Cowboyjg
Silver Member
Slimninny Picket\'s 4 wheeled adventures
"The Slippery Slope"
Even at 4 in the morning the Florida summer air is as thick as cream cheese. I cut my way to the truck and started it up. The "Baby" is all loaded and my travel companion sits anxiously in the back seat awaiting our departure.
We stopped for breakfast before hopping on the interstate for a roughly 12-14 hour trip to our little slice of heaven. All fueled up, the dog, the truck, the tractor and myself, we're on our way just before sun-up. Of course I cannot go on without mentioning the Mrs bemoaning how she wished she could go but that she can't get away from the J O B. This is tempered by her last minute announcement that she and the oldest boy got bargain basement tickets to fly to MD to see her folks for a long weekend she somehow wrangled from the boss.. /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif
So, the mutt and I are northbound with the blast furnace at our backs. We were making good time, and speaking of time, had managed to miss the gridlock of the Atlanta Beltway. Typically I get off at Macon and head toward Athens then to NC but because of all the construction the last couple trips I thought I'd try I-985 instead.
I am a firm believer that Utopia exists only in our heads. With that in mind, we hit our first "bump in the road" in our adventure. It's 1:45 in the afternoon. I'm making calls on the cell trying to tie up loose ends so I can have a relatively problem free time. I'm in the center lane and there's this lady on my right laying on the horn trying to get my attention. When I look over she's pointing behind me like I should be interested in what's happening back there. A quick glance in the rear view mirror reveals this cloud of white smoke billowing out from behind me. I looked in the right mirror...nothing but smoke. The first thought flashes through my head...My tranny is burning up. I glance at the dash to check my guages as my eyes head for the left side mirror. Dash guages are fine....I look left to see the rear trailer tire disintigrating before my eyes.... /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif
I limped off at the nearest exit. Never been here before....Oh, did I mention that I didn't have a spare... /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif I found a nice fella at a nearby convenience store who let me drop the trailer so I can scour the area for a replacement tire and a spare... /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif 4 1/2 hrs later I'm back at the trailer changing the tire. Amazing how little people know about thier own neighborhood. My first encounter was with a deputy sheriff who patrols the area and had no clue where even the nearest walmart was.... /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif Anyway, we're back on the road and finally get to our destination a little after midnight.
The next day begins with temps in the mid-upper 50's.... /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif The air is crisp, the birds are singing, the dog is barking at the neighbors cows and all seems right with the world. Day one is a trip into town for supplies and other business....the wife has her eye on a late 1800's victorian farm house in town and it's my job to check it out... /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif
Back from town it's time to unload and prep the tractor and get ready for some seat time... /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
Another beautiful morning....time to get to work... /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif Let's start with the easy stuff
Now let's try some place we've never been before. Some pretty steep slopes.
Little things found along the way.
Work, work work.... /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
Some other shots.....
one two three
Do you thinks someone's questioning my tractor abilities????
Some interesting side notes...I accidentally (unbeknownst to me at the time) hit the control for one of my rear remotes while bush hogging. I couldn't get my 3PH to come up. I couldn't figure out what I had done. I walked around and around the machine. Crawled underneath. Nothing seemed out of place. I turned the tractor on and off. I looked at EVERYTHING...I thought.... /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif So I climbed up in the seat, feeling dejected, wondering whether this is another omen about my trip. Cell phone in hand I called the dealer. The person I needed to speak to was at lunch and would call as soon as he got back. Still sitting in the seat my mind ran wild about all the possibilities. Out of the corner of my eye I noticed the handle was stuck open. A certain sense of stupidity came over me as well as a sense of relief. The dealer called and we both shared a chuckle about it.
Does anyone elses step seem flimsey? My step frame has bent on each side of the two outside screws that attach it to the tractor. Almost like it's not strong enough to support my weight over the long term?
Well, all good things must come to an end... /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif
The trip back to Fl. went much smoother than the trip up although I will say that I believe the tire lost on the way up was defective. I lost the other side on the way back but without any load this time as I left the tractor with a neighbor.... /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif
Well, back to the grind....looking to go back in Oct... /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
"The Slippery Slope"
Even at 4 in the morning the Florida summer air is as thick as cream cheese. I cut my way to the truck and started it up. The "Baby" is all loaded and my travel companion sits anxiously in the back seat awaiting our departure.
We stopped for breakfast before hopping on the interstate for a roughly 12-14 hour trip to our little slice of heaven. All fueled up, the dog, the truck, the tractor and myself, we're on our way just before sun-up. Of course I cannot go on without mentioning the Mrs bemoaning how she wished she could go but that she can't get away from the J O B. This is tempered by her last minute announcement that she and the oldest boy got bargain basement tickets to fly to MD to see her folks for a long weekend she somehow wrangled from the boss.. /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif
So, the mutt and I are northbound with the blast furnace at our backs. We were making good time, and speaking of time, had managed to miss the gridlock of the Atlanta Beltway. Typically I get off at Macon and head toward Athens then to NC but because of all the construction the last couple trips I thought I'd try I-985 instead.
I am a firm believer that Utopia exists only in our heads. With that in mind, we hit our first "bump in the road" in our adventure. It's 1:45 in the afternoon. I'm making calls on the cell trying to tie up loose ends so I can have a relatively problem free time. I'm in the center lane and there's this lady on my right laying on the horn trying to get my attention. When I look over she's pointing behind me like I should be interested in what's happening back there. A quick glance in the rear view mirror reveals this cloud of white smoke billowing out from behind me. I looked in the right mirror...nothing but smoke. The first thought flashes through my head...My tranny is burning up. I glance at the dash to check my guages as my eyes head for the left side mirror. Dash guages are fine....I look left to see the rear trailer tire disintigrating before my eyes.... /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif
I limped off at the nearest exit. Never been here before....Oh, did I mention that I didn't have a spare... /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif I found a nice fella at a nearby convenience store who let me drop the trailer so I can scour the area for a replacement tire and a spare... /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif 4 1/2 hrs later I'm back at the trailer changing the tire. Amazing how little people know about thier own neighborhood. My first encounter was with a deputy sheriff who patrols the area and had no clue where even the nearest walmart was.... /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif Anyway, we're back on the road and finally get to our destination a little after midnight.
The next day begins with temps in the mid-upper 50's.... /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif The air is crisp, the birds are singing, the dog is barking at the neighbors cows and all seems right with the world. Day one is a trip into town for supplies and other business....the wife has her eye on a late 1800's victorian farm house in town and it's my job to check it out... /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif
Back from town it's time to unload and prep the tractor and get ready for some seat time... /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
Another beautiful morning....time to get to work... /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif Let's start with the easy stuff
Now let's try some place we've never been before. Some pretty steep slopes.
Little things found along the way.
Work, work work.... /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
Some other shots.....
one two three
Do you thinks someone's questioning my tractor abilities????
Some interesting side notes...I accidentally (unbeknownst to me at the time) hit the control for one of my rear remotes while bush hogging. I couldn't get my 3PH to come up. I couldn't figure out what I had done. I walked around and around the machine. Crawled underneath. Nothing seemed out of place. I turned the tractor on and off. I looked at EVERYTHING...I thought.... /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif So I climbed up in the seat, feeling dejected, wondering whether this is another omen about my trip. Cell phone in hand I called the dealer. The person I needed to speak to was at lunch and would call as soon as he got back. Still sitting in the seat my mind ran wild about all the possibilities. Out of the corner of my eye I noticed the handle was stuck open. A certain sense of stupidity came over me as well as a sense of relief. The dealer called and we both shared a chuckle about it.
Does anyone elses step seem flimsey? My step frame has bent on each side of the two outside screws that attach it to the tractor. Almost like it's not strong enough to support my weight over the long term?
Well, all good things must come to an end... /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif
The trip back to Fl. went much smoother than the trip up although I will say that I believe the tire lost on the way up was defective. I lost the other side on the way back but without any load this time as I left the tractor with a neighbor.... /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif
Well, back to the grind....looking to go back in Oct... /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
