Craig Daily Press

Craig — On the early morning of Aug. 18, 2007, a group of people was gathered at Medicine Bow National Forest where they were unloading trailers. Although there were scattered clouds in the sky, the day was sunny. Evergreen and Aspen trees waved slightly in the breeze.

It was a beautiful day for a ride.

A banner read, “Ride the Divide,” and that’s what was about to take place. Those gathered were going to ride up the Western Slope and down the Front Range of the Continental Divide and into Encampment for lunch, after which they’d turn around and ride back.

However, the participants weren’t going to ride on bicycles or on horseback, as one might expect. They were going to drive antique tractors, which were being unloaded from the trailers.

“Ride the Divide” was conceived by Craig resident Cris Criswell.

“I wanted to do it for many, many years and finally just did it,” he said.

Criswell, though, was quick to add, “I had the idea. The rest of the people made it work.”

Although it’s common to hold antique tractor rides such as this one in eastern states, there had never been one over the Continental Divide in southern Wyoming.

Criswell grew up in the Snake River area so he knew where he wanted to hold the ride, but there was a lot of preliminary work to be done. It included: deciding where to start the ride, measuring mileage and finding out what the National Forest Service and the state of Wyoming required for such an event.

It was necessary for Criswell to get permission to use the city park in Encampment for lunch and to find a caterer to serve the lunch. Criswell found a caterer in Saratoga willing to help out.

Criswell enlisted the help of Joy Price, of Hemingford, Neb., along with her daughter, Rae Price, of Denver, who would drive the pace pickup truck.

He made arrangements with Karen Wilkens, of Baggs, Wyo., to take videos and made a DVD.

Criswell advertised “Ride the Divide,” in major antique tractor magazines and sent a packet of information about the ride to each member of the Yampa Valley Antique Power Association in Craig.

Each packet included a map for the event, a list of places to stay for people out of the region, and requirements for the ride.

Tractors had to be 30 years old or older, run 10 miles per hour and have good brakes.

And so, on the morning of Aug. 18 at the starting point on Medicine Bow, the tractors lined up behind the pace vehicle that would lead them at 10 mph. The bright colors of the Farmall, Oliver and John Deere tractors made an impressive sight, indeed.

The drivers stopped at points along the way to enjoy cold drinks and the sights. One stop was at the monument that marked the place that Thomas Edison got the idea to invent the electric light. Another was at the top of the Continental Divide, at 9,955 feet, where tourists also stopped to look at the tractors.

Criswell said there was some concern about going down the steep side of the Divide. Packet information had warned drivers that the tractors should have good brakes. However, the brakes weren’t a problem. Criswell says that the compression of the engine held them back without brakes.

At Encampment, the tractor drivers enjoyed lunch, and then everyone headed back. This time they put on raincoats because it sprinkled some.

Nobody had any trouble during the ride. In all, the tractors were driven about 50 miles. The trip took three hours each way, a total of six hours.

Each tractor driver got a “Ride the Divide” cap and a DVD of the day’s ride.

Tom Reece and Gerald Cul­verwell are two Craig residents who participated in the ride.

Reece drove a Farmall M wide-front tractor. He said the ride was “awesome.”

“Being the first time we had the ride, we made some history,” he said.

Reece said he hopes they can do it again next year, perhaps for two days.

Culverwell drove a McCor­mick Dering made by Inter­national.

“I enjoyed it,” he said. “It was the first one I’d ever been on, and I’d go again. It was enjoyable, laid back, and went off without any hitches.”

Besides locals, there were also tractor owners from Chicago, Prescott, Ariz., and Wellington.

When tractor owner Mearl Maynard got back home to Chicago, his daughter, Valerie, had a sign made for his Farmall H tractor.

The sign read, “This tractor, on Aug. 18, 2007, was driven across the Continental Divide in southern Wyoming.”