If you are a skid steer operator with a taste for stunts, you’ll be interested in this year’s Cleveland Construction Expo skid steer rodeo.

After a successful turnout at the 2001 Cleveland Construction Expo, CEG Productions, a division of Construction Equipment Guide, is bringing its skid steer and backhoe rodeos back to the Rock ’n Roll city, on April 11-12, 2003.

By coming out to the Cuyahoga County Fairgrounds in Berea, OH, operators can test their skills to see who is the best in the region and who will go home with the top cash prize.

All of the skid steers involved in the rodeo will have a weight class of 1,750 to 2,201 lbs. (794 to 998 kgs).

Expo rodeo contestants will perform a series of challenging feats while racing against the clock. Agility tests for the skid steer rodeo could include the following:

• Skid Steer Soccer – Three traffic cones will be set up. The operator must zigzag through the three cones while pushing a soccer ball with a push plate attachment. After the third cone, the operator will push the soccer ball into the goal. Time stops when the ball enters the goal.

• Skid Steer Bowling – Three bowling pins will be set up on three traffic cones, spaced about 4 ft. apart. A bowling ball will be connected to a fork attachment. Operators must swing the bowling ball to knock over the pins. Start time begins as soon as the operator leaves the starting line and stops when he/she knocks off the last pin.

• Skid Steer Basketball – The operator must pick up the basketball with a fork attachment (that pinches). Then the operator must go 20 ft. and drop the ball into a 5-gal. bucket. Timing starts when the operator picks up the ball and ends when the ball goes into the bucket.

• Skid Steer Tire Toss – Operators must use a fork attachment to pick up a tire and place it on a cone. This is repeated throughout the course. Time is stopped when the operators completes the course.

Contestants of both rodeos will move down a line of skid steer and/or backhoes as each task is performed on a different brand of machine. This assures that no contestant would have an advantage over the others because of the machine being the same brand on which he/she normally works.

“By using different makes of machines, we level the playing field, giving everyone an equal chance to win,” according to Sheila Kirby, show coordinator.

There will be five cash awards presented each day of the show for each rodeo. Prize money for the skid steer rodeo will be set up as follows: $750, $500, $375, $250 and $125. The winners from each day will face off on the second day for an additional $1,000, with an awards ceremony following. A total of $5,000 will be awarded for the rodeos.

Contestants will be scored on a combination of time required to complete the task and penalty points assessed for various errors ranging from failure to fasten seat belts to dropping objects in the process, etc.

Those who pre-register for one or both of the rodeos will be automatically pre-registered for the show.

For more information, call the CEG Productions Trade Show Office at 800/523-2200 or visit www.ConstructionEquipmentGuide.com.

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