Randy Chapman (right) prepares his tractor before competing in the Doodlebug Tractor Pull at the Maine Antique Tractor Club in Norridgewock on Sunday. Rich Abrahamson/Morning Sentinel

NORRIDGEWOCK – Randy Chapman hates it when a good tractor breaks down.

Chapman brought five homemade tractors, each nearly a century old, to Norridgewock on Sunday to drive a “doodlebug” tractor. A doodlebug is a homemade tractor typically built in the 1930s and 1940s during a machinery shortage caused by the Great Depression and World War II.

Originally, doodlebugs were used by farmers for all sorts of tasks for years, but in recent years they have become a sort of niche hobby for farmers and hobbyists.

Because many of these tractors have fallen apart or simply broken down in the decades since they were manufactured, close-knit communities of tractor enthusiasts have formed who are dedicated to keeping these machines alive with a love of life.

Many of the tractors are conversions of earlier Ford cars and White trucks from the early 20th century, while others were cobbled together from parts of decades-old tractors.

“Everything here has had multiple lives,” Chapman said. “This is not the first iteration of these machines, although it may be the last.”

Chapman has been organizing Doodlebug pulls through the Maine Antique Tractor Club since 2013 and has participated in the event nearly every year. He was one of about a dozen drivers in Norridgewock who participated in this year’s pull.

The riders took turns pulling heavier weights with their Doodlebugs, and by the end of the afternoon the weight had increased from about 7,500 pounds to nearly 20,000 pounds.

For Doodlebug owner John Harris and most of the other participants, the event is less about winning and more about the love of the machine.

“It’s not about spending a bunch of money, it’s about being smarter than the next guy and finding junk that’s best suited for the job,” Harris said from behind the wheel of his modified 1932 Ford AA tractor. “Mud racing, stock car racing, drag racing, all of these races are based on how much money you can spend or how much money you can’t spend. This is about being in the game.”

The Maine Antique Tractor Club was founded in 1994 and has about 500 members, including both owners of restored tractors and those who enjoy them.

Aimee Nelson of Troy shifts gears while competing in the Doodlebug Tractor Pulling at the Maine Antique Tractor Club in Norridgewock on Sunday. The tractor she was operating was built from a 1977 Dodge motor home. Rich Abrahamson/Morning Sentinel

Chapman’s five Doodlebugs provided half of the tractors in Sunday’s tractor pull, and he loaned four of them to other participants. One of them was Aimee Nelson of Troy, who said Sunday was her first time participating in a tractor pull.

“This is my first time pulling and I’m honestly a little nervous,” Nelson said. “But the group is very welcoming. It’s not really a competition. We all cheer each other on.”

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