by MARK ST.J. COUHIG
Sequim Gazette

Four Sequim High FFA students made their school and their town proud this week by picking up a first place for their presentation at the national Tractor Restoration Competition held in Indianapolis, Ind.

The annual tractor restoration competition, sponsored by Delo, Chevron’s premier oil subsidiary, brings together tractor restoration teams from around the U.S. to show off their projects and their knowledge of tractor mechanics.

 

Carson Lewis, Karl Behrens, Megan Bekkevar and Drake Binswanger provided the judges with a skit, a video, a PowerPoint slide show and a talk about “Snort,” the 1954 Farmall Super C they restored over the past year.

 

Sequim High FFA advisor Kristi Short was well pleased, saying “The kids did so well. They just nailed their performance and their presentation.”

 

Short said because the Sequim crew was the last of 12 teams to appear before the judges, they received a little special attention. Following their presentation, a scheduled 10-minute question-and-answer session — with the Sequim team members answering questions from the judges — stretched “from 10, to 12, to 18, to 22 minutes of questions,” Short said.

 

“It was nerve-wracking — at least for me,” she said.

 

“The longer it goes on ... that just opens the door for major mistakes. But they didn’t make any. There were two or three where they struggled, and two or three they didn’t know. But the judges were just blown away.”

 

Short said after the presentation the judges pointed out that first-time teams rarely perform so well. “You usually have to come in and feel around,” they told her.

 

That night the team attended the awards ceremony where they were given the top prize for a presentation. “They said it was the best they had seen in four or five years,” Short said.

 

The team fell short in their effort toward the top prize, a first place in tractor restoration, but Short said she was told the team scored in the top half.

 

Short said the experience was just great.

 

Do they plan to do it again?

 

“Yes, we do,” Short said.

 

Reach Mark Couhig at mcouhig@sequimgazette.com.