Kids as young as five will get to climb behind the controls of a real excavator, backhoe or bulldozer this weekend in northeast Oklahoma City, with a trained operator standing by the whole time. Dozer Days takes over Remington Park on Saturday and Sunday, turning the racetrack grounds into a hands-on playground of heavy machinery for families.
What's Rolling Into Remington Park
The event is hosted by the National Utility Contractors Association, which is bringing skid steers, backhoes, dozers, excavators and a crane for visitors to look at, according to News 9. The lineup includes multiple sizes of excavators, giving younger kids and older ones alike a chance to find a machine that fits. Dozer Days runs Saturday, Oct. 31, and Sunday, Nov. 1, at the park.
Children get to actually climb into and operate the other machines, with a professional operator present the whole time, the station's report notes. It's a rare chance for a kid to sit in the driver's seat of an excavator rather than just stare at one from behind a fence.
Why Organizers Say They're Doing This
Hayden Musgrove said the goal is less about spectacle and more about early exposure. “It's really to expose the next generation to equipment,” Musgrove said, per the same account, adding that the event lets entire families see how the machinery actually operates.
Ben Arthur framed it as both a community gathering and a recruiting pitch for the industry, saying Dozer Days brings the utility construction world together, lets attendees try the equipment firsthand, and helps build up the workforce. That dual purpose echoes the national Dozer Day program run through NUCA, which is built to introduce kids ages 10 to 16 to construction careers alongside the hands-on fun, according to the organization's own chapter programs page.
Tickets and Getting In
Admission runs $10 if bought online ahead of time, or $15 at the door, and kids under five get in free. Tickets are available online.
A Program With Deep Roots Elsewhere
Dozer Days isn't new. The concept has been running in Washington state for almost two decades and has since spread to events across the country, including chapters in Kansas City and Nebraska, per NUCA's own program listing. The Nutter Family Foundation has developed Dozer Day events since 2008, after the program was first created by the Clark County, Washington Parks Foundation back in 2005, according to Construction Equipment. That outlet reports the program has introduced thousands of young adults to the utility construction industry over the years, with NUCA planning to keep expanding it into new communities.
Other cities have seen the workforce angle play out directly. In Boise, KIVI-TV reported that the local Dozer Day partnered with the Boise School District for student volunteers for a second straight year, and organizers there said some volunteers transition into employees. Meanwhile, the original Washington event just marked a major milestone: Construction Equipment Guide reported that Dozer Days Vancouver celebrated 20 years earlier this month, drawing thousands of guests through the gates over its final two days.
