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Wrapping Things Up With Eric

Drive Green Utility Tractor ShowWe’re winding down our coverage of the John Deere Drive Green Utility Tractor Show and I thought I’d bring things full circle with an interview with Eric Hodson, John Deere Senior Writer, Public Relations. The photo is also from one of our first stops in Gainesville, FL.

Eric says that the program has been real successful. The opportunity to get the truck on the road and deliver these new utility tractors to dealers around the country provided customers the chance to get on them which is what it’s all about. He says that one of the things that stood out for him was how the program got people into John Deere dealership who had never been there before. Attendance was way higher than they had hoped for overall. In fact, Eric says the program was expanded after the early success of the show stops.

When the show first started there was some limited availability on certain models so dealers were really happy to have some of these tractors on hand. The truck also provided a great promotional opportunity when it was parked outside dealerships.

Eric appreciates the staff and instructors who traveled along with the show around the country since it provided good consistency of information that was available at each stop. Looking ahead he says that they’re changing the tires on the truck and hope to have it back on the road again in the future.

You can listen to my interview with Eric here: Interview with Eric Hodson

Searching For Drive Green

I’ll be back on the road with the Drive Green Utility Tractor Show this week in California and am looking forward to our event in Fresno. I thought I’d do a little searching on the web to see where our show has been mentioned. Here’s a few examples. Also found in the search is quite a few John Deere dealers who have mentioned the show on their websites. That’s good to see.

Southeast AgNet
Equine Gear
Tractor News Now
Dixie Deer Classic
HorseCity.com
Appaloosa Blog Spot

If you’ve found us in any interesting locations let me know. And if you’re on Facebook, just do a search for our group page and join us there.

Gator Winner

JD GatorThe “TS” in the John Deere Gator™ TS name could stand for “Tough Stuff” – but it’s actually shorthand for “Traditional Series.” That means that it’s designed for heavier duty work around the farm, making it an ideal utility vehicle.

The Drive Green Utility Tractor Show event last month in Ottawa featured a drawing for one of these great Gators, and the recently announced winner is John Montgomery of Newington, Ontario who registered at the event.

Congratulations to John – enjoy!

Drive Green Winners in Texas and Oklahoma

JD 5055EI’d like to announce the first two of our winning Deere fans who attended recent Drive Green events. They got lucky in our Drive Green and Win promotion.

JD compresseratorKenny Adams, Claremore, OK, is the winner of a 1-year, 100-hour lease on a new John Deere 5055E Utility Tractor with a 553 Loader – a prize valued at almost $12,000 (USD). Adams registered for the prize at a Drive Green Utility Tractor Show event that took place in February at P&K Equipment, a local John Deere dealer in Owasso, OK.

Karen Rottman, is the winner of a new John Deere AC2-CG35H-P Compresserator with electric start valued at more than $2,500 (USD). Rottman registered for the prize at a Drive Green Utility Tractor Show event that took place in Ft. Worth Texas earlier this year.

Tractor Chasers

John Deere Tractor ChasersI know we’re all about utility tractors here but I just found out about an interesting website called Tractor Chasers. It’s about the new 8RT which hasn’t been officially announced yet.

Thanks to some alert readers who told us about the 8RT on Route 45, the Tractor Chasers headed out and got a first-hand look at the new track machine. We sat for a while waiting for it to come by. And when it did, well, you’ll see what happened while watching our video. All we can say, and all we want to admit, is that the front of the machine looks mighty powerful. By the way, we’ve heard a number of you asking what the “R” and “T” stand for. Is it “row-crop tracks” or “rubber tracks”? We’re working to get you the answer. More later!

Check out the first of two videos so far here – check out the website or YouTube for others: