Staff writer
Nine hundred children, ages 4-12, participated in pedal pull tractor competition Sunday at the state fair, with 50 in each division. The top three in each division qualified for national competition.
Two 4-year-olds from Hillsboro did just that. Kyle Epp won first place in boys’ division, and Charlotte Silhan won second place in girls’ division.
Kyle’s father, David, said Kyle has never had anything but a full pull. To win the Marion County Fair pull, he had to do three full pulls. The same thing happened at the state fair.
“I told him, ‘This is like the last time. If you have a full pull, you will win and we will take you to see the Corn Palace.’ That got him excited. He said, ‘OK, I’ll do a full pull.’ And he did. He loved getting a trophy. We’re very proud and excited.”
Kyle’s older brother, Lincoln, and Charlotte’s older brother, Thurston, competed in the 6-year-old division.
Charlotte’s mother, Staci, said their children had been talking about the competition for days.
“Charlotte’s face lit up when she heard she got second,” Silhan said. “She went running up there to get her trophy. Her brother was unhappy that he didn’t get a trophy, but I told him it wouldn’t be as much fun if everyone got a trophy.”
The Silhan children qualified at both Redneck in Ramona and Goessel Threshing Days.
The national pedal pull competition will be Sept. 24 at the Corn Palace in Mitchell, South Dakota, during the state fair.