By KEVIN BERGER, Local Journalism Initiative
A group of University of Saskatchewan students recently gathered at the farm of Kenny Beauchemin slightly east of Warman on Saturday, October 3 to test out the ¼ scale tractor designs that they eventually plan on bringing to an international competition held each summer in the U.S.
Most of the students present at Beauchemin’s farm were members of the U of S Sled Dogs ¼ Scale Tractor team, though as pointed out by team president Owen Eden, they had a few other students from other colleges present, including a few business and biology students.
According to Eden, the team annually designs, builds and eventually enters their own ¼ scale tractor in the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers’ (ASABE) International Quarter-Scale Tractor Design Competition.
As stated on the event’s website, this competition “challenges students to harness the power and torque of a specified stock engine to maximize performances in a series of contests.”
The 2026 competition was held in Bloomington, Illinois from May 29-31 and featured a total of 23 university teams, most of which were from the U.S.
The Sled Dogs hold the distinction of being Canada’s No. 1 quarter-scale tractor team, though their results tend to vary from year to year.
To help prepare for this competition and potentially test out different designs, Eden said they come out to Beauchemin’s farm each year. On October 3, they performed both light and heavy tractor pulls in addition to a few other tests.
Eden indicated the Sled Dogs have actually been coming out to the farm for a number of years now, though COVID did put a stop on their visits for a couple of years.
But why Beauchemin’s farm? It’s because Kenny and his brother Pat have been involved in both tractor pulls and drag racing for decades – Beauchemin Racing is a mainstay at the Saskatoon International Raceway, and Kenny himself is named in the Western Canadian Motorsports Hall of Fame.
Kenny indicated he is happy to host the students at his place, where he has a small dirt track set up for their tests, jokingly noting that he has helped to improve their results.
Incidentally, the Sled Dogs are always on the look-out for sponsorships or donations of money/equipment to their team. Anyone interested in financially supporting the team should e-mail them at: ccc999@usask.ca or check them out on Instagram/Facebook.
A 1/4 scale tractor designed by the University of Saskatchewan Sled Dogs team pulls a sled along a dirt track set up at Kenny Beauchemin’s farm near Warman on Saturday, October 3. The data gathered from this tractor pull and other tests will help inform the team’s design decisions as they prepare for the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers’ annual competition in the U.S. state of Illinois.
The students stop to chat amidst one of their tests. During the International 1/4 Scale Tractor Student Design Competition, students are challenged to harness the power and torque of a specified stock engine in order to maximize performance during a series of challenges.