BX Contest - National Post Article
From "What If" to "Watch This": Three Canadian Stories of Kubota-fuelled Empowerment
Sometimes the best projects start with a simple question: What if?
What if I cleared that historic barn? What if I restored my family's land? What if I transformed my yard into something beautiful? What if I could actually do this?
Three Canadian women asked themselves these questions. And they found the answer last summer with Kubota.
The Vision Takes Shape
Akesh Gill-Coleman had owned her 9.8-acre property in Bury, Quebec since 1999, and she'd always imagined what it could become. A historic barn cleared and ready for new purpose. A lush cottage garden blooming in the open spaces. Vegetable beds feeding her family and her dreams. When the Kubota Hot BX contest was advertised, something clicked. This could be my moment.
Teresa Zenkovich stood on her family's 97-acre property in Priceville, Ontario with a clear vision: transform this land her parents had stewarded into a gathering place. A space for family, for friends, for creating new memories on ground that held so many old ones. She wanted to invest her time and energy into the soil, to see results, to build something meaningful. All she needed was the right equipment and the confidence to begin.
And Kathleen Powell saw possibility in devastation. After the Nova Scotia wildfires of 2023 ravaged her property, she envisioned something that felt almost radical: rebuilding her yard into a beautiful, thriving space where her children could play and grow. A place of joy after loss. A family home reclaimed.
These weren't abstract wishes. These were real women with real plans, ready to make them happen.
Unlocking Potential
When Akesh first operated the Kubota BX, everything clicked into place. The tractor responded to her instincts. The controls felt natural, almost like an extension of her own capability. "Before I knew it, I felt comfortable," she says. And comfort became confidence.
With her son by her side, Akesh threw herself into the work. The woodchipper became her secret weapon, transforming piles of overgrown brush into mulch that would feed her new gardens. The historic barn cleared of decades of debris. The cottage garden took shape. Vegetables began to grow.
The physical transformation was remarkable, but the personal one was even more powerful. "Every place I look now, I just see potential," Akesh reflects, and you can hear the pride in those words. Her community has taken notice too. "Everyone loved the BX," she laughs. "People kept saying, 'If you had a Kubota, that job would've been perfect for you.' I think it's going to inspire others to take the chance when an opportunity like this is presented." Sometimes all a dream needs is a little Kubota magic.
Honoring Legacy
When Teresa learned she'd won the Kubota Hot BX Summer Contest, she shared the news with her mother, the woman who had stewarded those 97 acres for decades. They celebrated together, imagining what Teresa could do with the land. It was a moment of joy and connection.
But, on the day Kubota delivered the equipment to Teresa's property, the unthinkable happened. Her mother passed away. Suddenly, the contest meant something deeper. This was about honoring her mother's legacy and continuing the story they'd started in that celebration. Teresa would transform the land her mother loved into a gathering place for family and friends.
With training from the dealer team, Teresa had access to everything she needed: a loader, bucket, cultivator, and rotary tiller. But what made the real difference wasn't just the equipment; it was having the support to use it confidently. "I wish I'd spent more time with the tractor," she reflects. "I was intimidated at first, but once I got comfortable, I realized I could do so much more." She moved topsoil, expanded gardens, reclaimed fields, actively stewarding what her mother had built.
The farm that once sat quietly on the family's periphery became the gathering place everyone wanted to visit. "Friends now want to meet at the farm instead of our cottage," she shares. Her mother's legacy now lives on in every growing thing.
"It’s a dream come true," Teresa says. "The answer to my prayers."
Rebuilding Home
Kathleen watched it happen on her doorbell camera. The trees in her front yard catching fire. The realization that everything could be lost. The Nova Scotia wildfires of 2023 didn't just ravage her property; they threatened the home she'd built for her children.
Her children deserved to look out their back windows and see possibility instead of loss. They deserved a yard where they could play and grow without the constant reminder of devastation.
With training and support from Kubota, she learned to operate the BX. Using the mower and other attachments, she cleared the burnt vegetation, brought in fresh soil, and rebuilt her yard from the ground up. Every load of debris removed was another step toward healing.
What emerged was a space reclaimed. A home renewed. A place where her daughters could simply be children again, making memories instead of processing loss.
"I feel like I can make a huge difference," Kathleen says. She's shown her family that even after devastation, you can choose to rebuild something beautiful. That resilience is about actively creating the future you want for the people you love most.
Your Dream Starts Today
These three women represent something beautifully Canadian: the determination to take on ambitious projects, to restore what matters, to build legacies and gather communities. They started with a vision and the willingness to learn.
What changed everything wasn't just a tractor, it was the access to the right tools, genuine training, and dealer support that made them believe they could actually do it. The Kubota BX's intuitive design removed the intimidation factor. The training built their confidence. The support meant they were never alone in the process.
The 2026 Hot BX Summer Contest is now open for entries. Three winners will receive a Kubota BX tractor for three months to bring their dreams to life. Your cottage garden. Your land reclamation. Your family gathering place. Your home transformed.
The question isn't whether you can do it. The question is: what will you create?