Too close to home...

L.C.Gray · May 17, 2015

I hear about these accidents regularly but it struck closer to home this time. A close friend of mine was shredding yesterday and stuck his tractor. After sticking his 4x4 pickup attempting to retrieve the tractor his neighbor came over to assist with his bigger tractor. Long story short they got the pickup back, but while pulling on the stuck tractor the other tractor did a wheel stand and back flipped on the neighbor killing him instantly. My friend is now just a wreck feeling it's all his fault. I really feel sorry for both of them, but this stuff happens all too often and we all need to pause and think about the possible outcomes of every move we make on these machines we love. Things can turn around on you in an instant and sometimes there's no second chances.

Dick2 · May 17, 2015

We got 4 of our tractors stuck at one time' neighbor came with his big machinery trailer and winched them out one at a time. I was impressed at the time with the safety of using a winch compared with log chains that we used to try and pull out the tractors. Winches are not 100% safe from breaking cables, but better than most log chains.

Sorry to hear about the neighbor.

showcrop · May 17, 2015

I was at a tractor pull today and some thing that I saw someone do made me remember the term "Situational Awareness" . You can look it up, but it means basically being constantly aware of your surroundings and what could go wrong and how to avoid it, or just how to act to not cause a problem for someone else. With the life experience that I have at 67 years old I would have to say that people just have it in very different quantities so it is constantly up to those that have it to be aware not just for themselves but also for others, and to speak up, and even be forceful at times, when intervention could help to avoid a major problem.

tim s · May 17, 2015

I did some work in the oil fields around here when I was in High school, I saw a wench line (1 inch or a bit bigger) snap under extreme tension and it whipped around through some saplings 4-5 inches in diameter like a weed eater in dandelions... when ever extreme force is used extreme things can and will happen.

js305 · May 17, 2015

We have winches on two of our fire trucks. One of the "rules" we have when pulling with them is to throw a couple of blankets on the line, or a fire coat if none are available. If the line breaks the blanket will dampen the whipping action.

fixerupper · May 17, 2015

I would be a wreck too if i was in your friend's shoes. Prayers go out to the victim's family.

BAnNC · May 18, 2015

I prefer an old tire between the two vehicles. Gives some flex to the cable and acts like a damper if one breaks. Only will hold the other but they are both shorter.

L.C.Gray · May 18, 2015

After getting the gritty details of how it all transpired, it turns out to be the classic progression of no-no's leading to the inevitable...

Antique tricycle row crop tractor, chain hooked higher up than on the drawbar and progressively longer running starts after each failed attempt.

He ended up upside down, still in the seat, steering wheel caved into his chest, head crushed by the gas tank and feet still on the pedals

Bret4207 · May 19, 2015

(quoted from post at 13:24:01 05/18/15) After getting the gritty details of how it all transpired, it turns out to be the classic progression of no-no's leading to the inevitable...

Antique tricycle row crop tractor,[b:21dbef1c4e] chain hooked higher up than on the drawbar and progressively longer running starts after each failed attempt.
[/b:21dbef1c4e]
He ended up upside down, still in the seat, steering wheel caved into his chest, head crushed by the gas tank and feet still on the pedals

The tricycle part has nothing to do with it. The problem was hitching high and running starts. Less an accident and more a suicide. Sad.

K Effective · May 19, 2015

Terrible situation, usually just to save the embarrassment/cost of a recovery. You would think we should all know better today, but, unfortunately not.

Too close to home...

L.C.Gray

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Dick2

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showcrop

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tim s

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js305

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fixerupper

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BAnNC

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L.C.Gray

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Bret4207

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K Effective

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