Via Community News Service, a University of Vermont journalism internship
TUNBRIDGE – At 7 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 19, eight pairs of yoked oxen were led into the Memorial Arena at the 154th Tunbridge World’s Fair. Sounds of loud music and people screaming on thrill rides were replaced by bellowing oxen, rumbling tractor engines and the voice of judge Bob Allen over a crackling intercom.
This was the fourth and final draft oxen pull of the day. The event, where teams of oxen pull wooden sleds loaded with heavy stones across a packed dirt floor, is a mainstay competition at the fair.
At the first of Saturday’s three oxen pulls, the animals competed in different weight categories. The final event was the free-for-all, where most teams had a cumulative weight of over 3,300 pounds.
Mark Whitney of Chelsea is the superintendent of show oxen and steers for the Tunbridge Fair. He is also the vice president of the Association of New England Ox Teamsters. Whitney led a team of two Chianina oxen named Buck and Skip at this year’s oxen pull.
“They’re really big,” Whitney said. “They’re really strong.”
Training oxen to pull a heavy sled involves building strength, teaching the animals to obey verbal commands, and a level of trust between oxen and teamster.
Whitney’s day-to-day training routine for Buck and Skip includes hooking them onto an “exercise load” weighing around 1,000 pounds. Whitney said his oxen pull that load around half a mile.
Whitney has been working with oxen for more than 30 years. He got started after seeing a neighbor lead a team of oxen in the pull at the Tunbridge Fair when he was a child.
“It’s a family thing,” Whitney said. “It’s tradition.”
Bob Allen from Reading has also been involved with the oxen pulls for many years. The 81-year-old first started participating in pulls in the 1950s, following in the footsteps of his father and uncle. Since 1992, Allen has been the judge for the oxen pulls at the Tunbridge World’s Fair.
“I like to see a good ox pull,” Allen said. “I like to see a good, trained pair of oxen.”
As the sun began to set over the midway, teamsters led their oxen to pull sleds weighing 3,200 pounds for the first round of the free-for-all. The weight on the sled increased over eight rounds in the elimination-style competition.
Andy George from Ely, who placed third in the free-for-all weight class, drew some of the loudest cheers of the night. George’s team struggled to line up in front of the sled during their 4,000-pound pull attempt within the allotted five-minute window. In a nail-biting finish, George’s team hooked on and completed the pull with 33 seconds remaining on the clock.
Winners in each category were awarded ribbons and a cash reward, including $200 for first place in the free-for-all pull. The prize money was donated by Black Ox Roofing in Tunbridge.
In the under 2,500-pound weight class, Scott Spencer and his team Rip and Rowdy took home the first prize. Andy George leading Smokey and Bandit won in the under 2,900-pound category. Dale Sherman won the under 3,300-pound category with his team Fall and Spring. In the free-for-all, Adam Sherman leading Pete and Buck took home first prize. Sherman’s Pete and Buck also pulled the greatest weight of the day at 7,900 pounds.
Mark Whitney and his team didn’t take home a blue ribbon this year, but he plans to come back and compete again at next year’s Tunbridge World’s Fair. “God willing the creek don’t rise!” he said.