Riding mower RIO (Ridiculous Idea On the Onset)

[Torvy]

Thank you!!! I am at least as tired of pointing that out as people are of me doing so.
If I remember correctly, she originally approached them for help with the hospital bills. They refused so she contacted a lawyer, and the rest as they say, is history.

She never completely recovered from her burns, and some believe that was a contributing factor in her death.

I feel bad for the lady, but it would be different if the McDonalds employee spilled it on her. It was her own ill-advised action that resulted in her burns. May as well sue the car manufacturer for not having enough cup holders. Why not the cup manufacturer? Their design also contributed. Her relative's driving also was a factor. Maybe sue Juan Valdez for picking the evil beans. Maybe sue Columbus for stumbling across the New World and leading to this coffee craze.

I don't drink coffee, but I know it is served hot most of the time (especially back then). No way would I put a cup of hot liquid between my legs. Lawyers on both sides turned this into a much bigger thing than it should have been. Our litigious system rewards people who do stupid things. McDonalds didn't do anything evil, they responded to their customers who wanted their coffee piping hot so it would stay that way over time. It was McDonald's lawyers who didn't want to settle because it would set a president of more people getting paid for their own misdeeds.

 

[Tinhack]

When I Googled RIO, most of the hits were on how to disable it, didn't sound like it was a big deal to do.

What I get is some animated cartoon movie. Looks like someone wants to control what we read now too.

Except for my ZTR I bought last year, I'm glad my machines are old. The ZTR has a "safety sequence" with the parking brake and control levers. I can never remember it so I almost kill the engine every time I get on or off the thing.

 

[metalbender]

I'll live with the safety features on my tractor and mower. No need to get off a mower with the blades spinning. Tractor needs to be in neutral to start, great, park brake is set. Think of all the preflight checks a pilot needs to do before flight.

 

[dodge man]

Did you hear about the three guys who were to be put to death by the guillotine? The first one the blade stopped an inch from his neck. They said it was a miracle and let him go. The second one the same thing, they let him go. The third was an engineer and as they strapped him down he said “if you grease that track a little bit”.

 

[Torvy]

Think of all the preflight checks a pilot needs to do before flight.

I would recommend you also go through the academic and practical training needed to be a pilot.

We spend way too many resources and too much time avoiding putting the blame on the real source of a problem. Parenting is hard. Having a child get hurt or killed is beyond tragic. That doesn't make it any less true that the reason this is a problem has zero to do with the device (mower, tractor, whatever).

 

[Oaktree]

I see no benefit from inability to mow in reverse.

Maybe you have a flat, open, level lawn with no nooks, crannies, dead ends, rocks or trees/bushes to mow around. Not all of us have that luxury. Having to turn off the mowing deck everytime you need to back up would be a MAJOR PITA for many of us.

I don't drink coffee, but I know it is served hot most of the time (especially back then). No way would I put a cup of hot liquid between my legs. Lawyers on both sides turned this into a much bigger thing than it should have been. Our litigious system rewards people who do stupid things. McDonalds didn't do anything evil, they responded to their customers who wanted their coffee piping hot so it would stay that way over time.

I'm not a coffee drinker either, but there's hot and then there's HOT. Absolutely no excuse for it to be so hot as to cause skin to burn through clothing.
The flimsy cups they used didn't help matters any, if you want it to stay hot over time then get an insulated travel mug, don't expect it to stay that way in a waxed paper cup.

No one's accusing McDonalds of being evil, but serving boiling hot coffee at a drive thru is negligent at the very least.

 

[Buggs67]

Except for my ZTR I bought last year, I'm glad my machines are old. The ZTR has a "safety sequence" with the parking brake and control levers. I can never remember it so I almost kill the engine every time I get on or off the thing.

When I bought my Hustler ZTM the salesman pointed out that putting the control handles out to the side automatically sets the parking brake. Which is nice. I still have to shut off the PTO but that is a safety device I can live with.

My tractor has to have the clutch depressed (HST) to start but that is the only safety interlock. No seat or parking brake switch.

 

[Oaktree]

My tractor has to have the clutch depressed (HST) to start but that is the only safety interlock. No seat or parking brake switch.

Same as mine. Before I got the Kioti I had a JD750 which in addition to a clutch switch there was on the PTO and one other that I can't recall what was. One of them became intermittent, so I just bypassed it.

I'm all for safety, and I've left the clutch switch in my LK in, problem is when "safety" devices start to impair the usability of a piece of equipment, they're just begging for it to be bypassed. A lot of this stuff could be better thought out.

 

[jaxs]

Preventing dismount while blades engaged and need for parking break before dismounting while engine is running might save an accident. I see no benefit from inability to mow in reverse.

Maybe you have a flat, open, level lawn with no nooks, crannies, dead ends, rocks or trees/bushes to mow around. Not all of us have that luxury. Having to turn off the mowing deck everytime you need to back up would be a MAJOR PITA for many of us.

Okie much of the debate resolve's around mfgrs installing automatic safty devices to protect people unable to comprehend what they read (such as warning stickers and operators manual cautions). Judging by your retort,either you or I are are one of those people slow to comprehend what we read.