Talented construction machinery operators from around the world came together earlier this month to test themselves in the 2017 Case Rodeo.
All four parts of the Rodeo in Monthyon, France were run against the clock, with time penalties imposed for failure to meet task requirements. The first challenge required competitors to drive a TV380 compact track loader along a defined path, pick up three numbered boxes from pallets, one at a time, use the boxes to create a pyramid, then return them to their original positions and reverse the compact loader to its garage. This was won by Tomas Sooky of the Czech Republic.
In the next challenge, contestants had to use a CX145D SR crawler excavator in a fixed position, with a weight hanging from the bucket at the end of its dipper arm, to inscribe the word ‘CASE’ on a table without making the table move. The winner was Danny Walsh of the UK.
In the ‘Little Bighorn’ challenge, competitors controlled a CX60C mini excavator in a fixed position to pick up golf balls from a sand pit using a bucket attachment. They then had to deliver each ball to a specific tube in sequence. This was won by Tommy Brus Pedersen of Denmark.
Brus Pedersen also won the final challenge. This required competitors to drive a 621G XT wheel loader along a defined path and then back to its starting place while carrying four cubes placed on a board on top of the bucket without the cubes moving out of position.
The overall winner was Bendt Risom from Denmark, while a team from Sweden took the Best Team prize.
Risom said: “All the competitions were demanding but great fun. The scores were so close that there was a lot of tension all the way through. I knew I had done a good job but didn’t expect to win. I’m really looking forward to the prize trip to China, and I’ve invited my dad to join me because he’s always supported me and is as excited about machines as I am.”
