Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Purple Hull Pea Festival Set

While it may not stack up with winning the Indianapolis 500, guiding a rotary tiller across 200 feet of a plowed track in 7.38 seconds is a pretty speedy feat of its own.

That world record is expected to be challenged when Emerson hosts the World Championship Rotary Tiller Races during the ninth annual Purplehull Pea Festival on June 27, according to Bill Dailey, the 'Pea-R Guy' for the event.

The festivities will also include country pea dinners, a pea-shelling contest, the 'million- tiller parade,' a 5-k run, a 3-on-3 basketball tournament, a street dance, arts and crafts and food vendors.

All festival events will be on or near the grounds of Emerson High School, Dailey said. The theme for this year's festival, he added, is 'Give Peas a Chance.'

The idea for the pea festival with tiller racing was first proposed by Glen Eades, who at the time was a columnist on Emerson-area news in the Magnolia Banner-News, Dailey said.

As a result of some early controversies, Dailey said, the World Tiller Racing Federation was established to oversee the event. Steve Grant of Emerson is the federation chairman and, as such, holds the title of Commissioner of Tiller Racing, Dailey said.

The four classes of tiller races, which will begin at 3:30 p.m., are men's and women's stock, junior stock and modified, Dailey said. An addition to this year's festival, he said, will be tractor races to be held between the tiller races.

Although it's never happened before, women are eligible to compete in the race for modified, or 'souped-up,' tillers, according to festival chairman Kathy Camp.

"Women can enter the modified division if they're brave enough," she said, adding: "I got behind one of them once and it ran away from me."

Emerson is in southern Arkansas, located 19 miles south of Magnolia via U.S. Highway 79.

Addition festival information is available by writing: Purplehull Pea Festival, P.O. Box 1, Emerson AR 71740; or by phoning 870-547-2065.