other expenses.

We (MATPA) charge $15 per hook. We had 222 hooks. That equals $3,330.00. $7.50 of the hook fee for each class is paid back to the to 3 places - (the pullers). Then, MATPA gets $2 per hook (I'll get to this in a minute). And the Sled gets $5 per hook. So - you are left with .50 per hook to pay for the scales and any other equipment. So - .50 times 222 hooks - leaves you with $111.00. The scales cost $125.00. So - you are now in the hole. And you have not paid anything towards the water bill, the light bill, or the restrooms.

The Club that owns the ground - MRVSEA - has to do all the mowing, prep work, pay the water bill, light bill, and any other expenses. They collected $3 per person at the gate. They took in somewhere around $600 at the gate. Now - they spent almost $200 in fuel for the scraper tractor and the roller tractor. So now you are left with $400 for your work for the whole weekend - in order to pay for the light bill, the water bill, and other expenses to keep up the grounds. Now lets not forget insurance.

Back to the MATPA. After getting $2 per hook for 222 hooks, we now have $444 for our club. Our insurance for the club has went from $1,200 per year - to $3,600 per year. Anyway - we now have $444 in the bank - MAN - only $3,150 more to go.

Now - don't forget. MATPA has to pay app $250 per year to keep the website going, pay for all the printing of cards for 15 pulls, all the triplicate copies of the entry forms for lineup and announcers, and secretary at the pull, anyother supplies. AND - you have the price of mailing out everyones newsletters - normally $125 a mailing if you buy stamps, envelopes. I won't even get into all the other little expenses that is cost a club to stay organized.

Pulling is a sport. And sporting events do cost money to participate in. One of the previouse post relates to sponsors. Well - we do have sponsors - but that money is tied to the ponits winners at the end of the season. (And yes - it was hard to get that money as referred to above). If you took 4 tractors, and pulled a minimum of 2 times each - you pulled 8 times. I'm sorry - but for the facilies that you pulled at - I don't feel you were over charged.

The Missouri River Valley Steam Engine Association has a premier place for the sport of tractor pulling. You now don't have to walk around and do the bear in the woods thing - they have a brand new Bathroom Facility. You don't have to worry about getting stuck in the mud unloading your tractors - they have a very large gravel parking area (Flat TOO!) as you have seen in the previous pictures I have posted. They have spent alot of money on a good PA System in order to help keep the pulls running in a orderly fashion. And I'm not going to mention how hard MRVSEA and MATPA worked in order to make the pull happen after all the rain we had on the track. We must have done something right. We had pullers from all over the state - and a few from Illinois, and some from Iowa.

I'm sorry you feel the way you do. And to copy Drew's post from above - we hope you will change your mind and come back to pull with us.

And to also copy Drew's post from above - I hope you would contact one of our officers and or Board members before bashing our organization on the internet and hiding behind you post of "DUH". WE DO KNOW WHO YOU ARE. WE HAVE GONE BACK THRU THE "ONE DAY" MEMBERSHIPS FROM SUNDAY - AND CHECKED HOW MANY TRACTORS EACH NAME BROUGHT. IT SURE WOULD BE NICE FOR YOU TO APPOLIGIZE IN SOME WAY FOR CONSIDERING $400 TOO MUCH PROFIT FOR A TRACTOR PULL THAT LASTED 12 HRS, TOOK 4 NIGHTS TO GET THE GROUNDS PREPARED, HOOKED OVER 222 TRACTORS, AND 1 WHOLE DAY TO CLEAN UP ALL THE TRASH LEFT BEHIND. (UNLESS YOU FEEL OTHERWISE) I'm sure any reasonable person would understand.

Sincerely
MATPA President 2008-2009
Steve Borts

 

[88 PULLER]

I was at this pull last fall and I thought it was a nice place and everything ran well. I don't mind paying a small fee to get in when there is more going on then the tractor pull such as a flea market or other vendors for you to look at. I have been on both ends of this and it's not a money making deal! And I can tell you tractor pulling is not a money making deal either! I love to pull and just consider it all part of it. As much money as everyone dumps into their tractors the entry fee should be a drop in a bucket... Personally I like getting a trophy!

 

[Anonymous-0]

If you want to play you got to pay. One of these days there will not even be a place to tractor pull if they cannot afford to put one on.

 

[Edmund Tractor Pull]

Most of these dicussions I do not get invovled with. I just read both sides and try to learn something; But this one I could not let go by.

The people that are saying it is not right that they have to pay to put on the club"s show, I have one question. What show? No one turns out in large numbers for antique and super antique tractor pulls unless they are tied to a big show or have hot farm and 4 wheel trucks. Pullers and their families out number spectators around 3:1. This sport can not survive, let alone thrive without the means of covering their expenses - The ever rising cost of insurance,fuel, electricity and megar labor that helps with the track. I have pulled in TN, GA, NC, SC and OH. The crowds are not growing;Tracks are closing or cutting back. As pullers we either need to pony up, pay the bill or expect to stay home alot more weekends. Just my two cents worth as a puller,owner and promoter of a track.
Michael