"It's Easier to Bury a Tradition Than a Child"

[RonMar]

I take my grandson and granddaughter for rides on the tractor, but as mentioned, there is a big difference between that and working on the tractor. I won't do any work while they are there, besides I don't think I could get any work done with them on my lap anyway as it takes too much concentration to mind them and the tractor.

I am in agreement with Hudr's post. Children are a product of their environment. Yes, it is our job to protect them, but it is also our job to educate them. If you have raised your children in a sheltered safe little bubble, you better hope that is where they will be going to live when they grow up, because that is all you have trained them for... Knowledge and resposibility are two of the most empowering things you can give your children.

My.02

 

[AlanB]

I think it is all about weighing out the risks you take, and then in my opinion, living with the consequences.

For me and mine, we take many risks that most folks would not, and the "common sense" thing goes both ways, plenty of folks say I have none because I let my kids _________________ (fill in the blank)

Unfortunately, another product of our current climate is what I call the

"It certainly could not be my fault" mentality. While not everyone has it, there are a large number of folks out there that do, and when something tragic happens, they look for "who" to blame, never realizing that they should go find a mirror to see where the blame really lies.

Sometimes, even on this board, I get bumfuzzled by the number of folks that extoll the virtues and qualities that farm life, and life working with tractors and equipment produce, yet think that the inherent risks and adversity that comes with that are not part of the package that develops those charachter and personality traits.

So for me, does my 11 year old ride on the tractor with me? Nope, not enough room, he drive's it himself. If he is uncomfortable, he clears off and I do it.

He does ride in the cab of the backhoe when I am working at times.

He has tried the bobcat, but is not comfortable so tends not too do it, but he will go move it around for me when needed.

For me, the scary times are when the kids are in Germany. For all the safety stuff here, I believe all the family tractors there have extra seats and I do not beleive there is seatbelt one on any family tractor there. And yes, there have been some very bad accidents in the family (wife ran over her brother)

 

[N80]

I don't take anyone for rides, just for the sake of riding. Rarely, my 16 year old son will stand on the lift arms and hold onto the ROPS if I need him with me for whatever reason. I don't recommend it, but I do it.

And yes, there is always an "on the other hand." My neices, whose farm pictures I've shared here several times, ride along on their dad's tractor regularly. This is almost always when he is towing hay wagons. He loads the wagons with round bales, hooks them to the tractor and pulls them to the pastures where they are needed. The child passenger then hops down and unpins the wagons. He wheels around and unloads a bale or two with the FEL. Then he backs up and the child re-attaches the wagon and off they go to the next pasture.

I'm sure this is technically not a good idea purely from a safety standpoint.

But, they never ride when he is mowing, raking or baling hay or pulling a rotary cutter.

And this is work, not joy riding. These are farm kids doing what farm kids do. And even though it might sound trivial, it saves a great deal of time to have someone do this for him. I've helped him out myself this way. I've also watched him do with out the help and he spends more time getting on and off the tractor than any other part of the job.

Sure, it would be nice if he had someone else on another tractor pulling the wagons, etc, etc. But he doesn't.

Safety is a funny thing. I'm not a relativist but safety, despite its importance does not enjoy many absolutes in my mind.

Any time my daughter rides her hunter-jumper horse, she has an expensive helmet on. Its an absolute rule at all the barns and events. It is part of the culture of English riding. On the other hand, when she's down on the farm moving herds or trail riding, no helmet. No one who rides western wears a helmet, particularly down on the farm. It is not a part of the 'western' culture. It doesn't make sense, but since she's been older than about ten I have not required her to wear a helmet while riding on the farm. Even more shocking, at local horse shows, the Enlish riders are required to wear a helmet, western riders in the same event at the same place, are not.

Kids on tractors is much the same.

 

[Rara Avis]

All of the justifications will be for naught, if there is an accident...TRACTORS have ONE SEAT for a reason...ONE OPERATOR...


And when someone says that oh, I use a seat belt and buckle the kid in with me...What I want you to do, is to lay down on your kid with all your weight over a fenceline and then think INTERNAL INJURIES, because that is what will happen to them if the tractor tips over and you start crushing them under your weight against the seatbelt...and when you say oh, I'd release the seatbelt, what happens if you were to have smacked your head on the ROP and are out cold...

 

[Wayne County Hose]

....... I understand and appreciate the intent of the OP. I can't imagine having to bury one of my kids because of a stupid accident.

All accidents have stupidity behind them, period.

I probably have more miles standing on the arms of a 3 point hitch than most of you have on your tractor seat. On a farm, you need to get things done. If you are not a farmer, especially a dairy farmer, don't even bother to comment. I grew up on a dairy farm and still have friends and relatives that own them. Is it safer to have your kid on a 4 wheeler driving down the road to the field? If you say yes, then tell it to the state trooper when he pulls up behind. I'll bet the vast majority of these accidents are kids on the fenders, which is not safe. My wife is an EMT and the overwhelming majority of tractor accidents are morons that buy a tractor and pretend to be a farmer.

 

[gemini5362]

I think I will add my 2 cents in here. For the posters that advocate absolute safety. I hope that you do not let your children drive cars when they get old enough to be licensed. That is one of the most dangerous activities that I can imagine. There are drunk drivers out there, People who speed, Your child might be late coming home and be taking chances with speed or passing. The list is very long. I hope that you dont take those type of chances with your children and that you council your children against taking those type of chances with your grandchildren. I also hope that you have set up trust funds for your children and grandchildren so that they dont have to take any kind of dangerous job that they might get hurt or even killed at. Have you set aside enough of your property so that your children and grandchildren can build a house close to yours. Airline crashes and car accidents are a distinct possibility if they come to visit you.

Basically there is a possibility of an devastating accident in anything you do. Common sense to minimize the possibilites helps but accidents happen. I dont think you should live your life in a fear that stops you from enjoying it. When my children were younger they loved to sit in my lap and ride on the tractor. It might have been dangerous but I dont think it was as dangerous as working as a prison guard like my youngest son used to do. It was not as dangerous as working on forklifts like my oldest son does. I would not want to give up my memories of those times with my children just because it had an element of danger in it.

For the people that are going to say that I was lucky and how would I like to have a memory of them being killed. It did not happen. One of the people I work with had a son that had just graduated from high school. He had gone to watch a girl that he knew from church play volleyball. On the way home he blacked out you can see his tire tracks where he came to a curve on the interstate and just kept going straight right across the interstate right into a bridge. He was not depressed, The autopsy checked for drugs or alcohol which he had none of in his system and they did not find anything wrong with his steering( there was also no sign that he had tried to brake) The point I am getting at is that your children can have things happen to them that are beyond your control. If your child or grandchild comes out to the farm and wants to spend some quality time with grandpa or grandma on the tractor. Use some common sense and enjoy the time with them.

 

[Wayne County Hose]

Walk a mile in a dairy farmer's shoes, then tell him how to operate his equipment.

 

[charlz]

Walk a mile in a dairy farmer's shoes, then tell him how to operate his equipment.

But do you realize what he has ON HIS SHOES??!! It's probably TOXIC !!!

 

[BigMccorm]

Just curious as to why that "stuff on his shoes" would be toxic......it's not from a pig ya' know...... ; )

 

[N80]

All accidents have stupidity behind them, period.

Andy, I think you and I are on the same page here, but I don't agree with that statement. It certainly hinges on what you call an accident. For you, maybe 'accident' means an event that happens as a result of stupidity. Which is fine. To me, an accident is any non-intended or undesired bad outcome. There are plenty examples of no-fault accidents out there. Just a matter of semantics.

On a farm, you need to get things done. If you are not a farmer, especially a dairy farmer, don't even bother to comment.

Again, see my post abve. We're in general agreement but I think you're being a little exclusive. There are plenty of non farmers on this site with years and years of experienc with tractors and similar equipment. And there are a few folks here with limited experience with tractors but plenty of common sense. Any of these can provide a reasonable opinion in this matter.

I grew up on a dairy farm and still have friends and relatives that own them.

This is key. A farm is more than an operation that uses big dangerous machines. At least until recently it was much more than that. It was, and still is in places, a family thing. In that regard, on many farms everyone works. Mom, Dad and the kids. In such a situation kids are put in a position where they have to confront adult sized risks and hazards. And it isn't just an economic arrangement. It is a way of life. And it is a vastly different way of life from most Americans, most of whom don't have a whole lot of insight into it or understanding of it. Particularly when it comes to the risks. I can't defend any of these typical family farm practices. They are what they are.

But as you alluded to, we Americans are totally impaired when it comes to assessing the risk in our lives. The same person who might be horrified to see this picture:

might also buy their 16 year old son a powerful car or motorcycle. Or even worse, as I've seen in this community, host parties in which a blind eye is turned on high school kids drinking.

And they also won't figure in the benefits of growing up on a farm. And watching my neices grow up, I feel very certain that the risks they they have endured are far outweighed by the benefits they've gained in accepting and surviving the family farm lifestyle.

So I'll say it again, particularly in reply to Paul's last reply:

All of the justifications will be for naught, if there is an accident...TRACTORS have ONE SEAT for a reason...ONE OPERATOR...

I don't think we can be quite so absolute when it comes to issues of safety. I think there is a big difference between smoking in a fireworks factory and a farm kid hitching a ride on a tractor in order to get work done.