Neighbor Rolled His Ford 4000 Yesterday

[CurlyDave]

My 77 year old neighbor was coming down his very steep driveway yesterday. When he was at a section where the driveway is about 5' above grade, on top of pit run shale (about a 45 degree angle of repose) a front wheel went over the side.

Soon both wheels on the left side were over the side of the driveway, and the tractor rolled over and down the 5' embankment.

Very fortunately the loader was up at its maximum height, and he had an 8' or 10' hay rake on the 3 point. As far as I could see, the combination of these two things prevented the tractor from going any further than just laying over on its left side. Of course he was thrown out of the seat and banged up considerably. I think he is incredibly lucky not to have been crushed.

I was coming home from town when I got a call from his son that they needed my tractor right away. I got there about 15 minutes after the accident.

Using both his JD4410 and my 110 TLB, we dragged the Ford about 5' from the embankment. Then I lifted the bucket of the Ford with my loader, while he pulled the right rear wheel from the opposite side of the driveway with a chain. In a few minutes, we had it upright.

We let it sit for a few minutes, checked the engine oil, and bled the injectors. It would crank over, but not start, so his son sprayed WD-40 into the air intake while he cranked and in a minute or so it was running.

Two minutes later he said he was going to go rake the hayfield, and off he went.

All I could do was stand in slack-jawed amazement as he drove the tractor away. That is one tough old bird.

Anyway, this morning he was sore, but spent all day running (and fixing) a hay baler.

 

[NuBota]

Wow! I really hope I'm that tough at 77. Glad he was not seriously hurt.

And just the thought of the tractor on its side makes me cringe....

 

[Eagleview]

I'm supprised he made it to that age doing things like driving down a slope with the loader raised at full height .

 

[wedge40]

He didn't even stop to change underwear.

Wedge

 

[rox]

My 77 year old neighbor was coming down his very steep driveway yesterday. When he was at a section where the driveway is about 5' above grade, on top of pit run shale (about a 45 degree angle of repose) a front wheel went over the side.
...

All I could do was stand in slack-jawed amazement as he drove the tractor away. That is one tough old bird.

Anyway, this morning he was sore, but spent all day running (and fixing) a hay baler.

CurlyDave,
My dad will be 84 this year and he flys from Chicago to the south of France, gets a 25 minute drive from the Marsailll airport to our house, takes a 30 minute nap gets up and puts his boots on ans says, "What field are they working in I'm ready to go." Some men, and it is mostly men from what i can see, have a real desire and capacity for work. I worked a lot at GE, a lot, but it was mental work not physical work. My dad ever stops for a minute when he is at home, he does a lot of volunteer work and then his garden etc. He can't do the heavy work any more but he is always busy. My dad says that working keeps you young. He also has another saying that slays me, a change of work is liek a rest. I other words, if you are done int he garden and move onto painting that change in work the painting is like a rest. Go figure.

I bet your neighbor will work until the day he dies.

 

[CurlyDave]

I bet your neighbor will work until the day he dies.

I am certain he will.

The really funny thing is that he is doing this to help out an old friend, and he is not paid at all for any of the haying work he does. Hay has gone from $3.50 per bale last year to over $7.00 this year.

He is the best neighbor I have ever had.

I did take the opportunity to point out the value of seat belts, there is a ROPS and seat belt on his JD 4410, but I am afraid my words fell on deaf ears.

 

[Kernopelli]

Quite a story... they just don't make 'em like that anymore! Truly one of the "Great Generation".
He sounds a lot like my uncle. He is 86 this year and still tough as nails and works every day. The last time he came to visit (he was 83 then), he drove straight through from Fl. (14 hrs.). When he got here he came in to use the bathroom and then quickly went outside again, he said he was getting something from the car. After a few minutes I went out to see what he was doing and he had gotten a shovel out of the garage and was filling a wheel barrow from a pile of mulch I had sitting between several flower beds. It was probably 95 degrees and in full sun and he was shoveling faster than I would would prefer. He insisted he "hadn't done anything to break a sweat in almost 2 days and I'm going stir crazy". You couldn't have preyed that shovel from his hands with a crow bar. He told me if I wanted to talk and visit, I could grab another shovel and we could do it while we mulched the beds. The whole time he lectured me on the perils of retiring too soon.

 

[Soundguy]

While the loader being up may have stalle dthe roll to only a side roll.. IMHO.. it being up also contributed tot he roll in the first place. When his tires went over the edge of the road.. letting the tractor tilt, that hi lifted loader raised his COG considerably, and thus made the tractor roll easier.. had the bucket been 1' off the ground.. he may not have rolled.. or may have bene able to steer back on the road.. or at least steer down instead of rolling..

glad he wasn't seriously hurt.

soundguy

 

[scott_vt]

While the loader being up may have stalle dthe roll to only a side roll.. IMHO.. it being up also contributed tot he roll in the first place. When his tires went over the edge of the road.. letting the tractor tilt, that hi lifted loader raised his COG considerably, and thus made the tractor roll easier.. had the bucket been 1' off the ground.. he may not have rolled.. or may have bene able to steer back on the road.. or at least steer down instead of rolling..

glad he wasn't seriously hurt.

soundguy

Afternoon Chris,
I gotta agree with you on that one, whenever Im on steep sections of my property I have the bucket just above ground level. To me its an added insurance when bushoggin, the 6 ft bucket sticks out past the wheel base adding some level of protection !

 

[Soundguy]

Yep.. with it up in the air.. if you move 6" on the ground. think about how far that bucket up in the air is swinging.

soundguy