08 Jun “We just wanna work!”

 Our journey has ended in one sense but has only just begun in another. Osowski Ag Service rolled into the city limits of Hobart, Oklahoma, around noon yesterday, which completed our initial trip down but means we can finally get started harvesting! Without a minute to spare, we “threw” the camper into its spot at the campground and headed straight to the field. There were a few instances in the whole “straight” to the field part where I had to peel Dad away from different people from town he wanted to sit and gab all day long with, but my persistence won out each time. I tell you what, that guy is so dang social. However, when you harvest in a town for almost 30 years, everyone welcomes you back like family. Brandon and I just couldn’t wait to get back to work! The suspense was too much to bear.

We had what we thought was going to be quite the mechanical issue today. Brandon was making the first round of the field and all of a sudden, the combine came to a halt. We’d had an instance like this before and ended up needing to replace the transmission, so that was our first thought, as dark of a thought as it was. However, after making a few phone calls and taking a gander into the owner’s manual, we discovered a wire from the hydraulic motor had rubbed and was showing. Dad quickly put a connector on the wire and we were back up and running in no time!

As for our yields for today, we were a little bit scattered across the board. Yields were anywhere from 15 to 45 bushels per acre. The last field of the night before we shut down was consistently 40 though, so hopefully the fields will continue to progress from here on out. Test weights were around 60 pounds consistently.

Quote of the Day – “He has the personality of a woodtick.”

Hello there, Oklahoma.

A funny little anecdote from this morning: We were all getting saddled up in our respective rig for the duration of the trip to Hobart when Brandon says on the radio, “Mother Nature must have washed my windows for me, they are so clean!” Without missing a beat, Dad responds with, “Actually that would be me who washed your windows. All those bugs on there were driving me nuts.” I promise you that this whole “Mother Nature washing my windows” thing will be a long-running joke.

Dad getting the header ready to be unloaded.

A little teamwork.

First round of harvest 2015!

Meeting of the minds on the end of the field: Dad, Farmer Mike and Brandon.

A little technical issue.

Thankfully, a connector was the solution.

Cleaning out Purple extra well before she gets loaded up!

Water tower in Lone Wolf, the town we haul to.

Dad coming through the dust—turned out so cool!

Scale ticket from today.

Also, quick shout-out to Dennis from Anthony, Kansas! We were both in line getting some nutritious supper at McDonald’s and he kindly told me that he recognized me and Purple coming through town and that he enjoys reading All Aboard.

All Aboard Wheat Harvest™ is sponsored by High Plains Journal and New Holland Agriculture. You can contact Steph at stephanie@allaboardharvest.com.