Menu
Tractor donation honors local veteran on national stage
KANSAS CITY, Kan — Air Force veteran Hunter Uhland from Atwood, Kan., was handed the keys to a new Kubota tractor by NASCAR Cup Series driver Ross Chastain Sunday during a special ceremony at the Kansas Speedway before the start of the Hollywood Casino 400.
Hunter, along with four other veterans, was honored for his post-9/11 military service through Kubota’s Geared to Give program in partnership with the Farmer Veteran Coalition.
Others included Chelsey Stimson, U.S. Navy veteran, Bridger, Mont.; Eric Pollack, U.S. Army veteran, Willisburg, Ky. Joshua Morris, U.S. Army veteran, Rolla, Mo., and Brian Chambers, U.S. Air Force veteran, Alstead, N.H.
Representing the Central Division, Hunter Uhland served four years in the U.S. Air Force which included two deployments in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Unified Protector. Hunter and his wife, Alexis, own and operate Bar UC Cattle Co., in Atwood, Kansas, a cow-calf operation where they specialize in 100% grass-fed and finished, non-GMO, pasture-raised rosé veal. Kubota is awarding Hunter an M60 Series utility tractor with loader and a Land Pride post hole digger and bale spear. Hunter is supported by his local dealer, Rusler Implement Co., in Rocky Ford, Colorado. At the time of his selection, Hunter and Bar UC Cattle Co., was based in Eads, Colo., in Kubota’s Central Division.
“The ‘Geared to Give’ program is all about giving back to our Nation’s veterans by empowering them with the equipment they need to achieve their dreams through farming,” said Alex Woods, Kubota senior vice president and a veteran of the Army National Guard. “We believe veterans play an important role in strengthening our rural communities and we are honored to support them by putting new equipment in their hands to level up their farms.”
As the Official Tractor Company of Trackhouse Racing, Kubota serves as the primary sponsor of Trackhouse Racing Chevrolets in seven races this season, and they took the partnership an extra mile in support of farmer veterans. In the six races that Ross is in the driver’s seat of the No. 1 Kubota Chevrolet this season, including today’s race, and when he finishes in the top 10, Kubota makes a $10,000 donation to the Farmer Veteran Coalition to help military veterans get their start in farming. Prior to today’s race, Ross has raised $20,000 with his two top-10 finishes.
“Every time I put on the Kubota fire suit and drive the No. 1 Kubota Chevrolet, I know I’m racing for a greater cause, and I’m reminded of the sacrifices the men and women in the armed forces make every day at home and abroad to protect our way of life,” said Ross Chastain, an eight-generation watermelon farmer.
The 2023 “Geared to Give” program received nearly 700 applications through FVC’s Farmer Veteran Fellowship Fund, and in the end, one recipient was selected by and for each of Kubota’s five operating divisions across the U.S.
For more information on FVC’s 2024 application process, visit farmvetco.org. For more information on the “Geared to Give” program, visit Kubota Cares.