Look behind you.

[Walkin Horse]

No I agree with you. Sometimes I wish I could yell at them. The only one I ever give the family treatment to is the girl that helps me. She just flips me off.

I have a place I prefer everybody to park. It's out of the way. I make sure it's off limits to equipment when people are there. This woman will come in park up in the outside tack area. Squeeze into the trailer parking. Or park right by the lumber stacks when she knows I'm working on building something. She does what I consider dumb s t with her horse. Brings a German Shepard who loves to get in my mule and poke holes in the seat with its nails. Once she brought a pit bull on a 25' retractable lead. That thing went after my trail dog until I hit it in the head with a shovel. But I can't seem to make myself kick her out.

 

[s219]

I see all sides of the issue, but I still think bystanders have the responsibility to not be stupid or suicidal. Even the most careful and safest operator could run over someone who suddenly jumped under the tractor. Heck, my toddler has more sense than that woman did. At 19 months she's fascinated by my tractor, and I let her sit in the seat in the barn (all hydraulics lowered and valves locked of course). But when I am operating she understands and knows to stand by mommy with her hand held, and because she's a toddler we both look out for her. A grown woman shouldn't need hand holding parents to prevent her from jumping under a tractor.

 

[k0ua]

Lots of children have more common sense than some adults.

 

[Texasmark]

My thought is that she was driven by what I call the "Motherhood syndrome". Her protective motherhood genes only saw that little puppy (baby) in harms way and she was concentrating on that. She couldn't help herself.

My 2c after being married for 49 years to the same woman.

Mark

 

[Mike_Kanzer]

Glad to hear it did not turn out badly. This is why the auto industry is moving towards installing back-up cameras in all their vehicles. You can't keep people from doing stupid things. I hope you have a good liability insurance policy for your farm since you have borders.

 

[MoKelly]

As my Mother always said "accidents don't happen on purpose". You almost have to assume now-a-days that someone will be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Looking back if the tractor is going back is a must.

Glad nothing went bad.

MoKelly

 

[Walkin Horse]

. I hope you have a good liability insurance policy for your farm since you have borders.[/QUOTE]

Yes last year I switched from State Farm to Farm Bureau. I have a million per incident. I set up an LLC and tried to separate the boarding from the house. State Farm wanted nothing to do with a boarding operation.

 

[Mace Canute]

No I agree with you. Sometimes I wish I could yell at them. The only one I ever give the family treatment to is the girl that helps me. She just flips me off.

I have a place I prefer everybody to park. It's out of the way. I make sure it's off limits to equipment when people are there. This woman will come in park up in the outside tack area. Squeeze into the trailer parking. Or park right by the lumber stacks when she knows I'm working on building something. She does what I consider dumb s t with her horse. Brings a German Shepard who loves to get in my mule and poke holes in the seat with its nails. Once she brought a pit bull on a 25' retractable lead. That thing went after my trail dog until I hit it in the head with a shovel. But I can't seem to make myself kick her out.

Can you afford to continue allowing her to come onto your property? From the brief description you give of her habits, it seems positive that someday your insurance policy will be triggered by her. She's "stuck on stupid".

 

[Threepoint]

[snip]I only wanted people to be aware when backing. Also to look down. People talk about cab tractors and visibility. I think if I had been in a cab I would never had seen her.

Really appreciate you sharing this experience. My newest tractor has a cab, and even though it has good 360 degree visibility, I still have a slight sense of sensory deprivation compared to open station. I only have 43 hours on it, so part of that is just getting used to it. I recently installed a backup camera and monitor for about $50, and it does a nice job. I likely would have seen your boarder with it without turning around, but then again, I probably wouldn't have heard her calling for her dog!

I'm actually thinking of adding a camera to my open-station B2150 and putting a clear baggy over the monitor when necessary.

 

[Walkin Horse]

I have never used a cab tractor. Would you have been able to see without the camera. Can they be removed when leaving outside. I think they would be much better than mirrors. I have decided I am going to get a backup alarm.

Sent from my iPhone using TractorByNet

 

[murphy1244]

The pedestrian always has the right of way? Not true. A jaywalker is on his or her own.

 

[Threepoint]

I have never used a cab tractor. Would you have been able to see without the camera. Can they be removed when leaving outside. I think they would be much better than mirrors. I have decided I am going to get a backup alarm.

Sent from my iPhone using TractorByNet

Don't know about other cabs, but mine has very good visibility to the rear. A window down behind the seat (separate from the main rear window) allows you to see the link arms and below quite well. But you've got to twist around, which gets harder with age!

The rear camera I installed is waterproof, so no worry about that, cab or no cab. The 7" color monitor, though, is not waterproof and must be protected. (It cost $28. A marine-grade, waterproof monitor runs around $300). However, it could be easily removed from its mount and unplugged from it's cable between uses. Hadn't thought about doing that, but it makes a lot of sense if on an open station tractor, even if parked under shelter.

 

[boggen]

rear view mirrors or cameras... meh...

there are dead zones more so around rear tires. directly behind, just to the sides of them, and a little bit in front of them.

placing a mirror clear out like some folks do on there trucks to see down side of a trailer behind them better.... meh... they would most likely get ripped off pretty good. tractor goes in every nook and cranry someone towing a trailer...majority road, and then a little bit parking. camera would most likely be same way of getting ripped off if sat clear out on the sides like the mirrors.

not sure about rest of you, but after a while my neck tightens up and/or back, and no way to physically turn completely behind me to check directly behind me. and i am not about to give myself whiplash constantly turning around to check out what is behind me. might sound like a lazy excuse. but it is what it is. ya i will turn my head around so i can, i don't know 10 feet behind me. but even then one side still has a dead zone that i do not completely see.

i would imagine those folks that need/wear glasses, to actually see, have a rougher time, seeing out the side of glasses, reducing field of vision even further.

do not get me wrong good set mirrors and/or backup camera can help. but it still doesn't eliminate dead zones around the tractor. and in many of the areas field of vision is still very ugly.

 

[Soundguy]

Some people have very low brainpower. .

that accounts for about 99% ( if not more ) of the worlds problems...

 

[dragoneggs]

that accounts for about 99% ( if not more ) of the worlds problems...

I'll drink to that! Oops... wrong thread.

 

[Looking4new]

I tell l my spotter (46 year old stepson) almost every time I use him, 'if you cannot see the front side of my head, then I cannot see you'. He is slowly getting the message. Usually when a particular operation stops, he checks to see why. Like I have something attached to the bucket via a chain and am lifting it, he will be giving directions on when to curl the bucket and I will loose sight of him and the operation stops. He has the nasty habit of standing on the 'blind side' of me when hooking up the trailer. He also seems to think that my Jeep is as tall as my Freightliner, because that is where his hand is when guiding me backwards.

 

[kidr]

If it was my barn I would have a no pets rule. Boarders dogs can cause a lot of havoc at a boarding barn.

You might think about a backup warning beeper in your situation.

 

[Walkin Horse]

Looking, I am teaching my helper to operate. That way I can be on the ground looking. It gives her more of chance to find out what the operator see's and what it's like when the groundman is screwing around.

I don't want to say no dogs allowed yet. I want to keep the place as family friendly as possible. I have a Trail Dog that goes everywhere with me. He has the title of The Sultan of Second Branch. I have have boarded at a barn where no dogs were allowed, only the barn cats. I didn't like it myself so I don't want to start it here. I would ban kids and teenagers first. But I'm planning on a playground next to the riding ring where mothers can ride and watch their kids at the same time.

This whole issue came from me choosing the wrong time to move the feed. I should have waited instead of doing it on a busy Sunday afternoon. I will be doing things like this differently now. I am going to put a backup alarm on at the next time I have it in the garage for service.

 

[skyhook]

After reading this, the only conclusion I can come to is.....
At least "the dog" had enough common sense to get out of the way of the tractor.
Walkin Horse, once you install your back up alarm, inform everyone to stay well clear of the back when it's sounding or it's an automatic "eviction" no exceptions.

 

[rmk700]

The pedestrian always has the right of way. Yes you need to look. If you hadn't been creeping- you would have run her over. Then what. She was bringing it on to herself- her carelessness, but you were operating the tractor. Your tractor would have done the killing. It is good nothing happened. Don't blame her carelessness for your inattention.

In todays society where nobody takes accountability anymore, the pedestrian would have the right of way. In the common sense, instinct survival world, it's whatever is bigger has the right of way.

In the book smarts world, the tractor would be the killing culprit, however in the common sense world it's the operator of the tractor that would of been the culprit. The tractor is a mere tool.

The operator is indeed responsible NOT to hurt themselves or anyone else. The lady crawling by the tire is also responsible NOT to hurt herself and ultimately will lose out the biggest.

We need survival instincts, common sense, and taking accountability for our own neglegents brought back into todays modern times.