Eloise Ogden/MDN Aaron Kenworthy of Indiana is shown with one of his teams of Spotted Draft Horses taking part in the Horse Pull during the State Fair in Minot this week. Nine teams took part in the Horse Pull.

Aaron Kenworthy’s team of Belgian horses pulled the most weight – 13,500 pounds – of all the teams entered in the Horse Pull held this week at the State Fair.

Adam Bryant, of St. John, who is in charge of the event, said that weight is probably the most ever done at the Horse Pull. In past years, he said horses have pulled top weights up to 11,500 and 12,500 pounds.

Kenworthy, of Indiana, currently is working in the Wolf Point, Mont., area.

Bryant, a former competitor in the horse pull, has been in charge of it for about the past five years.

Nine teams of draft horses competed in the horse pull, according to Bryant. Besides Kenworthy, other teams were from North Dakota and two teams from Roseau, Minn.

Bryant said normally two or three Canadian teams take part in the event. The Canadian border remains closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Horses participating in the Horse Pull are trained for this type of event, Bryant said. “A lot of hours go into it,” he said. There are rules for the safety of the horses.

At the event, the competition continues until one team of horses remains who are capable of pulling the most amount of weight on a sled for a short distance.

At this week’s fair event, Kenworthy’s team was one of two final teams to compete after weights were added to the skid for a total of 13,500 pounds.

Winners of the State Fair Horse Pull receive prizes up to the top prize of $500. Jill Bock of New England was announcer for the event.

A pony pull was also held during the fair.