It’s Everybody’s Parade!
by Nancy Wood,
October 6, 2011, page 1.....

After months of preparation, the 11th Annual East Charlotte Tractor Parade will chug up Spear Street this Sunday, October 9. Friday night, October 7, is the warm-up, with the community gathering and barn dance at the Old Lantern.

Carrie Spear, owner of Spear’s Corner Store and originator of the idea of a tractor parade, said it couldn’t happen without all the community helping. “It’s everybody’s parade,” she said, adding, “Trey used those words a couple of years ago.” Trey Pecor is one of the many generous supporters who contribute however they can, whether it be directing traffic, setting up games, supplying food for the participants lunch, organizing the barn dance, offering land for parking, or helping with any of the multitude of tasks required to put on an event that attracts hundreds of participants and spectators.

People show up at Spear’s Store offering to help, and Carrie has plenty for them to do. She said, “Moe Harvey came in one day and asked what he could do. I was so touched. That’s how the parade works.”

June Bean, another longtime member of the Tractor Parade Committee, has become the correspondence person, communicating directly with the tractor drivers. Last year there were 167 participants. People can register up to the last minute, so it is hard to predict how many there will be this year. Most are from Charlotte and surrounding towns, but there are also drivers from other parts of Vermont, Massachusetts and New York.

Tractors gather at Nichols Fodder Farm on Spear Street the morning of the parade. They are asked to arrive no later than noon and to have a sign attached to the tractor with their name and year of tractor. The tractors are lined up from smallest to largest, with June picking the leader of the tractors from those assembled. Tractors with wagons, decorated as floats, will be dispersed throughout the parade.

One of the rules of the parade is that no toys or candy are to be thrown from the tractors into the crowd. “Safety is the reason,” said June. “Old tractors are sometimes hard to stop.” In her note to participants she said, “Last year there was a close call with a child dashing in the road as someone threw candy.” There will be volunteers on foot before the parade with baskets of candy and beads to hand out instead.

The Grand Marshalls leading off the parade are Reverend Will Burhans, pastor of the Charlotte Congregational Church, and Father David Cray, pastor of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church. They take turns driving the John Deere Gator contributed each year by Tim Yandow. They are followed by the Boy Scout honor guard.

Other members of the Tractor Parade Committee (or the “Tractor Ladies” as they call themselves) include Debbie Christie, Cindy Bradley and Margaret Roddy. They are dealing with the myriad details of the Friday night barn dance, the children’s games (which are all free, including the prizes!), the free book tent, farmers market, craft vendors and more.

Two inches of rain on the Friday before the parade last year turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Wet fields meant the committee had to scramble to make last-minute changes in parking and the parade route. Tractors lined up in a more distant field at Nichol’s. Parking was arranged at the Tower Lot and at Sheehan Green, and the parade was routed directly through the intersection to Steve Denton’s field.

It all worked so well that the same will be done this year. Senior and handicapped parking will be provided right at Dave Nichol’s farm, which Carrie described as a “wonderful vantage point” for watching the beginning of the parade. There is also parking across Spear Street from Nichol’s in the Tower Lot and just north of the intersection of Spear Street and Hinesburg Road at Sheehan Green. Hay wagons will shuttle people to and from both lots, and portable toilets will be located at each lot.

The Tractor Parade Committee has been painting and putting up signs to direct traffic and designate parking. The intersection of Spear Street and Hinesburg Road and south along Spear Street to Nichol’s farm are the places to be for everyone who wants to watch the parade, not so much for anyone who wants to drive through while the parade is in progress from about 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. Detour signs will be placed strategically at other intersections to show the way around.

Carrie said, “Josh (Flore, the Town Constable) has been a godsend,” for his help in figuring out how to route the cars. The Selectboard asked for a traffic detour plan this year and asked Josh to work with Carrie. As Carrie said in defense of closing the roads for the parade, “It is one hour of enormous joy and happiness celebrating our agricultural heritage.”

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The Tractors Are Coming!

Schedule of Events

Friday, October 7:
Annual Tractor Parade Kick-Off Dance at the Old Lantern
6-8 p.m. Streak-O-Lean
8-11 p.m. Starline Rhythm Boys
Admission $10, cash bar and a la carte menu. Info: 425-4444.

Sunday, October 9:
11th Annual East Charlotte Tractor Parade, 1 p.m. Rain or shine, corner of Hinesburg Road and Spear Street. 
Festivities begin at 11 a.m. and include a farmers market, free children’s activities, barnyard pets, craft exhibits, food and music. 
Handicapped and senior parking available. Info: 425-4444.