The Galot (Get A Load Of This) Pulling Team was founded by Earl and Peggy Wells in 2003. The Team started with an Allis-Chalmers 210 in the super farm category and they competed with this tractor in the NTPA Regional Championship and on local pulls in North Carolina for many years pretty successful. The tractor was mostly driven by Earl's son in law John Strickland from Harrels, North Carolina. In 2008, the team, together with the Gene's Machine Shop around Brent Payne built their first super stock open tractor called ''Galot 1''. The component tractor has a chrome-moly tube frame with a chrome-moly roll cage, a sheet metal rear end with Humpco components, a Profab transmission, and a Agco DT225 hood. The Agco tractor is powered by a GMS overhead cam 6 cylinder IH engine on alcohol with 3 GMS / Keating Machine turbochargers. The Galot Team competed with the orange black machine very successful against the IH and John Deere super stocks in the NTPA Grand National circuits. In 2012, the team from North Carolina introduced another new Agco pulling tractor called ''Miss Galot''. The Agco DT160 tractor was built for the Super Farm class and was driven by Jana Lee Strickland (the daughter of John Strickland) until 2014. For the 2016 season, the machine was rebuilt into a light pro stock and was renamed in ''Galot M''. The team currently competes with the light pro on some NTPA regional pulls, especially in North Carolina every year.
In 2012 the Galot Pulling Team grew into a Galot Motorsports Team. Earl Wells entered with a 2 car drag racing team into the drag racing sport. Currently, they are competing in the PDRA Drag Racing Series with 2 pro modified dragster and 3 Junior dragster.In the year of 2013, the second Agco DT225 super stock open tractor was introduced by the team under the name ''Galot 2''. The tractor also received the same setup like his older brother ''Galot 1''. The Galot 2 is currently the most successful pulling tractor of the team. Driver John Strickland won with ''Galot 2'' the NTPA Grand National title 4 times in arrow in the super stock open division in 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019.
2015 was maybe the biggest investment in the history of the Galot Motorsports team, Earl Wells purchased the GALOT Motorsports Park in Benson, North Carolina. The GALOT Motorsports Park offers a wide variety of amenities to racers and fans. The racetrack features 330 feet of climate-controlled concrete to keep the surface temperature down, state-of-the-art traction equipment and a brand new lighting system. There’s seating for more than 9,000 spectators and a brand new concession stand with indoor seating. The facility also features two tower suites and a dedicated media center. Every year they have different motorsport events there, from PDRA drag racing over to an NTPA Grand National Tractor Pull event and many more competitions on wheels.
After the 2018 season and 3 NTPA Grand National titles in a row in the super stock open class, it was time to try something different new.
As we know the Galot Motorsports team has always done things somewhat differently than most teams. The owner, Earl Wells, built a tremendous business by thinking “bigger” than others and the guys at Gene’s Machine Shop are constantly thinking “outside the box” to develop new ideas.
That's why Earl Wells and his team around the crew chief Brent Payne decided to build a completely new mini mod with an engine setup which has never used before in the US Pulling Sport.
The new Lil' Load received a chrome-moly tube frame with a chrome-moly SFI specificated roll cage, a Kirkey Racing seat with a 4 point harness, a custom-built rack and pinion steering, chrome-moly wheelie bars, and a sheet metal rear end. All the sheet metal work around the chassis on the new Lil' Load were done by guys of the Gene's Machine Shop (GMS) in Hamilton, Ohio.
The new chassis for the mini mod was developed and built by Berrie Boer of the Screamin' Bobcat Pulling Team from Ijsselmuiden in the Netherlands. The chassis is a copy of the current Bobcat Jr. mini modified tractor from the Screamin' Bobcat Team. The Bobcat Jr. chassis is currently one of the best chassis in the mini mod division which are not only used by teams in Europe. Also a lot of people and teams in the USA currently using the chassis, for example the Jostock Pulling Team (Wild One), Ken Veney (Funny Li'l Farmall), Joe Eder (Polar Air, 2019 Enderle Pull Off winner), Richard Peters (Buckeye Special, 2018 PPL Champ) and many more. Ken Veney the owner of Funny Lil' Farmall won this year the Bowling Green ring and the NTPA Grand National Championship with a Bobcat Jr. chassis. Also the builder of the Bobcat Jr. chassis the Boer Family, together with the Dirtslinger Pulling Team from Weldon, Illinois competing with a mini on the NTPA GN and Lucas Oil Pro Pulling League circuits in the US, with success. They together won the 2019 Lucas Oil PPL title in the Mini Rod division for the second time.But back to the new mini mod of the Galot Pulling Team. The custom-built sheet metal rear end in the mini is based on a Ford 9inch rear axle and has an aluminum center section with a billet aluminum differential, a custom-built ring and pinion gear, custom-built half shafts, billet aluminum planetaries carrier housing with special made planetaries and Willwood brake calipers with Willwood steel brake discs.
The whole rear axle for the tractor was built by Bennie Vreeman of Vampire Gears from Neede in the Netherlands.The new fenders on the tractor were made off carbon fiber and are very light compared to sheet metal fenders. The fenders were built by Let's Try Pulling Team and former Simply Irresistible crew member Gertie Leusink from Dronten in the Netherlands. The company called ''GCI Digital Imaging'' Cincinnati, Ohio in the USA did the new very nice looking vinyl graphics on the fenders.
Also completely new built in the machine is the drivetrain. The drivetrain got a new Vampire Gears single-speed gearbox with a new billet steel driveshaft between the clutch and the gearbox and an 8 inch Molinari centrifugal clutch with a Bohr Racing Products titanium bell housing. The Vampire Gears single-speed gearbox has a CNC machined aluminum housing with billet shafts and custom-built gears.
Everything on the tractor is so light built as possible, to have enough moveable weight on the tractor. For the optimum grip on the US pulling tracks, the Galot Pulling Team purchased a set of new Pioneer Giant Puller tires on new polished Real Wheel aluminum rims. The new set of tires with the new rims were purchased from CM Pulling tires from Reynolds, Indiana.
The new Lil' Load is powered by a procharged Proline / AJPE V8 Hemi engine with a displacement of 548cui on methanol fuel. The engine was almost completely built by the company called ''ProLine Racing'' from Ball Ground, Georgia in the USA. ProLine Racing (PLR) is a global, top tier provider of high-performance drag racing engines, parts, and turnkey packages, as well as EFI software and associated tuning capabilities. It has been built from the ground up over the last 15 years. PLR currently employs 25 full-time professionals and has an enviable ecosystem of specialized expertise and knowledge all contributing to our ability to deliver.The Proline Team provides engine and race car competition services to over 150 customers throughout the USA, Australia, Brazil, the Middle East, Europe, Puerto Rico, Canada, and the Dominican Republic.
The power plant has an AJPE billet aluminum engine block with Darton steel sleeves, a Bryant billet steel crank with GRP aluminum billet rods and Bill Miller aluminum billet pistons, a PLR custom tool steel camshaft, AJPE Stage 4 billet aluminum heads with T&D steel rockers, PLR aluminum valve covers, GMS stainless steel exhaust headers, a PLR billet anodized intake, a GMS aluminum intake manifold, a FX140 ProCharger with a 140mm intake wheel and a GMS built belt drive system (custom for pulling application), a GMS methanol fuel system with a Waterman fuel pump, a aluminum fuel tank built by GMS, a PLR oil pan, a System 1 oil pump, a MSD 44 Pro Mag ignition and a FuelTech FT600 data logger.
The big sheet metal box on the front end of the tractor covers the belt drive for the ProCharger, the ProCharger and the fuel tank on the engine.
But why they have decided to use a Hemi engine with a ProCharger?
Simply, their decision to use the ProCharger came from the success which the Galot Motorsports had in drag racing.
Everything started when Galot Motorsports dragster driver Kevin Rivenbark made a run of 3.61s at 207.37 mph with his new 1969 PLR ProCharged Hemi Camaro at the 2019 US Street Nationals event in Bradenton, Florida in January. When Team owner Earl Wells heard about that, he decided to use the same combination in his new mini mod. They have created a partnership with ProCharger and Proline Racing in an effort to bring something “new” to the sport. Their goal is to introduce an alternative to the normal roots system which will give pullers the option to have something different but also be competitive. Tractor pulling sport always needs something different to keep the interest of fans also.
The Lil' Load is currently the first mini mod with a ProCharger on a V8 Hemi engine in the USA, but it's not the first mini worldwide with a procharged V8 Hemi. The Ghost Buster Pulling Team from Oberharmersbach in Germany was the first pulling team which has built a mini mod with a procharged V8 Hemi power plant and an EFI system in 2017.
Usually the Galot Team wanted to use an EFI system on their Proline Hemi engine, but unfortunately, EFI systems on engines are not allowed at the NTPA. They also have sent a request to the WPI/NTPA Technical Services Dept to allow EFI systems in the sport, but without success.
Galot Pulling Team crew chief Brent Payne and the team of his company ''GMS'' worked about 8 months on this new project to get the new Lil' Load ready for the first competition at the National Tractor Pulling Championships in Bowling Green, Ohio.
One week before Bowling Green, Ohio the guys completed the build and began track testing. As the mini tractor was new for the team, they wanted to do some light track testing.
The team rented a sled and track from Mark Bingham (On The Mark Sled Rental) in Greenville, Ohio. Only a few short sets were made. Each time the Galot and GMS Team have tested they have made progress with their systems. The belt drive was a bit tricky to get running properly but has been a success so far. Their main focus this winter is getting the fuel system in better order. They also have some good data as to what changes need to be made. Hopefully, by spring 2020, the Galot Pulling Team can test the new procharged V8 Hemi mini mod again.
For the winter their plans are to finish up some paint details and work with the engine. The goal is to be running hard on the track by summertime. The GMS shop also has an onsite dyno and a pulling track outside of their workshop. The Galot Pulling Team hopes they can use both to make the Galot “Lil' Load” a success soon!
for further information, check here: http://www.galotmotorsports.com/home.htm
or check here: https://www.facebook.com/GALOTMotorsports/
One week before Bowling Green, Ohio the guys completed the build and began track testing. As the mini tractor was new for the team, they wanted to do some light track testing.
For the winter their plans are to finish up some paint details and work with the engine. The goal is to be running hard on the track by summertime. The GMS shop also has an onsite dyno and a pulling track outside of their workshop. The Galot Pulling Team hopes they can use both to make the Galot “Lil' Load” a success soon!
for further information, check here: http://www.galotmotorsports.com/home.htm
or check here: https://www.facebook.com/GALOTMotorsports/
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