KAN staff report

Last year’s National Farm Machinery Show attracted a record 312,000 people to Louisville. The largest indoor agricultural exposition in the nation featured more than 800 exhibitors in the Kentucky Exposition Center’s 1.2 million square feet.

“The agricultural economy continues to be strong, which was evidenced by people traveling to this show with the intent to see and buy the latest in farm equipment,” Harold Workman, president and chief executive officer of the Kentucky State Fair Board, said after last year’s show.

The 42nd annual event is coming Feb. 14-17, held in conjunction with the 39th Championship Tractor Pull.

Admission is free to the Farm Machinery Show, a showcase for the future of agribusiness. From 9 a.m.-6 p.m. EST daily, exhibitors will offer solutions to challenges facing agriculture in the 21st century, with some offering hands-on demonstrations of the latest technological advancements. Visitors can attend free seminars and browse row after row of everything from heavy machinery to hand tools to computer software.

The oldest indoor tractor pull in America, the Championship Tractor Pull, sponsored by Syngenta, will begin at 7:30 nightly Feb. 14-17 with an additional performance at 1 p.m. Feb. 17. The nation’s top drivers in pro stock, super stock, modified and alcohol tractors, and two- and four-wheel drive trucks will compete for a share of more than $200,000 in prize money.

Fans are invited to visit “The Pit” from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Feb. 14-16 and 9-11 a.m. Feb. 17 to see the pulling trucks and tractors up close, meet the drivers, get autographs and take pictures.

Tickets are $31 for the first four preliminary pulls, $36 for the finals at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 17 and $160 for all five sessions. Order online at www.ticketmaster.com or call (502) 367-5144 for a group discount. Parking is $5.

For more information, log onto www.farmmachineryshow.org or call (502) 367-5004.