The Color of Loyalty:Pullers and Fans Stick with Their Favorite Brands
Article taken from the 2007 Championship Tractor ull Souvenir Program

More than 15,000 spectators fill Freedom Hall for each performance of the Championship Tractor Pull, eager to see which competitor will be next to etch his or her name in the history of the nation’s oldest indoor tractor pull. But who—specifically—have the fans come to see? Do they cheer for their favorite tractor puller, the competitor who won last year’s Championship Tractor Pull or the tractor that led the pulling circuits all summer?

Some people might cheer for the fan-favorites, but many simply cheer for the tractor their father used to plow the fields on the farm when they were barely old enough to know red from green or that treasured iron horse that they continue to use on their own farms today. John Deere and International have established themselves as the dominant brands for the event, but oftentimes another brand or two is found mixing up the red and green parade.

Three-time Championship Tractor Pull winner Jordan Lustik, who has pulled with a less dominant brand in the competition, Agco, for the past eleven years relates the rivalry to NASCAR.

"Just as NASCAR fans cheer for Ford, Chevy or Dodge, fans in Louisville cheer for their favorite tractor brand," Lustik said.

Although Lustik stays true to his preferred brand, Agco, he said he’s seen the crowd at Louisville shift from more red to green in the last five years. But that’s not because Deere has been claiming the top spot. Although green nearly swept the championship title in all classes at last year’s competition, the two dominant brands (Deere and International) have won equally over the last five years with Lustik’s Agco tractor being the only other manufacturer to win during that same time.

"Louisville’s crowd is mostly farmers. What you grew up with as a kid or use on the farm now, that’s who you root for," Lustik said. "The pull in Freedom Hall has one of the more brand loyal crowds than any other pull I’ve competed in. Everyone gets pretty pumped up for their favorite brand."

Most other competitors agree with Lustik.

"At the National Farm Machinery Show, everyone knows and supports their favorite driver, but mostly what you see in the crowd is support for red, green, orange or whatever color the fans like best," said 2006 8,200 lb. Super Stock winner Stan Blagrave.

Stan and his brother Steve Blagrave have attended the Championship Tractor Pull since 1985, and they have been involved in the sport with their dad since 1972. “My brother and me, all our lives we’ve been red, so we continue to pull red,” said Stan. When the siblings find time to watch other classes from the sidelines, they said they generally pull for red as well. The Blagrave’s said they enjoy the excitement the competition between brands brings to the pull and how much more involved the spectators become.

"Louisville is one of the best places in the country to see that rivalry. Ninety percent of the crowd is farmers, and they cheer for what they grew up with or use on the farm," Steve Blagrave said.

Kraig Wileman, who with his brother, Kurt Wileman, won the 10,200 lb. Pro Stock Tractor Finals in 2005 with "Die Hard Deere," said you can see the dominance of one brand over the other in different classes. He remains very loyal to John Deere in his pulling, farming and career, where he performs mechanical work on John Deere tractors and equipment. He said green is the dominant color used in the pro stock class while red is used more in super stock. Like many other pullers, the Wileman’s grew up green.

"We are strictly green," said Kraig.

The Wileman’s, who have pulled in Louisville since 1999 said the competition for them is not just about winning, they enjoy seeing their customers (John Deere owner’s of course) come out on top. Of the top 12 tractors competing in last years finals, Kraig said six were his customer’s.

True commitment to one brand brings fans to Freedom Hall to support the CTP, but it takes more than that to really get the crowd roaring.

"A good announcer can get the crowd going and keep them on their feet," said Stan Blagrave.

Anyone who has been to the Championship Tractor Pull knows that 27-year veteran announcer, Butch Krieger and his co-announcer Harold Walliser are known for their admiration of brand competition and their ability to draw fans into this rivalry.

"We just try to be big cheerleaders," Krieger said. "I usually shout ‘How many red fans do we have?’ and ‘How many green?’ The crowd gets going, and I may chant with the reds and Harold may chant with the greens."

This rivalry is what keeps fans coming back year after year. Reminiscing on childhood memories of plowing the fields with their beat up green John Deere or planting cotton with their shiny red International, keeps that competition alive and thriving for each spectator.

"There has been a rivalry between brands for years and years. It always was and it still will be," said Stan Blagrave.

So who will you cheer for at this year’s pull? Will green pull ahead of red, vice versa or will some other manufacturer reign as champion? Let the wave of colors decide.