Zaring, Dixie Chopper truck pull out a pair of victories

Fillmore's Jake Zaring provided his own fireworks on the pro pulling truck circuit over the Fourth of July weekend.

Zaring and his Dixie Chopper Dodge captured the Pro Modified 4-Wheel Drive Truck class in two separate holiday weekend events. He won the Bluegrass Summer Showdown July 2 in Stanford, Ky., outdoing 21 other pullers at 312.42 feet.

Then on July 3 in the Cock-A-Doodle Days event at Corydon, Zaring fashioned a 323.74-foot pull, two feet better than any of his 18 competitors.

Overall this season, the Dixie Chopper truck is tied for third in the Lucas Oil Pro Pulling League standings, while Zaring's other truck, Fatheadz, is tied for first with a victory at Knoxville, Tenn., earlier this season. The Fatheadz truck, which also carries the logo of Dixie Chopper, was 11th at Corydon.

Zaring will continue his busy summer with pulls today and Sunday in Henry, Ill. Zaring is competing in both the National Truck Pullers Association (NTPA) and Lucas Oil League this season with a 30-pull overall schedule. Through mid-September, Zaring is set for 15 dates on the NTPA circuit and has booked another 15 under the Lucas Oil Pro Pulling banner.

Zaring will also make a July 25 appearance in Greencastle during the annual Putnam County Fair truck pull.

"Crazy Jake" and the Dixie Chopper truck are in their sixth season of competition in the 6,200-lb. 4x4 Modified Truck class. Powered by more than 1,300 horsepower and a Pro-Fab transmission, the Dixie Chopper truck burns seven gallons of alcohol fuel per run. Its distinctive design features blades of grass stenciled along the bottom of each door panel, while the weight box up front has been made to look like the bottom of a Dixie Chopper mower deck.

Since debuting the truck in 2005, Zaring and the Dixie Chopper pulling truck have made a habit of being invited to the prestigious World Championship Truck and Tractor Pull in Louisville. Their participation in the 2010 event at the annual National Farm Machinery Show marked the fifth straight year Zaring has pulled in his sport's biggest event.

During only his second invitation to the world championships at Louisville, Zaring and the Dixie Chopper truck captured the 2007 world title in the 4WD truck class.

Starting this season, Dixie Chopper has entered into an NTPA sponsorship deal as the "Official Lawn Mower of the NTPA." The sponsorship also involves Dixie Chopper's presence on NTPA's weekly RFD-TV program, as well at NTPA national events.