Who was in the tractor parade at the Florida Flywheelers? Moi!

The Florida Flywheelers grounds each February is a huge flea market, and antique tractor show combined.  This fun in the sun show and village is a Mecca to antique tractor collectors seeking reprieve from the north’s harsh winter weather. The show has a daily parade, feature tent and this year the featured brand was International Harvester.

Tractor Parade

My husband Keith and I and our friends the Elliotts head south most year’s to enjoy the show. Each day at two is the daily tractor parade and this year guess who was in that parade. That’s right! It was me! Well, me in the passenger seat with Beth Elliott driving the coolest Farmall tractor ever.

This year at the Florida Flywheelers’ Beth and I got the greatest experience ever! Thanks to the generosity of Dale Vannelli, he let us use his beautiful McCormick Deering Farmall BN tractors with cultivison in the parade! 

As we drove by the crowds Beth had great fun parodying the a cultivision effect to those in the lineup. This is a very cool tractor indeed!

Dale Vannelli of the Good Ol Boy’s Shared his Farmall with Beth and I!

Beth, who drove in her first tractor drive during the Land of Lincoln Expo a year ago in Carlinville, drove this beauty. I got to sit in the companion seat. We felt like royalty waving to the crowd as the beautiful Farmall wound its way through the Village and past the featured tent where Keith and Kent and Jane Elliott watched us. Thank you Dale!

I wrote a story about Dale’s very cool collection for an upcoming article in Red Power Magazine. Dale and his family live in Palm Beach and are vegetable farmers along with doing a lion’s share of mowing. They have a large beautiful collection of Farmalls. Ironically in the Village they also have a building with some amazing John Deere tractors as well.

We also saw some very neat Cushman scooters, lets be frank, the Vannelli family just has some very neat toys! Beth and I were the lucky recipients of Dale’s generosity and his son D.J.’s patience showing us how to run the cool tractor.

Next Adventure!

I need to practice driving so I can be part of a tractor drive. Bring it on!