Stupid (read: unexpected) ways to hurt yourself with your tractor.

[Gator6x4]

Was working on an old Wheel Horse Garden Tractor years ago (Still Have The Unit) I was working in the engine area and starting and stopping the engine. One time when I reached across to start the engine I also tripped the toggle switch that engages the mower PTO. The engine started and was running fine and my brain started saying the motor sounds funny. About the time my brain was deciding the motor sounded funny I looked down, my feet, toes of shoes were underneath the mowing deck and the deck belts were going around and around. The strange sound I was hearing was I was standing beside the mowing deck when it was engaged when I was usually setting on the Garden Tractor. I was very fortunate the slightest upward movement of my foot would have resulted in a very serious injury.I think about this each and every time I am working on something with a mowing deck attached.

 

[CinderSchnauzer]

I can't believe no one else has done this. Raise the bucket to forehead height and then shortly after walk into the edge with forehead.

 

[Runner]

Two that get me over and over:

1. Raise up and hit head on lowered ROPS while greasing or attaching/detaching implement drive. Another reason I should keep the ROPS up.

2. Catch leg of shorts on range lever, rip shorts and fall on face while dismounting machine.

 

[Noland]

I had a similar experience. I tried to hop off of the right side of my Ck20 instead of the left and ended up dangling almost horizontally from the broken FEL lever that slid up the leg of my shorts as I made my ill fated leap.

 

[mrmikey]

Just last weekend, the laces on my workboots got hooked around the fwd lever, **** near dislocated my leg until I realized what happened.
AS for Runners comment re the rop, I lost a few brain cells while doing just that, attaching my scarifier, not once but twice. Ran into it while stepping into the tractor to insert the pins, ran my melon up into it while standing up after inserting the pins, cursing my first hit. A definite Homer moment.......Mike

 

[joshuabardwell]

I have banged my head into the ROPs. I had the ROPs down because I had the tractor on a trailer and I wanted to make sure I didn't knock anything off with it. I went back to tighten a ratchet strap. In my mind, there were no obstructions, and I stood up RIGHT into the ROPs. I felt like a dummy too.

 

[whiskywizard]

Two that get me over and over:
2. Catch leg of shorts on range lever, rip shorts and fall on face while dismounting machine.

Me too; 3 times now. You'd think I would learn ...

 

[Z RENCH]

I was mowing one time at a friends house and raised up the bucket so I could get close to the fence line. Wow what good visibility with this thing all the way up in the air! As I continued creeping along, I felt some resistance; so I pressed on the hydro pedal a little more; felt like I was attached to a bungge cord, looked around and saw nothing obvious on the ground--- then looked up---saw my bucket was hooked on the over head power line I shut the tractor off and got off very gently trying not to touch anything metal.Got me a long wooden stick to get the snagged power line off the bucket. It ended up severing the wire and we had to call the power company to come out and repair it. Almost ended up Bar-B-Qued. Had visions of myself on a platter shaped like a Christmas turkey with all the trimmins' like you would see Wyle E Coyte envisioning when he is about to catch his prey:shocked:

 

[ASTROENG2011]

I haven't hurt myself seriously, but I did do something that made me look very foolish. While brush-hogging the sides of the county road in front of our house, a wasp landed just right on my nose. Without even thinking, I swatted it and my glasses off. Had to call my grandson to help me find them hanging on the fence about 10 feet from where the tractor stopped. Being severely nearsighted is not a good thing. Being overly self sufficient is very humbling when you have to call for help on something so simple. Just glad he was close and I had my phone.

 

[Gary Fowler]

I had a limb swat my glasses off once while bush hogging, ran over them with the tractor. I was lucky to find them and even luckier that none of the lens were scratched or broken. Eyeglass place was able to straighten out the frames. Very lucky that a bad luck situation turned out so well.