KIds DO NOT belong on lawn mowing equipment

[roadhunter]

I'm amazed that in this day and age people on this thread are defending riding a mower, while mowing, with a child on their lap.

It's stupid and dangerous for no good reason. The kids don't know better, but you should.

I have a "neighbor" who does this on a regular basis. When I say neighbor, I mean a guy who lives a couple of miles down the road from me, who I've never met...not many people live out here. I always shake my head and think how stupid he is when I see it, and he provided more proof a couple of weeks ago. I went past his house and saw he was using the FEL on his Kubota BX to lift up the riding mower. I got a good look at it, and there were no jack stands, or anything else, but sure enough, he was lying under the mower working on it. Again, I shook my head at his stupidity. The next day I forgot to look on the way to work, but on the way home, the riding mower was still suspended from the FEL of the BX....he left it like that over night. Suspended load, nothing to prevent it from falling, leaving it suspended over night...the list goes on. The one thing I will say is that he's fat enough the rider falling on him probably wouldn't kill him.

Natural selection never stops working.

This is a good one. Lots of interesting info. 1 it appears you are not much of a neighbor if you live in the country and have no idea and have never met a neighbor from a couple miles away. Then you take shots at his intelligence and even his weight, yet another indication of you being insecure.
The best part is how upset you are that he left his mower suspended from the tractor overnight.

Gotta love the nosy judgemental neighbor, that's you. Please stay in Michigan.

Who knew riding on a garden tractor was such a dangerous activity. Sounds like according to a few of you we need legislation to ban all kids from lap riding on everything from 4 wheelers to garden tractors. Because that's dangerous and someone could get hurt.

 

[super55]

Say this individual is the only one home or the mrs. needs a well deserved nap. Is it better to leave the 3 year old unattended for a couple hours or have the child on your lap in an environment where a tragedy could happen?

Everything has inherent risks. When I was 10 years old I was running a small chainsaw bucking logs for firewood by myself. If I would have gotten injured would my parents been viewed as careless or negligent even though I probably had more knowledge of chainsaws than 90% of the people that go to Home Depot and go buy one off the shelf?

Most people would probably say strapping a kid to 30 gallons of flammable liquid and than have it move along at 55 mph is being careless as well but everyone in here has done it. Perhaps the Amish see us this way who knows.

 

[Industrial Toys]

I might handle it differently. Get a copy of some lawn mower child tragedy. Just go up and say, hey, not meaning to get in your business, but I had to think of this tragedy seeing you and your kid. Give it to him and wish him a good day. Maybe he's just another of the many non-thinking humans.

 

[hawkeye08]

Many opinions, but I did not see anyone mention (sorry if I missed it) teaching children to respect equipment. I let my 2 yr old grand daughter "drive the tractor" with me, she sits on my lap with hearing protection and turns the steering wheel. We have conversation about it not being a toy, not to go near it when papa is not there, stay back when I am on it, unless I stop, turn it off and put her on it.

Same thing with guns, kids are curious and if there are guns in the house, kids need to be taught respect and safety, then they are not curious and showing off for friends.

We are part of the problem, this is not disney land were all the rides are supposed to be safe and you can't get hurt. This is life and you will get hurt, more often when you are not using some common sense.

My BIL was over a number of years ago with my nephew. We were going to do some shooting, have a nice dam that makes a great backstop. We had some 2 liter plastic bottles and some cans for targets. Nephew was shooting a .22LR Ruger, and shot high a few times. I noticed he was aiming high on purpose and told him to aim at the targets and NOT shoot over the dam, that it was dangerous and someone could get hurt or killed. He behaved for a few minutes and then when he thought I was not looking, purposely shot over the dam. It hit in the field 1/3 mile away with a puff of dust. He was impressed with himself and was getting ready to pull the trigger again, when I took the rifle away from him, unloaded it and asked his dad and him to leave. No more shooting on my property if you can't follow simple safety rules. His dad was city boy (grown man in his fifties at the time) that should have known better, but is stupid that way. I had BB holes in the windows on my 53GMC truck (windows were perfect when parked) that we knew came from this nephew shooting around our house when we were not home. We saw his tracks in the snow when we got home from shopping one time in the winter (they lived less than 1/2 mile away). Nephew is adult now and has reasonable gun safety when he wants, still has some stupid that will get him (or others around him) hurt one day.

Anyway, We teach our children (and others for that matter) by our actions louder than our words and proper training can (and does) often save them from serious injury later in life. College degrees do not come with common sense, it seems lately that the more educated kids are, the more stupid they have.

 

[Industrial Toys]

As kids, we shot out the neighbors window shooting at birds with our .22s. One of many stupid things I have done and regret. The birds, more then the window.

A few years ago, a Mennonites kid came running up to his Dad cutting the grass. He slipped and went feet first under the mower.

I grew up in an Era where (my) parents didn't know where I was or what I was doing. At around ten, I got put in a neighbors car as they were heading to a cottage on the St. Lawrence Seaway. I spent the day hanging onto some homemade raft with a younger friend. There was no safety equipment, I never saw his parents all day, nor anyone for that matter and I never did learn how to swim! It's like, no one cared back them.

 

[fordmantpw]

I think back to a couple weeks ago when I got blasted in the face by a hickory nut thrown by the mower bouncing off a tree. It glanced off my sun/safety glasses and my cheek took the brunt of the hit. It could have been worse. I'm sure glad I don't have my kids on the mower with me when I mow...

However, I do let my kids on it and drive on flat level ground (with me on it of course), even help me do a bit of driveway work with the ratchet rake. But never while mowing or on unlevel ground.

 

[ultrarunner]

I find these posts interesting because as a child under 5 I was "Driving" the tractor in the field pulling a wagon the adults were loading...

True the tractor was creeping at a slow walk... the point was I was too like to load but old enough to steer down the windrows... and boy did I enjoy it... down one windrow and up the next as 6 grown ups loaded the wagon...

I've posted pictures before of this here at TBN...

From that moment on I was fascinated by equipment and really anything with a motor...

 

[Industrial Toys]

I drove an old Massey Harris 44 at about ten. I could barely operate the clutch. If I had gone into a ground hog hole, which there were many, it would have been ugly.

At about twelve, I drove a company pickup (accompanied) which my Dad had borrowed. I promptly drove into a swamp and we had to walk miles to get the tractor. My Dad wasn't impressed.

 

[fxdb96]

I bet none of the safety police drive compact cars with kids in them either right.... I think all kids should only ride in f350s since that would be safer in an accident.

Its all relative. What ever happened to common sense. My 2 year old mows with me all the time. I go a little slower, and make sure im diligent not to discharge into the side of a building where debris could bounce back. The wife and kid didnt understand NOT to approach unless the pto was off until i taught them.

Use common sense. Try not to be an idiot. Yes mistakes happen but you could trip and fall on your salad fork and die tomorow. Should we outlaw utensils then or provide adequate gaurding?

Hopefully Trump wins the debate tonight and teaches people to get tough again.

 

[kthompson]

Here you go, safe operation. Tell me how adults find this interesting?
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