07 Jun Steph: Gauge it

Normally servicing equipment in the morning can be tedious and repetitive but this morning, we all rather enjoyed ourselves knowing a full day of cutting was ahead. We got started only for our moisture to be at 14.2 percent, leaving us no choice but to shut down for awhile so it could do its thing. But in harvest, there are no lulls. Right when the moisture verdict was made, Mom and I were sent to Enid, Okla. to get the precious part that would fix the air conditioning and gauges in the Peterbilt. We told Dad he should be able to listen to the engine and know if anything was wrong; gauges shouldn’t be necessary. He didn’t seem to agree.

Flashback: In 1995, my Dad had just bought his first Kenworth that had air conditioning. Dad was always in the combine back then and our hired help would drive the trucks. This particular year, we had two brothers on harvest with us. They would go around and around about who got to drive the truck with the AC. We had had the one brother on harvest with us previous years so he of course brought out the “I’ve been here longer” card. They were forced to take turns from stop to stop.

We were able to get up and running again around noon and continued on till 11pm.

Brandon cutting away. The farmer commented today that he would like to create a bug that only eats rye.

Giving the thumbs up to Mom after a successful backup job in a tricky spot!

Brandon poses by the combine, proud of the mud hole he conquered.

All Aboard Harvest is sponsored by High Plains Journal and Syngenta. You can contact Stephanie at stephanie@allaboardharvest.com.