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FFA students plow through tractor contest photo by Jim Craven Driving competition a low-key affair By Joanna Collins Sometimes it�s the little things that remind you of what county fairs are all about. Tuesday night, it was the Future Farmers of America tractor-driving contest in the Isola Arena. Each contestant had to drive four tractors, each one set up for a different obstacle or challenge. Beforehand, they had to take a written safety test. No loud announcers, cheering crowds or barking judges were present. No one even seemed too bothered that it started an hour and a half late. In fact, the most annoying thing to the Rogue Valley high school students who competed was the FFA jackets they had to wear in order to compete. "They�re corduroy, they�re hot," said 17-year-old Sean Dodd, hinting it didn�t need much more explanation. But besides the jackets, there was a familiarity among the students under the long shadows of the setting sun. A laid-back atmosphere made the meticulous competition seem more manageable. Two courses involved pulling two-wheel and four-wheel trailers between traffic cones. Many contestants said backing up the four-wheel trailer was the hardest to part of the course. Another competition required moving a bucket of water on a pallet with a forklift � without spilling too much. In the last course, students imitated cultivating rows of corn by lining up paper cups dangerously close to the wheels and eight prongs of the tractor. It was the first time in the contest for Dodd, a senior from Crater High School who�s only been in FFA for a year. Unlike many others, Dodd said he didn�t grow up driving tractors. "I just wanted to have some fun knockin� cones and stuff � makin� people laugh," said Dodd. Students like Jenni Martin of Rogue River High School, however, took it a bit more seriously. It was her fourth year as the only girl in the contest. "I�m always the odd one out," said Martin. "I just put up with their obnoxious behavior and rude manners." The 17-year-old has lived on a farm all her life. She started steering tractors while sitting in her grandfather�s lap when she was 5, and was driving them by herself when she was 10. But, she said the contest is completely different compared to cultivating a field. "When the pressure comes down it makes you mess up, �cause you want to be perfect," said Martin. That pressure was evident when she drove the four-wheeled trailer, the part that many agreed was the most difficult. A look of concentration gripping her face, she attempted to back the trailer up several times before going on to the next obstacle. But she didn�t let it get her down. She climbed into the next tractor smiling and maneuvered down the row of paper cups, knocking down only five of about 30. Obituaries | Sports | Business | Classifieds | Tempo | Prime Times | So Oregon Sites | Outdoor Journal | Subscribe | Contact | Movies | Advertise | Real Estate Showcase | Archive | Editorials | Letters to the editor | Religion | Wake-up Call | NIE | Cyber Chef | Job Network | So Oregon Weather | WSJ Northwest | Forums | AP Wire | AP Money | F.A.Q. | Awards Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. The Community Newspaper Subsidiary of Dow Jones & Co, Inc Copyright �The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA