Saw something scary today.

Just rambling again,

68 Mag

Just please don't ride children on the tractor.

I will not let my 5 year old ride on my tractor or anyone elses . I will probably catch some crap from some people about this , but it is foolish to let a child on or near moving equipment . I know that everyone who does it has the best intentions but all it takes is one split second to ruin or loose a precious life . As he grows , I will teach my son about safety around farm equipment , shop equipment , and guns .

What is really frighteneing is to watch some city slicker who bought a tractor , hops on and rives it without any kind of training or experience . My boss used to give his 2 kids a ride on his 8N at the same time . This was his first tractor and the first one he ever drove .

There is a lot of truth in the one seat one rider philosophy . I can give you 2 examples right here from my hometown . First is a girl that I know who lost an arm when she fell off a riding mower . Second is a man I know who used to take his 4 year old grandson riding on his tractor . He hit a bump one day and ran over the boy and killed him . The family has still not gotten over the loss after all of these years .

Ask yourself ..... .Is it worth a life ?

Ford Man

My Dad taught me gun safety and respect for guns but a lot of folks have no idea about guns and are very dangerous . Its the people who have never been around them that are scared of them and want them banned . I have a lot of guns and have had a lot of fun with them over the years . I even have a couple of the dreaded assault rifles .

I have a lot of fun with my boy and let him help me in the shop and working on my tractors . When he is old enough , I will let him drive them but I will not take a chance with his life .

My Dad grew up on a farm and has taught me a lot about farming and safe use of farm equipment . Heck , he insisted that I get an ORC before doing any bushogging . We all have a love of tractors and respect them as well .

Be safe and have fun !

Ford Man

One thing folks need to ask before they do something with equipment is....'what if', the answer should be pretty clear.

Kids may not know any better, but a parent should.

I invite anyone to come to the hospital I work at. We are the only pediatric trauma hospital in about 22 Central NY counties (upstate NY, where the cows and apple orchards are). See what happens when a parent lets a child ride on the yard tractor while mowing lawn, I have seen it and I can tell you that no amount of begging by my kids would ever sway me to give them such a ride...all it takes is one bump or one slip...so, what would happen if you were hoggin' on a N and the child bounced off?...not a pretty thought.

We had a case a while back where a child got caught in a running snow-blower, the parent said the child was playing with the snow-blower...words can not describe the stupidity of such a statement by a parent...and the child is messed up forever.

My God, children look to us for so much, please don't let them down when it comes to equipment safety...and gun safety too!

-Sal

When it comes to tractors and work, I belive Claus said it best - one seat, one rider.