The simple answer is that the majority of ploughing matches run an open class for single furrow horticultural machinery. This means that you can use anything- many people these days are using 1970’s and 80’s compact tractors with modern ploughs- and so long as you turn up and pay your entry fee nobody will mind. Most of these ploughing matches are primarily run by village committees and are fund raisers for charities; basically, as long as they have your money they don’t mind whether you make a mess or not.
Where you will encounter problems is if you wish to compete at the National Ploughing Championships. The Society of Ploughmen who run the competition insist on the machinery being used to be in production before 31st December, 1959 and that the machinery being used must be as manufactured. These rules also apply if you wish to qualify for the competition- you can’t qualify with a modern machine and then plough with a pre-1959 one. You have to qualify with a n eligible machine.
For qualifying matches please look under the Ploughing tab at the top of the page.
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