North takes pride in showing tractor, hogs

Not everyone has the patience and perseverance to restore classic machinery.

That’s one of the aspects of Brady North’s weekend success that makes it all the more inspiring. North, who is about to begin his sophomore year at Prairie City-Monroe High School, took third place in an FFA tractor-showing category over the weekend at the Iowa State Fair.

Months of work went into painting and reassembling the parts to his grandfather’s red International Harvester tractor, which was proudly gleaming in the hot sun Saturday at the fair.

“We couldn’t get started until around May,” North said regarding the painting process. “You really need an area that’s about 70 degrees or warmer, and dry conditions help, too. We could really tell how humid it was, because it takes so much longer for the paint to dry on those days.”

North is also showing four hogs at this year’s fair — two commercial gilts and two market barrows. He also competes with the Prairie City Champs 4-H Club.

Many of the fair’s FFA competitions were held last week, while 4-H began in earnest within the past couple of days.

The lanky North looks comfortable at the wheel of the tractor, which earned third place in the 56-participant FFA First-Year Tractor Exhibitor category. The tractor also earned one of this year’s eight $1,000 division prizes as a recipient of an Iowa International Harvester Collectors Grants.

North said most of the painting takes place by removing parts and painting those pieces separately, whereas many vehicles would be painted with very little detaching or removing. There might be a few touch-up spots to be sprayed later, like on an assembly nut or bolt, but for the most part, the tractor is painted one piece at a time.

North said next year he’ll have to compete in a tougher era-specific category. For now, he’s willing to soak up the satisfaction of being rewarded for a job well done.

“It’s a lot of work to restore a tractor,” he said.

Contact Jason W. Brooks at 641-792-3121 ext. 6532 or jbrooks@newtondailynews.com