Tractor pulling seems to run in the blood of the Ridenour family.
The eldest living member of the family, Rossford resident Tom Ridenour, is making sure it stays that way.

Ridenour has been pulling for most of the last 45 years, and he still has some gas left in the tank, so
to speak.
Ridenour placed in the top five in two of the three classes he competed in at Pull Day at the Wood County
Fair on Thursday, while his son, Shad, took first in one class and placed third in another.
From the time his father first got him started in the early 1960s, Tom Ridenour knew tractor pulling was
going to be a part of his life.
"My first tractor pull up here I lied about my age so I could pull," said Tom Ridenour, now 61,
as he became emotional remembering his first pull experience. "If you get on my tractor and take
your first pass down there, you’re done. It’s over. You’re hooked."
Both Tom and Shad competed in the antique pull. Tom Ridenour was fourth in the Division II, 4,500 class,
and fifth in the Division II, 5,500 class.
Tom and Shad ride their own Massey-Harris 44s, a model that has been taken over by more modern tractors
and is even considered at a disadvantage in the antiques because it has less horsepower compared to
others in the class.
"My Massey has over two times as much horsepower as the day it came out of the door," Tom
Ridenour said. "It’s all about weight placement, how you balance the tractor."
Tom’s father, Gerald, was state runner-up in 1952. The family purchased the tractor Tom has used the past
40-plus years brand new in 1949 from the Massey dealer that was then located in BG, where Tom’s father
worked as a mechanic.
"It’s the best one minute and thirty seconds you’ll ever spend," Tom Ridenour said of the
thrill he still gets from competitions.
He added he has a tight-knit group of fellow pullers that work on their tractors together in preparation
for pulling season. Both Tom and Shad compete in numerous pulls throughout the summer as well as an
indoor circuit in the winter.
"If one of these guys breaks a part, there will be 10 of us standing there helping him," Tom
Ridenour said. "The friendship stops when you back up to the sled. Then you’re friends again when
you unhook.
"It’s something great. The guys are great guys here," he added. "Once in a while we’ll get
mad at each other but it lasts about 15 seconds. Then you walk back and get in the cooler and have a
Pepsi together and it’s over."
As for Shad, 40, he started to pull just about as young as his dad did, and hasn’t looked back since.
He’s also experienced quite a bit of success, claiming the Ohio pullers’ point championship last year.

"It’s special to me because this is one of the first things I can remember doing with my dad and my
grandpa," Shad Ridenour said. "I really wish my grandpa (Gerald Ridenour) could be here to see
this. He’d probably cuss and moan and then laugh and say, ‘When’s it my turn to drive?’
"We put a lot of time and effort into these tractors," Shad added. "We don’t own
motorcycles or campers or boats, these are our toys."
And the pulling dynasty shouldn’t end any time soon, as Tom’s grandson has already been started on the
pulling trail.
"We ride together," Tom said of the family, adding that he’s not going to stop pulling any time
soon. "I’ll crawl off (my tractor) when my grandson crawls on it."
Those earning prize money for finishing in the top five of the antique class on Thursday were:
Division II, 6,500 – 1) S. Ridenour, Bowling Green, 212-10; 2) Ryan Johnson, McClure, 210-6; 3) Jason
Naus, Portage, 209-10; 4) Josh Barnhisel, Deshler, 209-7; 5) Randy Goins, Paulding, 202-6.
Division II, 5,500 – 1) Johnson, 238-2; 2) Dan Harman, Oak Harbor, 226-2; 3) Carl Kubitz Sr., Ottawa
Lake, Mich., 22-8; 4) Barnhisel, Deshler, 218-9; T. Ridenour, Rossford, 215-8.
Division II, 4,500 – 1) Gary Seasly, Republic, 200-1; 2) Mike Bay, Ottawa Lake, Mich., 199-4; 3) S.
Ridenour, 194-4; 4) T. Ridenour, 192-5; 5) Jamie Cook, Bowling Green, 191-2.
Division II, 3,750 – 1) Seasly, 171-0; 2) Rick Manbeck, Bellevue, 168-8; 3) Bay, 166-3; 4) Joe Greiger,
Oak Harbor, 165-4; 5) Luke Fox, Alvada, 149-5.
Division III, 6,500 – 1) Paul Flames, Portage, 237-5; 2) P. Flames, 222-4; 3) Jason Flames, 217-10; 4)
Naus, 202-2; 5) J. Flames, 195-10.
Division III, 5,500 – 1) P. Flames, 209-0; 2) J. Flames, 200-1; 3) Naus, 192-9; 4) Eric Baugher, Tiffin,
183-9.
Division III, 4,000 – 1) Kurt Greiger, Oak Harbor, 190-1; 2) J. Greiger, 181-11; 3) Seasly, 177-4; 4)
Bill Keck, Bryan, 171-4; 5) Manbeck, 171-1.