I've had several category 9.5 - 10 pucker factor moments working with machinery.
When I was in high school, I had a job as an assistant mechanic for a pea harvest crew. One of my responsibilities was to make sure the combines knew where they were going, and to make sure nothing is wrong with the viners as they crawl though the fields. I worked the night crew, and it was the best job a 17yr old could have. One night in the field we dubbed the "Heck (with two 'L's instead of 'ck') Field" due to how steep the field was. The pea combines need to be 'level' in order to harvest properly. They do this automatically with hydraulics on each corner of the combine. They are slow to calibrate and automatically adjust. So at the top of the field, if an operator who has a full hopper, decides to turn around too quickly, not giving the levelers time to adjust, will tip over. Guess what happened almost EVERY NIGHT in that field?
Another thing that happened in the Heck Field was when I was driving my truck along the line of combines while they were going down the steep grade. I noticed the single white light (reverse light) on the back of one of the combines was turned on. Also, the backup beeper was beeping. But the combine was moving downhill, in forward. I suddenly realized what was happening and starting talking to the operator on the CB radio. The combines are hydrostatically driven with a lever, and the operator was scared so put the combine in REVERSE to maintain speed.... All Heck (and motors) broke loose as the combine narrowly avoided the machine in front of him and ran downhill uncontrolled without any hydraulic power! That was a long night.
Another eventful night for that harvest crew was in another (flatter) field out in the middle of nowhere, during a late night thunderstorm. When the lightning started getting close, I radioed to all the combines to stop, pick up their headers, shutoff their machines, and stay inside. The storm should pass rather quickly. One at a time, the bright lights of every combine in the field went dark. Except for the one, way over there, whom I forgot that I sent over there to open a new 'brake' in the field. He was so far away, he was out of radio range or had his music radio turned up so loud he didnt hear me. Either way, as I floored my truck in his direction, yelling at him on the radio to shutdown, I got about half way to him when BOOM!!.... I've never seen a lightning strike so close to me. The operator was ok, a bit shaken, and EMS was called to look him over, but the combine was not ok. It got loaded on a lowboy and taken to our shop where the mechanics totaled it as everything was fried.
That was the good ol days of my youth. More recent adventures where I suck the tractor seat up include getting that tippy feeling when side hilling, Tipping forward with too much in the FEL (or not enough on the back), tipping back while driving uphill and have too much on the back (and not enough in the front). Sliding sideways down the driveway while plowing snow. Watching the front axles sink into DEEP mud where you were not expecting mud. the side of the hill under the road fall away as you pass over it. The wheel start wobbling while doing a road move because you forgot to check the lug nut torque. Or coming to a complete stop while brush hogging your neighbors deep pasture grass because there is a stump he neglected to tell you about.
But living life in fear of death, to me, does not sound much like living. Take risks, just not unnecessary ones.
