Harvest season requires room, respect on rural roads
Frustrating. Annoying. Aggravating. These words describe the feelings of farmers trying to harvest their crops this fall. It also describes the feelings of drivers dealing with farm machinery on our roadways.
A rainy autumn means farmers have already lost a month of the normal harvest season. Drivers are going to notice a lot of farm machinery and trucks on rural roads in the days and weeks ahead. Farmers will be putting in long hours and certainly don’t try to make you late for wherever you’re headed.
We will all be safer if we remember a few things.
Farmers park semis at the edges of fields to fill them. Wet weather has made for muddy fields and soft road shoulders. Therefore, I think we are going to see more of these big trucks parked on the road. As you are traveling the back roads, be extra cautious for parked trucks and slow down when cresting a hill. Large, modern farm equipment can take up more than one lane of traffic. Tractor operators are not required to drive on the shoulder. Please pass them safely.
Farm machinery signal lighting works a little bit different than normal vehicles. Most machinery has turn signals and red warning lights. However, most do not have brake lights. When you approach most tractors, you will see two amber-colored lights flashing. These are also the turn signals. However, when an operator goes to turn, the side opposite of the direction he is turning will come on solid, while the other side flashes. Do not expect the operator to pull off to the side of the road before the operator turns.
Passing a tractor and implement in a no-passing zone is both illegal and dangerous. Even if the operator is all the way over to the side of the road and he motions you to pass, it is still illegal.
There are still many farm implements and wagons that do not have turn signals, so motorists should be cautious when the equipment ahead of them slows down. They should always look for a driveway on the left-hand side of the road before attempting to pass, to make sure the tractor will not attempt a left-hand turn while being passed on the left. This is one of the biggest causes of accidents as drivers often assume that the implement is slowing down to let them pass when they are actually slowing down to make a left-hand turn.
Farmers and motorists both have a responsibility to operate their vehicles safely. If we all just give each other some room and respect, we can make this a safe harvest season.
Jeffrey Ditzenberger is president of the Green County Farm Bureau; phone (608) 558-9905.
Nov 2, 2009 at 2:03 p.m.
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http://24ahead.com/blog/archives/000472....
moran
google spell check doesnt seem to know either options- i didnt know Moron was a formal word
Moron
miran
Mo ran
Mo-ran
Morin
Nov 2, 2009 at 1:52 p.m.
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Kid- I still get it wrong even after seeing a sign on the internet that people were holding up calling others "morans" it was funny. Cause they spelt haha it wrong
Nov 2, 2009 at 10:30 a.m.
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kid- are you the new police- oops
Oct 31, 2009 at 7:26 p.m.
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friends with TRACTORS
sorry spelling police.
Oct 31, 2009 at 7:21 p.m.
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They grow your groceries,
haul a load,
pull you out then fix the road,
they're good at slowin' speeders down
when they pass through from out of town.
We'll live out in the country
happily ever after
We've got everything we need,
"cause we've got friends with tracors.
"Rodney Atkins"
Slow down, get off the phone, and get there ALIVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Oct 31, 2009 at 3:51 p.m.
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lmao hannah. its morOns:)
Oct 31, 2009 at 3:32 p.m.
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graygoast like the song says
"If you don’t like the way I’m a drivin’
Get back on the interstate
Otherwise sit tight and be nice
And quit yer honkin’ at me that way"
Oct 31, 2009 at 3:30 p.m.
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graygoast- they wouldnt get very far doing that now would they.YES I have seen them pull over too when the line gets long. Most try to keep it in the shoulder the best they can but it seems it looks hard to keep some of those rigs perfectly straight. SOme are just huge and have to be in the shoulder and on the road so youll just have to wait!!
My fav is that big tall once with huge wheels. It looks as if you could drive under and threw it to pass ;)
Oct 31, 2009 at 1:11 p.m.
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you would think the average farmer, would have enough common sense, to pull over , when there is 4 miles of traffic backed up behind him. but no they just keep the holding up the traffic or they decide to move , to an other field, at rush hour. talk about an accident waiting to happen! i see this happen every day, on my commute to madison.
Oct 31, 2009 at 12:33 p.m.
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Send “International Harvester” Ringtone to Cell Phone
I’m the son of a 3rd generation farmer
I’ve been married 10 years to the farmer’s daughter
I’m a God fearin’ hard workin’ combine driver
Hoggin’ up the road on my p-p-p-p-plower
Chug a lug a luggin’ 5 miles an hour
On my International Harvester
Three miles of cars layin’ on their horns
Fallin’ on deaf ears of corn
Lined up behind me like a big parade
Of late to work road raged jerks
Shoutin’ obscene words flippin’ me the bird
Well you may be on a state paved road
But that blacktop runs through my payload
Excuse me for tryin’ to do my job
But this year ain’t been no bumper crop
If you don’t like the way I’m a drivin’
Get back on the interstate
Otherwise sit tight and be nice
And quit yer honkin’ at me that way
Chorus:
Cause I’m a son of a 3rd generation farmer
I’ve been married 10 years to a farmer’s daughter
I got 2 boys in the county 4-H
I’m a lifetime sponsor of the F.F.A.
Hay! That’s what I make
I make a lotta hay for a little pay
But I’m proud to say
I’m a God fearin’ hard workin’ combine driver
Hoggin’ up the road on my a p-p-p-plower
Chug a lug a lugin’ 5 miles an hour
On my International Harvester
Well I know you got your own deadlines
But cussin’ me ain’t savin’ no time hoss
This big-wheeled wide load ain’t goin’ any faster
So just smile and wave and tip your hat
To the man up on the tractor
Chorus:
Cause I’m a son of a 3rd generation farmer
I’ve been married 10 years to a farmer’s daughter
I got two boys in the county 4-H
I’m a lifetime sponsor of the F.F.A.
Hay! That’s what I make
I make a lot of hay for a little pay
But I’m proud to say
I’m a God fearin’ hard workin’ combine driver
Hoggin’ up the road on my p-p-p-plower
Chug a lug a lugin’ 5 miles an hour
On my International Harvester
I’m a God fearin’ hard workin’ combine driver
Hoggin’ up the road on my p-p-p-plower
Chug a lug a lugin’ 5 miles an hour
On my International Harvester
Oct 31, 2009 at 12:31 p.m.
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"Passing a tractor and implement in a no-passing zone is both illegal and dangerous"
seems many dont know this is true when passing CARS too. I was passed in the city today on the right(it isnt a lane just a very wide road) then again when the speed turned 45- passed on the left up a hill in a NO PASSING zone. MORANS!!!
I like the county song not sure of the name. International harvester?
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