Anko Broekema from Ruinerwold has today been crowned Drents Champion Ploegen. In a field with winter barley near Eext, his plowed field received the most points from the jury.
He can now represent Drenthe at the Dutch Championship, on 22 and 23 August in Borgercompagnie.
The Drenthe delegation at the Dutch Championship will be broader than just the team champion from Ruinerwold, because there was a fight in several categories. Broekema participated in the category drawn plowing and became a general day winner in Eext with 204 points.
The DK Ploegen is organized every year by the Drenthe department of the Oude Trekker and Motoren Vereniging (OTMV). Around forty participants, this edition fought on their old tractor for the title of Best Ploeger in the province.
The plowing is still in the old -fashioned way, without modern tools such as GPS. Only tractors may participate that were built before 1970. Each participant receives his own piece of field to plow as neatly as possible.
“It is not about speed, but it must be done nicely,” says Foppe Drent of OTMV, who also participates in the competition with his blue Ford. “It must be straight, very flat and there should be no more vegetation.”
According to Drent, the participants in the championship are all hobbyists who love to be busy with old machines. He himself learned the teams at the age of 14 from his father. “I am now retired, but it’s just fun to do.”