ST. PAUL, MN (August 15, 2004)- Well, it was that time of the year again. The time where you get off work early, grab your kids and head down to the fair. You come to the fair to bask in the summer heat, try some delicious cheese curds and perhaps take a risk and ride the dreaded Spin-o-Manic. But you can experience these things at any fair. Fairs have much more to offer than high calories and a tan line.

The Dakota County Fair has set itself apart from others in that it provides amusement aside from the "regular" attractions. The Dakota City Heritage Village is a 1900-era rural village that is based on communities in Dakota County that served the surrounding farms. During fair week, there is a good chance you'll run into a blacksmith fashioning a horseshoe or witness a gun shooting bank heist.

Adjacent to the Dakota City Heritage Village you can view a vast collection of antique tractors. These tractors have been plucked from their graves and transformed into the prime of their youth. Determined volunteers around the county gather together with their refurbished tractors and participate in the antique tractor parade that winds around the Dakota City Heritage Village. You can also see these volunteers on Tuesday mornings at the fair grounds reviving a lost soul.

Power Systems Research was fortunate enough to come to the aid of these volunteers and sponsor this year's antique tractor parade and tractor pull. This was the first time these attractions were sponsored and PSR was privileged to help in any way in keeping these important components of the fair going. We hope that this important part of our history can remain intact for all to see and remember. Power Systems Research would like to thank the volunteers who donated their time and beautiful tractors to the Dakota County Fair.