It's not every day a kid gets a chance to drive his own tractor, unless of course he/she is at one of the Schmidt's Pedal Tractor Pull competitions. Kids of all sizes from the ages of four to eleven are welcome to compete in the sanctioned competition for free. There is also an exhibition pull for youth ages two to three that love to show their older siblings just how the job is done. Each age gro
up has a tractor that has been modified for heavy pulling and is attached to a weight-transfer sled. The sled is filled with a pre-determined amount of weight which is determined by the pull director. As the kids pedal down the path, the weight in the bucket transfers up the sled and makes it harder to pedal. Some kids do exceptionally well and are able to pedal the tractor all the way down the 35 foot path while others are out for the "Sunday drive" grinning from ear to ear waving to family. Regardless of the outcome, every child is encouraged to do their best and are praised for their accomplishments. The Schmidt's state "It is our mission during the pedal pull to positively uplift each child by giving positive words of encouragement, getting audience participation, creating great self-esteem, and making sure each child has a huge smile on his/her face by the end of the trail. Brad's number one goal is to make sure each child is having fun because he is forever a kid at heart!"
Schmidt's Pedal Pull has been involved with tractor pulls since 1993 when their son Joshua, at the old age of 3, went to his first tractor pull in Little Falls, MN with his grandpa. Of course, their daughter Amanda, wasn't going to let big brother out do her so she began pedalling in 1996; and after that they found themselves recruiting nieces and nephews along the way to add to the weekend adventures. In all, they have traveled to many town festivals, county fairs, state fairs, state pedal competitions covering five states and the national pedal competitions in Nebraska. Even though their kids are now grown and startig their own families, Brad and Teresa have continued with the pedal pulls because they love seeing the joy on faces of the kids at all of the celebrations and rekindling the friendships each summer that they have made over the years. "The kids make our pedal pulls special because it's all about them!"
