Lake Metroparks Farmpark hosts Horsepower Weekend
Sep. 24—Lake Metroparks Farmpark invited guests to enjoy the history of animal-powered agriculture and the muscle cars of years past at Horsepower Weekend, an exhibition of equine farming and antique vehicles.
The event was held in tandem with many private owners of horses and the Historical Engine Society to fill the fields of Farmpark with horses, tractors and antique vehicles of every shape and size.
Saturday was focused primarily on agricultural field work as several draft horses from the Farmpark and private owners plowed the field and participated in various races and exhibitions.
"Saturday is about our visitors seeing our horses and having fun, so they will do things like barrel racing and field team races," said Steve Ohmes, assistant Farmpark administrator. "We are very excited to show off what they can do."
Horses and volunteers show their strength to plow the fields alongside the tractors, performing exhibitions throughout the day.
Also, on display at the event were several of the Farmpark's draft horses including King, Jax and Brutus, massive horses that weigh at least 2,000 pounds.
The event went into detail regarding the history of several horse breeds including the Suffolk horses brought by Ralph Rice of Riceland Meadows. Rice said that the Suffolk horses are the only draft horses that were bred for farming rather than warfare. Suffolk horses are critically endangered with only 1,500 in North America, he said.
"This is a great way to kick off our fall events," said Andy McGovern, event manager at Lake Metroparks Farmpark. "Family members from top to bottom in this area love tractors. You can have grandpa come and go and show his grandchild the kind of tractor he used to ride. What little kid doesn't love tractors? We wanted to really showcase that.
"A couple years ago the equine department really wanted to show off the power and ability of the draft horse, so this year we put them both together for our Horsepower Weekend."
Sunday will feature a car show at noon, showing off the muscle cars of yesteryear. Multiple tents and shelters were set up for the show to run rain or shine.
"The Historical Engine Society has been working with Lake Metroparks Farmpark for quite some time now for this event. It's nice to show off our variety of tractors we have. My favorite tractors are the John Deere tractors," said L. Dean Kirby, president of the Historical Engine Society. "We want to impart this curiosity about engines onto our youth. We want to get young people to come out and enjoy what we have."
The Historical Engine Society meets at the Lake Metroparks Farmpark.
