The more than 300 acres of crop demonstration plots at the Half Century Of Progress show grounds are said to be in great shape, and organizers of the Rantoul show are excited about the prospects for the harvest. The big antique farm equipment show with its extensive field demonstrations is now just a few weeks away. The home for the show is the Chanute National Aviation Center.
Crops to be harvested at show time include corn, soybeans, oats and alfalfa. Harvest and tillage demonstrations will be performed, and late-planted corn will be cultivated by tractors and horses.
Now famous for its awe-inspiring steam powered 60-bottom plow demonstrations at the Rantoul show two years ago, the 2007 Half Century Of Progress show promises more unforgettable sights. Organizers are planning to plow at this show with large teams of horses, utilizing as many as 48 horses hooked up together to a tillage tool.
The emphasis for the Half Century Of Progress will continue to be the fieldwork performed by vintage farm equipment. “This show has become famous because it’s a magnificent ‘flashback’ farm equipment show,” according to Chicago farm broadcaster Max Armstrong. “People come to Rantoul and see things they haven’t seen since they were young. They then recall the events and the people that were a part of their lives all of those years ago. It’s pretty special because of that,” he added.
The Half Century Of Progress III will open on Thursday, August 23 and continue through Sunday, August 26, running the entire weekend before the famous Farm Progress Show at Decatur.
With the two well-publicized shows separated by just one day and located just 60 miles apart, many farmers traveled great distances to attend both events in 2005. Officials of the Half Century Of Progress report that there were registered guests in 2005 from nearly every state in America as well as a few foreign nations.
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