Tractors On Public Roads

[Harv]

Jag -

I'm willing to believe that the exact laws and the degree of enforcement varies across the nation.

I took a peek at the Arkansas Motor Vehicle Code and I found it amusing that it says farm tractors and the like "should" have SMV emblems, as opposed to the California law which says they "must" have one. Doesn't surprise me, though. California is not known for it's careful drivers. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Actually, I couldn't find much about off-road or farm equipment at all in your state. Maybe I'm just not finding it, or maybe tractors have free reign out there. Sure would make things easier for farmers, huh? /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

 

[Billc]

This post is a little off topic but goes along with the earier post about the black mules.

Anyone know of the Goatman? I swear I am not making this up. There was a fella, he died in about '94 at the age of 90 or so. Anyway everyone knew him by the name "The Goatman". Back during the Depression he was in a logging accident and thought to be dead. They took him to the morgue. Turns out he was very much alive. After the accident he couldn't work anymore because of a mangled left arm. He didn't want to be a burden to anyone so he hit the road. He traveled in a ramshackled old waggon that pulled a smaller additional ramshackled waggon. Both waggons were piled high with junk he found along the road. Instead of horses pulling this contraption he used goats...up to 20 something goats traveled with him at a time.

His team of goats and two waggons traveled on state highways every summer from the 1930s to the early 1970s. During the winter he stayed in South Georgia. He and his caravan would travel to the Carolinas, Virginias, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, up to Iowa, I think. He was from Iowa...or one of the states close to there.

People would know he was coming days before he got there because of two clues: First, he would back traffic up on the state highways for miles. He didn't much care if he had three or three-hundred cars backed up behind him. Second, you could smell him coming from 30 miles away.

After his third wife left him the Goatman came to two realizations: First, he would never take another bath (this was in the 1940s). Second, he said according to the Bible that God said 7 woman were put on Earth for each man. If it was o.k. with the rest of the men another man could have his other four, he didn't want them.

Again, I'm not making this up. Does anyone remember him coming through your town? It was always a big event.

Bill Cook

P.S. See what you folks in California are missing???

 

[TomG]

I imagine regs vary from place to place. In general, I have the impression that the use of off-road fuel on public roads is restricted to direct paths between off-road work sites. I imagine that means no errands to the store by tractor, and driving the tractor to a dealer for service probably is a gray area.

I drive my tractor about 10 miles on a highway between house and camp a couple times a year. I decided that my 1/2 ton wouldn't quite cut the tow job, and I'd also end up with a larger trailer than desirable for most uses. I bought a 5' x 8' utility trailer instead. I use 3ph pallet forks to load implements into the trailer and truck bed and drive both truck and tractor to the camp.

My wife might become resistant to ferrying me back and forth if I made this trip a lot, but it's OK for occasional trips. With the trailer/truck loaded, I can have 2 or 3 implements at the camp plus the forks. I don't think most trailers can carry a tractor plus four implements. And, I don't have to take a monster trailer when I go to the dump.

 

[Thomas]

Harv,
Also from December 1st until May 1st your allow to run tire chains on the 3 class up roads..but not Canadian tire chains.
I heard Maine has the toughs laws when it comes to studded snow tires. /w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif

Thomas..NH /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

 

[markcg2000]

Goat Man??? I figured that had to be a some blown out of proportion legend, so I did a serach...

here ya go!/w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif
Down at the bottem of the page there is a link to the Goat Man. I couldn't use the direct link because there is an apostrophe in it, but here is that link:
http://www.stalkingthewild.com/america'.htm

<font color=green>mark</font color=green>

 

[Jag]

Harv, Arkansas is a rural state and I am not sure now if farming is still the largest industry, but farming and timber together is largest by a long long shot.. And moving equipment around the state what ever way you want to do it is not problem... And I dare say has the right-of way....

 

[Jag]

Harv, also I forgot to tell you it is not uncommon to see kids say 12 and up moving tractor lights or no lights over the roads. This is not the rule, and most of the younger ones would appear to be 16 or so and up....

 

[RICK R]

My wife saw the Goatman come though here ,western NC,back in the sixtys.

 

[Harv]

<font color=blue>See what you folks in California are missing???</font color=blue>

Don't you fret none about us, Bill. We have no shortage of strange people in this state. /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

 

[Bird]

Harv, I've stayed out of this discussion thus far for a couple of reasons: (1) I was a city cop in a big city and just didn't have occasion to be too concerned with enforcing farm equipment laws, and (2) it's too complicated and complex in the State of Texas - as with a lot of laws. I just took a quick look at the State's web site for statutes and find "farm tractors" are included in 736 documents./w3tcompact/icons/frown.gif

I do know there are some lighting requirements; headlight, taillight if operated at night, there is a 25 mph speed limit, a SMV emblem is required, etc. I was also surprised to find one place that says registration is not required on farm tractors under 4,000 gross weight (I didn't know it was ever required and if anyone registers them, I sure didn't know that).

As a practical matter, farm equipment is running up and down these roads around here all the time, and if they stay off the Interstate Highways, I've never known of a police officer to stop one for anything, although I guess it's bound to have happened somewhere sometime.

Bird

 

[Harv]

Thanks, Bird.

I was hoping somebody with actual law enforcement experience would say something.

I think we've established what the basic laws are concerning our little tractors. I think we have also observed that at least some of these laws are treated more as guidelines by the local police.

For my part, I will make sure my SMV emblem is clearly visible and my lights are flashing, and I will makes sure I obey the "normal" driving laws. Beyond that, my main concern is to simply not take any unnecessary chances or do anything too stupid. /w3tcompact/icons/crazy.gif

 

[gerard]

Harv,
Don't know if you want the real LEGAL answer but i've been in law enforcement for more than a few years. While I don't write tickets anymore I used to and I can tell you there would have to be some really strange circumstances that would have caused me to pull anyone over on a tractor on a rural road. Drive it out on the interstate and you'd get stopped. Drive on the shoulder on the back roads and in all practicality you'll probably never have a problem. (Unless someone hits you and the laywers get involved, then all bets are off!!)

 

[richh]

goatman? what a story!!

 

[Billc]

Mark,
Great web sight! Got to love the internet!

Mark found the web sight detailing the life of the Goatman, and the sight has some pictures of him...the Goatman, not Mark. Really interesting.

When I was a kid we would take a few beers and our girlfriends and park by some old train tracks. One of the scary stories we told was about the Goatman. He had been raised by goats and traveled the back roads with them. He was half goat himself. The story doesn't sound too scary now, but back then, in the dark, after some yarn spinning, one of the guys in the group who had slipped away during the story telling, would come screaming out of the bushes.(This was before Jesse Jackson told us to "Stay out da Bushes") It was a sure bet to get your girlfriend to grab on to you.

I wonder if the real Goatman inspired these stories, I know they had been around long before we told them. If he did, then I owe him a big thank you.

Bill Cook

 

[cowboydoc]

Harv,
I treat alot of the state police officers here and had one in last night and asked him about this. He said that as long as the tractor was being used for "ag use" all you had to have was an SMV sign during the day and at night you needed front headlights and rear reflectors. The SMV HAS to be on the last piece on machinery used. So if you're pulling a wagon there has to an SMV sign on the wagon. No other requirements for "ag use". For commercial use he said it's a whole different ballgame. You have to haul the equipment, have to have the right licenses, trailer, truck, etc, etc. He said you really don't even want to know what the commercial guys have to go through. I asked him well what about the weekend farmer or guy clearing his ground or something. He said as long as you are going from one property to another with the purpose of working the ground or livestock no problem. Also said that if you are hindering the flow of three or more vehicles you are supposed to pull over and let the cars pass. Now here is what kinda surprised me. You CANNOT use a tractor as transportation unless it conforms to the rules of the road, ie the tractor would have to be made road legal. Tires, lights, turn signals, etc. If you use a tractor for transportation you have to go within 10 miles of the speed limit either above or below. I never knew you could get a ticket for going too slow. Or you have to drive in such a way as that it does not hinder the normal flow of traffic, lot of ambiguity there. He has been on the force for 24 years now and told me has even given a couple drunk driving tickets for guys that had their license taken away and drove their tractors into the tavern! In Iowa anyway then you are just fine with an SMV emblem during the day and lights at night. No other restrictions.
Richard

 

[dullpain]

Harv I just bet your road ain't got no class!! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

For those worried about tire wear on asphalt - Don't - unless you are making 25 mile round trips 3 times a week. That goes for R-1, R-4, and them fake tractor tires TURF.

I live in a rural farming community. Folks around here are aware there can be a Tractor around any corner or curve. We transport Hay, Tobacco, Implements, and such all the time.

I have a Vet 4 miles from the house. He cleaned out his barn and the wife wanted the rhino, & tiger manure for the garden. Took 2 hay wagons on the road to load it up. She followed me in the car (chase vehicle?) with Emergency flashers going just for safety. Of course I had all my lites going but was worried on the return trip with a load of dung someone from behind may not see my lites. I plan to add a rotating beacon to top of my canopy for just such occasions.

It's just a way of life out here and most people accept it. You do however get the non-local (city cat) on the road that is impatient somtimes. Those dudes scare me.

 

[heehaw]

i have told this story several times in the last couple years, no one has believed me yet, but here goes; in 98 my wife an i made a little trip to England; rented a car at the airport and hit the M??? heading north east from London; not being use to driving on the wrong side of the road from the wrong side of the vehicle, i stayed in the "slow"(left) lane of the 4 lanes in one direction super-highway; folks were going well above 70; i was staying in the 55-60 range; we passed several very large fields that all appeared to have just been plowed, my wife an i even discussed so many fields freshly plowed; well, i looked in my rear view mirror, an told my wife "your not gonna believe this, but there is the biggest JD tractor i've ever seen gaining on us; i'm gonna have to speed up or pull over to let him by" about that time we came to an exit and the tractor took it; during the 2 weeks we were there, i pulled over twice and let biggg tractors pass while i was on 2 lane roads..
on the back home side; i tried trailing a friend on his tractor a couple weeks ago, i was buying some hay from him, and he was moving his tractor over to the field to load it, @5 miles on a 2 lane road; i was pulling a 16ft trailer to haul the hay on, with flashers etc etc..i think it caused more trouble than just letting him go on his own; some folks are gonna pass, no matter what, and its easier to pass a single tractor than a vehicle and a tractor..
heehaw