WOODBURY — State to state, fair to fair, one name to know is Chris Uscilla. For Uscilla, tractor pulling is his hobby. From garden tractors to antique tractors, he does it all.
In Uscilla’s younger years, he began pulling garden tractors, where he learned the basics of pulling.
“Garden tractors taught me a lot of valuable things like how to change oil, spark plugs, points, and countless other things,” said Uscilla, a 2021 Nonnewaug graduate.
In his early teenage years, Uscilla had an itch for speed that stock garden tractors failed to satisfy, so he began to dive into the motors in garden tractors, modifying them and artificially equipping them with more horsepower.
“You can see that Chris was starting to get bored of stock garden tractors,” said Alex Uscilla, Chris’s younger brother and a senior at Nonnewaug. “He wanted something louder, faster, and cooler.”
As Chris’ passion for engines grew, he upgraded to antique tractors, so he bought a Allis Chalmers WD45 that he quickly tore it apart to restore it. That work included rebuilding the motor, adding new tires, and painting it an especially iconic color: Allis Chalmers Orange.
“That [Allis Chalmers WD45] was in my parents’ shop for weeks,” Alex said. “At times, I thought it wasn’t going to get done. [Chris] ended up finishing it, and to be honest, it came out perfect.”
This was just the beginning of Chris’s adventure with antique tractors, but like the garden tractors, he had a desire for more power.
“I wanted to go fast — first gear was getting boring for me,” said Chris.
He soon acquired a Farmall H and Farmall 350, which he tore both apart to make one tractor. In this tractor, he dove into the motor, chasing power by boring the block out larger and adding more compression, giving the motor much more power than it previously had.
“Building the motor taught me about pushing power out of an engine,” said Chris.
While Chris Uscilla’s love for engines was born out of his own backyard, his passion and skill set are a thing of lore, creating a reputation throughout the Northeast as a master engine builder.
Chris Uscilla is now a household name in tractor pulling in Connecticut as well as New York.
Due to Chris’s extensive knowledge on motors and all things mechanical, he’s known for his willingness to assist fellow engine enthusiasts.
“Chris was always one phone call away,” said Eric McGurrin, a longtime friend of Chris’ and novice mechanic. “Any time I ran into any difficulty rebuilding my Farmall C motor, he was always there to help.”
On campus, Chris Uscilla’s knowledge for motors is something students and faculty notice immediately.
“Chris was a quiet kid, but he brought a lot to the table in terms of knowledge,” said Andrew Zielinski, the Nonnewaug’s ag mechanics teacher. “He is a very smart student, he’s good at problem solving, and [he’s] a great welder.”
In addition to his intricate knowledge of engines, Chris took up yet another skill that makes him exceptionally talented: welding. Today, he specializes in fabricating wheelie bars and weight brackets for other pullers. This skill greatly increased his fabrication ability as well as his popularity in the pulling world.
“He’s made stuff for everyone,” Alex said. “At every pull you go to in Connecticut, he’s made something for someone there.”
Chris’ talents as a fabricator have grown into bigger projects like building “super light” tractor rims and tractor hitches.
“Not many people make ‘super light’ rims,” Chris Uscilla said of his work as a fabricator. “They take a lot of time to make, and you really have to know what you’re doing.”
With Uscilla’s new skills and knowledge in tow, during the winter of 2022 he decided to take on his biggest project, building a transfer sled. After six months, countless hours of work, thousands of dollars invested, and a broken foot, he finished it.
“It took a lot of time,” said Uscilla, “and [it took] way too much money, but now, I like looking back and saying ‘I built that.’”
