Thompson’s popular “Day In The Woods” demo event, already becoming an annual tradition in middle Tennessee, came to the Memphis area on April 26. The outdoor event was held on a tract of forest land near Rossville, Tennessee in Fayette County.
“Day In The Woods” was designed to showcase the wide variety of work tool attachments available for Cat machines, and provided the opportunity for customers to try out the machines and attachments for themselves, in real world conditions. 
Well over 100 of the total attendees signed up to participate in the demonstrations.
Five demo stations were set up along a 1-1/2 mile loop; a fleet of UTVs (including the new Cat UTV) carried the attendees to each station and back to the event headquarters area. Machines available for demo included two Cat 279D compact track loaders, Cat 308 and 309 excavators, two Cat 299D2 compact track loaders, Cat 323 and 336F excavators, and Cat D3K dozer, and a Next Generation Cat D6 dozer. Work tool attachments included a range of Cat brushcutters, mulchers, tillers, box blades, and buckets. Additional machines and attachments, along with one of Thompson’s fully-equipped field service trucks, were on display in the event headquarters area.
All attendees received a voucher which could be applied toward the purchase or rental of Cat machines or attachments, or towards a 500-hour service on equipment. There were multiple ways to be eligible for prizes ranging from Cat gloves to coolers to portable generators and grills. Jay Burress was the winner of a Silverbac Grilla grill, and Kerry Smith won a Cat portable generator.
Thompson employees manned each demo station and the fleet of UTVs. Additional Thompson personnel and several Caterpillar corporate representatives were on hand to discuss machine and attachment features and answer customer questions.
Memphis’ famous Central BBQ catered a full barbecue lunch, and entertainment was provided by country singer Bryan Lee Moffitt (a popular draw at Thompson events) and well-known Elvis impersonator Brian Lee Howell.
