Don’t Count them Out. New Faces in the Winner’s Circle.
Don’t Count them Out. New Faces in the Winner’s Circle.
This Week With the Outlaws has recently served as the journalistic source to recap all the pulls of the previous week in the Outlaw Truck and Tractor Pulling Association, while highlighting the winners and the points standings. However, this week I have decided to deviate from that recipe to present some really outstanding and developing stories that took place on the track over the past handful of pulls.
Let’s talk about the Light Limited Modified division. This is in and of itself a fan favorite. In fact, I had written a This Week in Pulling article that focussed entirely on the variety offered in this class. It brings fans a true array of power sources and vehicle styles. Everything from diesels to v-8’s to Allisons and turbines. It’s a fun class. The only area it had been lacking variety was the winner’s circle and points races. Going into the pull at David City, NE we had only seen two different winners in the class, and it was quickly shaping up to be a heavyweight slugfest for first, with little to no shakeups. Blake Otte, defending points champion, and Wes Sievers, the 2023 Rookie of the Year were our lone occupants in victory lane. That would all change as the rest of the field came charging on hard, over the next week. Within the course of three pulls, we saw three new winners.Each of which going about it in their own unique and hard-charing way. For this article let’s talk about: Andrew Beckman, Garrett Geiger, and Gage Otte.
Andrew Beckman. Pure Pressure: Winner at David City, NE.
Andrew really isn’t what I would call a black sheep or an underdog in this class. Running a twin turbine setup, he is perpetually in the top five, and a consistent crowd favorite. The eyebrow raising story here comes more from looking back to the 2023 season, than what has transpired in 2024 thus far. You see, as far as I anticipated, I never thought we would even see the Pure Pressure modified pulling this season. While pulling at Thunder by the River in Wisner, NE last season Andrew displayed one of the most aggressive bits of breakage I have witnessed. A locked up rear end caused a chain reaction that resulted in the weakest link to let up. On that fateful day, it happened to be one of the turbines itself. Dislodging from the chassis and spilling forward onto the track in all sorts of glorious carnage. He put in the time in the off season. Got all the parts back together, and joined us for another year of pulling. Picking up the victory was the cherry on top to what hard work and perseverance are capable of.
Garrett Geiger. Captain Hook II: Winner at Leight, NE.
When the Giegers made their debut in Norfolk, NE early in the 2024 season, they had difficulties bringing the tractor off the line. They dropped hooks, and the learning curve looked steep. It appeared that they would have to pay their dues and take their time before this modified had its true day in the sun. I’ll admit, I had my doubts for any big stories developing this season. That was a foolish thought. All they did after that was put the pieces together more and more efficiently, going a bigger distance at every pull. Conditions were perfect for them to reap benefits of their hard work and lessons learned as they pulled to the line on Friday in Leigh, NE. Temperatures cooled, and the alcohol fueled turbo boosted machine could really breathe. 348 feet, and a bellowing stack of fire later, we had our second new winner in as many pulls. This was a crowd pleaser as the excess methanol burned in a fabulous flame in front of a wild crowd. The winner’s circle was starting to get a little crowded.
Gage Otte. Warhawk. Winner at Pawnee City, NE.
If you poke around on social media this week, I have no doubt you will encounter this pass. This will be one of those viral runs that “breaks” the internet for a while. Let’s take a quick look at our featured driver. Gage Otte. The younger brother to perennial points champion Blake Otte. He’s a true team player, and to a degree meets the old saying of “always a bridesmaid, never a bride.” He is continually right there, and very familiar with the silver medal. But more often than not, big brother does what big brothers tend to do, and shows little mercy to his younger counterpart. They are a team, but you can see the hunger in Gage’s eyes. The stars aligned on Saturday night in southeast Nebraska. As the final hook in the class he had to pull just over 350 feet to take the leader spot from, none other than, you guessed it, Blake. At 100 feet Gage got fully into the throttle. By 230, he picked up the front end. At 290, he started gaining speed. At 350 it was clear he couldn't be paid to let go of the throttle. The sled disappeared behind the leadership flag, and Gage threw his fists into the air in celebration as he finally coasted his way to a stop. I almost needed binoculars to see him. He would have taken the sled all the way to Kansas, if the track would have allowed him. I heard the distance in my radio, and had to double check it before announcing to a crowd that was still on its feet. 418.27 feet! The longest distance I have ever witnessed at a pull. It was as if every second place he had accumulated in his life was a debt of feet owed to him at a pull. Gage cashed in on every one of those owed inches in a single pass and proved to the world what he was capable of.
Blake and Wes still have a tight grip on the points race, but the rest of the field made a very clear statement. This class is open to anyone, and it’s going to take the very best night in and night out to win. The winner’s circle is officially crowded, and the rest of the season is going to be a marathon, instead of a slugfest.
Mike Eitel
Outlaw Truck and Tractor Pulling
Engagement Specialist
