h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

The last couple of years, there has been an increased interest in this, IMHO, really useless and time-wasting 'motor sport' in Europe. There are actually a bunch of professional Tractor Pullers that travel all around and shows their tractors off at competitions against each other, and those die-hard fans that cannot be at those competitions can usually see them on Eurosport on the most odd hours.
So I wouldn't say that it's a uniquely American phenomenon.

Lost.

I saw some of this on television recently and though it was all a bit pointless. Still, the world probably felt the same way about post-its and blutak! What impressed me, though, was the trailers they were using - these were like giant sledges with a big weight on top. It starts off with the weight near the tractor, so that the tractors wheels are carrying most of the weight, then some form of gearing moves it backwards until all of the weight is over the bit of the sledge that is now digging into the ground.

He forgot to mention the one thing that gets gearheads to tractor pulls - multiple supercharged hemis and V-12 Allisons making downright nasty amounts of power! The smell of alcohol and nitro burning your nose! The ground shaking under your feet when one of those monsters starts a pull! OH YEAH! I'm on the edge of my seat just thinking about it! Yeah, it is worthless, but it's a hell of a lot of fun to see in person.

Tractor pulling is certainly NOT uniquely American, nor is the European interest in it recent. My husband, Richard, was going to local contests before we met, and we've been together 12 years! They take place up and down the country, and in various parts of Europe (Holland is one place that springs to mind).

As for the pulling vehicles, I understand that some year's ago one freak fitted a jet engine or two to his 'tractor'. And you could also argue that watching 'Bigfoot' style giant vehicles crushing cars is worthless, but that also seems to go down well in the States. Each to his own.

P.S. If you do go to a tractor pull, don't forget the ear defenders or you'll end up with damaged hearing. You may think that you've only gone temporarily deaf, and most of your hearing will come back, but the residual damage is cumulative!

In response to the P.S. also watch out for fragments of exploding turbo charger.

Also don't forget to watch the "Man on motorcycle jumping through fire" and "Guy in jeep with big wheels squashing a car" at the same event.

I personally like the 'track attack' - a minivan fitted with tank treads and powered by a big-block. That thing can do some awesome powerslides! Monster trucks are definitely cool too! I live in Oklahoma so we get this kind of stuff all the time, and if the tractor pulls and monster trucks aren't in town you can always go watch the dirt-track races, every bit as loud and just as much fun! I do wish we had rallying though. That looks like some downright scary fun!