Dulles Plane Pull
Photo: John Martinez
25 YEARS
OF PULLING PLANES FOR
SPECIAL OLYMPICS VIRGINIA
The 2017 Dulles Day Festival and Plane Pull® and Dulles 5k/10k on the Runway
are set for Saturday, September 23, 2017. The day starts with the 5th Annual Run
the Runway competition in the early morning and the 25th Annual Plane Pull®
takes place from 11:00AM to 4:00PM (gates open at 10:30 AM), with a variety of
food options, games, exhibitions, and live music in between. It’s human versus
machine, and a whole lot more. The Dulles Day Plane Pull®, which will be held
for the 25th time, raises money for Special Olympics Virginia.
In 1992, Retired Deputy Chief Joe Hurtuk had an idea to raise money for Special
Olympics by pitting raw strength against 82 tons of metal. One year later,
the Plane Pull® was born with the help of Major Michelle Taylor (Retired), Bill
Pimball of FedEx, and 11 teams raising a total of $15,000. Little did they know this
would start a national phenomenon.
Today, the Dulles Day Festival & Plane Pull® has grown into a full day of
competition, food, and games with approximately 15,000 people in attendance
each year. In 2016, the event raised more than $350,000 for Special Olympics
Virginia, pushing the total raised to more $2,000,000 for athletes with
intellectual disabilities in Virginia since its creation.
In addition to all the activities on the tarmac, the highlight is watching teams of
25 attempt to pull an 82-ton FedEx Airbus A320 or United Boeing 757 airplane 12
feet in record time. Teams who sign up agree to raise at least $2,000 and awards
are handed out for fastest pull, heaviest team, most money raised, and more.
Airports around the globe have used the Dulles Day Plane Pull® as a model to
start their own plane pull.
KID’S TRUCK PULL
Do you have a little one who wants to show off their muscles and raise money
too? In the Kid’s Truck Pull, teams compete to see who can pull a big red dump
truck the fastest. The truck is provided by 123JUNK and the objective is to pull
it 12 feet. The cost is $10/child and you can register at the event on event day,
starting at 11:30 AM. All participants get a Kid’s Pull t-shirt.
Whether your kids are competing or just coming out to play, there’s also a Kid’s
Zone with a bounce house, games, music, and a dunk tank for all-day fun.
FLYWASHINGTON.COM 16 AUTUMN 2017
RICK JEFFREY, SPECIAL OLYMPICS
VIRGINIA PRESIDENT
“The Virginia Law Enforcement Torch Run
for Special Olympics is a law enforcement
fundraising eff ort that raises more than
$1,000,000 annually for the athletes of
Special Olympics Virginia. The Dulles Day
Festival and Plane Pull® is the Crown Jewel
of that eff ort. From the Run the Runway in
the morning through the entire day’s eff ort
of the Plane Pull and Festival, an event which
routinely draws 15,000 fans, it is a day fi lled
with excitement, celebration and community
pride. Nobody does it like the Metropolitan
Washington Airports Authority and its Police
Department. The Plane Pull ROCKS!”
Dulles Plane Pull
Photo: John Martinez