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When Dennis Drake goes to work on his backhoe-loader, it is not typically on a carpeted indoor floor before nearly 1,000 spectators.

These were the work conditions Drake faced on March 11 in Las Vegas when he competed in the final round of the Case North American Rodeo Series Loader Backhoe Championship.

“You can hear the crowd just clear as day when you are trying to concentrate on what you are doing,” said Drake, a 27-year-old Charleston resident.

Drake was one of 5,000 backhoe-loader operators from the United States and Canada who competed in qualifying events for Case Construction’s March 10-11 rodeo. Less than 80 of them qualified. Drake placed first amongst the five finalists who made it through the rodeo’s opening rounds and he placed fifth in the final round.

Although the final round was disappointing, Drake said he was honored to make it so far from in a field of so many other backhoe-loader operators.

“I have always dreamed about a national competition to see how I would rate,” Drake said.

Drake said he has had a tremendous passion for backhoe-loaders ever since his father, Steve Drake, put him on one at age 7. He has worked full-time as an backhoe-loader operator for 11 years now. He is an operator and foreman for Drake Homes of Charleston, and has an excavating business of his own.

The versatility of backhoe-loaders and their many moving parts appeals to him, Drake said. He explained they can turn earth for septic systems, water and sewer lines, foundations and many other projects.

“I eat breath and sleep it,” Drake said. “I have a true passion for it. To a lot of guys, it is just their job.”

Drake said he heard Case was putting on a rodeo to celebrate the 50th anniversary of its first fully integrated backhoe-loader, so he entered a qualifying competition last summer in Indianapolis.

After qualifying, Drake went to the rodeo with the sponsorship of Birkey’s Construction Equipment of Mattoon. The grand prize in the rodeo was a new backhoe-loader valued at $120,000.

Competitors at the rodeo in Las Vegas had to maneuver approximately 18,000 pound backhoe-loaders around narrow obstacles made of PVC pipes. They had to pick up, move and drop off red soccer balls and other items within these obstacles.

Drake said the goal was to successfully complete the assigned tasks in the shortest amount of time. He said 30 seconds were added to the final score if a ball was knocked off its pedestal, 90 seconds were added if the backhoe-loader’s scoop touched the ground, and 300 seconds were added if the drop-off container was missed.

“I will tell you what. You want to talk about a lot of pressure,” Drake said. “I have never been so nervous in my life.”

Drake’s fiancee, Laci Wilson, and several others were there to cheer for him. They shared anxious moments as Drake slowly, but surely used the heavy equipment within the narrow confines of the obstacles.

“It was nerve-racking and very intense,” Wilson said.

The finals began with the five competitors on stands Olympic fashion, with Drake occupying the highest stand due to his first-place finish in the opening rounds. Pictures of the five finalists were placed on a poster that was distributed during the rodeo. The competitions took place before a large crowd at the Las Vegas Country Club.

“I have never had an audience that big. It was a first class set up they on. They gave us a lot of good recognition,” Drake said.

http://www.jg-tc.com/articles/2008/03/20/news/doc47e3139

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