The Ag Mechanic Grand and Reserve Champions were announced on the final day of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo™.
Hallsville FFA claimed the Grand Champion, followed by West Hardin FFA, which earned Reserve Champion honors. Remarkably, the same two programs earned top placements in the 2024 competition, making this year’s repeat performance especially meaningful.
Tucker Soules, a senior from Hallsville FFA, was named Grand Champion for his 40-foot self-loading and unloading in-line hay trailer. “I came up with [the idea] to eliminate a tractor off of our operation when moving hay,” Tucker said.
The project took more than 400 hours to complete, Soules said. He started on Nov. 1 and wrapped up by Feb. 1. Looking ahead, Tucker plans to pursue a degree in manufacturing, technology and business with hopes to open his own fabrication business.
West Hardin FFA earned Reserve Grand Champion with a 40-foot Deck-Over Gooseneck built by Colten Brackin, Tony Kirkendall, Braden Perkins and Cienna Powell. The team was coached by James Merrifield. “Last year, we were reserve overall,” Merrifield said. “It’s pretty cool to do that back-to-back.”
“This team consisted of two seniors, a junior and a freshman. We’re excited to start again coming April,” Merrifield said. “That’s when we start our projects again.”
Awards were sponsored by Shell, providing prizes to classes, divisions, Best of Show and Second Best of Show categories.