Wednesday, 22 May 2002
Susan McGinley

Contact Information Clint Harrington 520-403-6511 (cell) Eric Hein 520-390-9085.

School's out, but five agricultural engineering students are still hard at work at the University of Arizona Campus Agricultural Center on Campbell Avenue and Roger Road. They're cutting, welding and painting their entry for an international student tractor pull in Moline, Ill., May 31-June 2.

The machine is a 1/4 scale tractor the students designed themselves. Students from across the United States and several countries are competing. Teams were each given an engine and wheels, but were required to design and build the rest of the tractor themselves according to rigorous guidelines prepared by the American Society of Agricultural Engineers (ASAE), the contest sponsor.

Judging is based on the design of the tractor, the amount of weight it can pull on a sled, and other criteria. The UA team tested their tractor prototype, about the size of a riding lawn mower, a few weeks ago at the Pima County Fair, where it pulled 15,000 pounds.

"You should see this thing. It looks like something out of the 'Junkyard Wars,'" says Clint Harrington, the agricultural and biosystems engineering student in charge of the project, referring to a popular cable television program.

Editors Note: The student team and their tractor will be at the Campus Agriculture Center until midnight Friday, May 24, before leaving for Illinois on Saturday morning.