Mountbellew gearing up for biggest Vintage Rally festival yet

THOUSANDS of people are set to descend on Mountbellew next weekend for the 15th annual vintage rally, the highlight of the summer festival calendar in the area.
A working field will be the centrepiece of the celebrations on Sunday July 27 when specially sown barley will be harvested by one of the first ever combine harvesters introduced to the North Galway area in the 1960s, pulled by a small 1963 Massey Ferguson 35 tractor.
By contrast, the day will also host a mammoth tractor-pulling competition, where tractors of over 300 horsepower will be tugged by competitors taking part in what will be a heat event of the All-Ireland competition. Noise levels for those on these machines are considered to be similar to those experienced on a 737 jet at take-off.