Mud was slung and tractors roared at Nyngan on the weekend, but the crops were miles away. Instead, swarms of people had arrived from across the country as Nyngan became the latest host of a little-known competition; tractor pulling. 

“It originally started out with the vintage (tractors) and farmers who wanted the best tractor,” said tractor owner and competitor Fred Saul. 

These days, vintage tractors are swallowed by the modified tractor category, tasked with pulling a heavy sled along the ground. 



The mark of a winning tractor is how far it can pull the sled, with modified and vintage tractors screeching, smoking, and sometimes catching alight under the weight. 

“I started through the vintage wave…that got a bit slow and boring so we bought one big tractor out of Denmark.”

“It’s huge overseas, and it's slowly getting going in Australia now,” Mr Saul said. 

The Nyngan Ag Expo (5 August) not only held their first tractor pull, but kicked off the season for tractor pullers around the country. 

With most modified competition heavyweights hailing from Victoria, a tractor pull further north shows exciting signs of a growth in the sport.  

“It was a fantastic track, I hope they want to continue it,” Mr Saul said. 

“Unfortunately there were a few tractors that couldn’t be there because they were still getting repairs from last season.”

Starting strong in August, competitors are already making their way to the next tractor pull in Victoria, where the season will continue until the Championships at Easter. 

With options for events across the state to host a tractor pull, Nyngan’s Ag Expo could see the beginning of the sport’s spread into New South Wales. 

The weekend’s ag expo also drew crowds of car ute and motorbike enthusiasts for the Show n Shine, as well as fans of the Sports Shears and Australian National Sheep Dog Trials.