Trans-Nebraska tractor relay to begin in Holyoke Saturday

If you’re eastbound on Highway 23 the morning of Saturday, June 3, you’re in for a treat — and a traffic jam. About 30 antique tractors will be leaving from Holyoke to begin a 476-mile relay across Nebraska over a nine-day span, all for the sake of raising funds for Operation Comfort Warriors.
    And if you’re in town the evening of Friday, June 2, much of the group will already be in town, participating in a parade at 7 p.m. from North Interocean Avenue down to Regent Park/Carriage House, where they will visit with residents and give them a chance to inspect the tractors themselves.
    “We like to try to incorporate those visits,” said tractor relay coordinator Donelle Moormeier. “A lot of those older farmers there used to run these.”
    Saturday’s journey will start with a 7:45 a.m. breakfast at the Vets Club, where the tractors will be parked, before leaving for a 67-mile trek to Wallace, Nebraska, at 8:30 a.m. The group will head east on Highway 6, north on County Road 41 and then east into Nebraska on Highway 23.
    The cross-state relay itself is an annual event sponsored by the Nebraska Antique Farming Association. A different route is taken each year, and those participating preregistered to drive their tractors along for just one or two legs of the journey or for the whole trip.
    The legs of this year’s route range anywhere from 22 to 83 miles — a mighty long way to road an open cab tractor. The daily stretches after the Holyoke-Wallace leg are Wallace to Curtis, Nebraska; to Holdrege, Nebraska; to Hastings, Nebraska; to Sutton, Nebraska; to Crete, Nebraska; to Lincoln, Nebraska; to Springfield, Nebraska; and finally to Plattsmouth, Nebraska. Tours and various stops will be made along the way.
    In Lincoln, a special parade will take place in honor of Nebraska’s 150th birthday, with 180 tractors registered to circle the Nebraska Capitol. A Nebraska state proclamation will declare it “Antique Farming Day.”
    Moormeier, who has driven the full length of every single parade since the very first in 2012, can testify to the importance of being prepared. “It’s hard to know what to pack!” said the coordinator, who has ridden in shorts and also in rain gear in 45-mph winds.
    The parade is a journey with a cause, however, with 100 percent of proceeds going to Operation Comfort Warriors. Moormeier said NAFA chose that particular veteran-focused organization because  of its lack of administrative fees, assuring donors that all funds are going directly to the purchase of comfort items for wounded, injured or ill military personnel.
    These items include things not normally supplied by the government, such as sweat suits, DVDs, puzzles, electronic devices, books and calling cards, or even larger items like ping pong tables, kayaks or other recreational goods.
    Donations will be collected along the way. Checks made out to NAFA or directly to Operation Comfort Warriors can also be mailed to NAFA at P.O. Box 212, Curtis, NE, 69025, or donate online at antiquefarming.org by following the Operation Comfort Warriors link.