Welcome All Aboard Scott

All Aboard Wheat Harvest is pleased to have additional harvest coverage in 2010 from guest blogger Scott Clark, with Clark Farms Harvesting and Trucking, Inc. Scott will make regular guest appearances on the All Aboard website, and will share his experiences with followers. Welcome All Aboard Scott!

Scott has shared photos with All Aboard followers. Visit the Guest Photo Gallery to take a peek.

Clark Farms Harvesting and Trucking was incorporated in 1993. The family owned and operated business follows the harvest annually, harvesting farmers’ crops. Kevin and Kimberly and their three children, Scott, Kendall, and Kassidy, have seen the ups and downs and experienced the daily trials of harvesting. For over 10 years, the family has also farmed 10,000+ acres in Louisiana and kept the combines harvesting seven months of the year. This year, Kevin and Kendall will lead four John Deere 9870sts machines, several Peterbilt trucks, two graincarts and 10 men across the Midwest.

Clark Harvesting
The trailers are loaded up and ready to go for the move.

However, this year, I will not be following the harvest trail with my family. Having managed my family’s operation for the last few summers throughout high school and college, it will be tough for me to part with the business that I have helped to establish. Next fall, I will be a senior at Oklahoma State University with a major in Mechanical and Biosystems Engineering and minors in Soil Science and Crop Science. In order to develop my technical skills and experience, this summer I will be following the harvest trail from Arizona to North Dakota doing endurance hours and acres testing with combines for an agricultural company. While most of my harvesting stops will be in the same direct proximity as my family, I will only be focusing on their harvest logistics and crop conditions.

My family typically begins harvesting in Louisiana, but a drought left us without a wheat crop there this year. Instead, we put our efforts toward producing new combine trailers that will legally haul the heavy machines of today. Additionally, we produced a homemade fifth-wheel RV trailer that we take on harvest with us. Check out the pictures!

housetrailer
Our homemade fifth-wheel, it looks pretty good!

June 5, my family made the move from our headquarters in Kiowa, Kan., to Kremlin, Okla., to begin harvesting. The short trip went smoothly and the equipment was unloaded and set up without any trouble. On June 6, the crew began sampling wheat and found the wheat to be about 13.3 percent moisture by 4 p.m. They harvested about 300 acres and got many preliminary kinks worked out of the machines.

The wheat crop suffered severe hail damage this spring and was appraised to have a 28 percent loss but has still been averaging 33 bushels per acre with 59- to 64 – pound weights in the early goings.

I hope that all of you wheat harvest followers enjoy following my family’s crew this summer. I hope to provide you with an inside look at our equipment, employees, and details about the harvest.

For more information email crew@allaboardharvest.com. All Aboard 2010 Wheat Harvest is sponsored by High Plains Journal and DuPont Crop Protection.

 

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