I agree with the last 2. The foot switch is unrelated unless you were not pushing it one time or it works everynow and then. Im thinking the solonoid or most likely in my mind the switch is not "switching" power to the solonoid to tell it to start. Keep trouble shooting. And dont worry about the posts, it helps others in the future and it will document a step by step process to diagnose a tractor that wont start that exibits symptoms similar to yours. We like tracking these things down and helping you fix your problem that you had no idea which way to go from the start.
Fixing your own stuff is the only way to learn and boosts your confidence. Im sure its how we all learned. After a while you will learn all these tricks that pretty much work on any vehicle orr piece of equitment. Well up to the computer controlled computers intodays vehicles. There are so many sensors that can go bad, but its still process of elimination.