Don't Try This at Home
My brother Ronald, who lives in Labette County, KS has a friend who, just before Christmas, had one of the most harrowing experiences I can imagine. I’ll call him Jim. He is a farmer with a day job as a part owner of a steel storage tank fabrication business.
One morning several weeks ago, before daybreak, he went to feed his cattle in a field down the road from his home. He drove there in his tractor, which he needed in order to maneuver a huge round hay bale into feeding position. On his way to the field, an apparent electrical problem caused the engine to die whenever he turned on the lights, so he crept toward the field down the sparsely traveled road, without his lights. At the field lane, he stopped the tractor, put it out of gear, and left it idling while he hopped off to open the gate. After he dismounted, the tractor lurched into gear spontaneously and Jim raced after it to bring the behemoth to a stop. His attempted leap onto the tractor steps leading to the cab ended when he fell and one huge tractor wheel passed over his leg, producing a compound fracture of his thigh bone.
The renegade tractor roared off. Jim could hear it, but because it was dark and the tractor had no lights, he could never be sure exactly where it was. He could hear it come very close repeatedly, but it never passed over any part of his body again. He drifted in and out of consciousness. . .
Meanwhile, the tractor was apparently lumbering through fields, diving in and out of the ditches beside the road, knocking down fences, and crossing the road–approximately seven times as later analysis revealed.
Finally the tractor butted up against a row of hay bales at the side of the field, and the engine died as its progress ground to a halt.
Jim decided to try to get into the tractor to try to drive himself home. His broken leg was uncooperative and kept jutting out at awkward angles, so he tied his bad leg to his good one with a piece of barbed wire he found nearby. With this makeshift splint, he managed to drag himself to the tractor and hoist and pull himself into the cab. He turned the key, and nothing happened. So he waited. He rued the fact that he had forgotten his cell phone at home.
While he was waiting, he took off his undershirt and made a flag of it by tying it to a rod. He planned to poke it out the window of the tractor cab if anyone should come by on the road. He saw his wife leave for her school bus route and his daughter leave for work. Neither one passed by the tractor or noticed anything unusual. Nor did anyone else. The only one left at home was a son, having arrived home from college the day before. Jim expected him to sleep late.
After about an hour and a half, a vehicle passed by–without stopping.
But joy, joy! The driver turned around and came back because he thought something didn’t look quite right. Only then did he notice the white flag and make his way to the tractor to talk to Jim. Apparently used to getting himself out of whatever scrapes he got himself into, Jim didn’t immediately burden emergency services with his dilemma. Instead, he instructed his benefactor to go to the house to wake his son (“Don’t knock; he’ll never hear you.”) and ask him to come get his father and take him to the hospital. The passerby followed instructions, the son arrived, and, after trying unsuccessfully to get Jim into the van for a trip to the hospital, they gave up and called 911 for help. Emergency workers transported him to the hospital.
The following day Ronald visited with him in his hospital room. The leg had been set during surgery, and Jim was expected to recover satisfactorily.
Oh yes, when others went to retrieve the tractor and feed the cattle, it started right up after they shifted it out of gear.
Don’t you hate it when that happens?
One morning several weeks ago, before daybreak, he went to feed his cattle in a field down the road from his home. He drove there in his tractor, which he needed in order to maneuver a huge round hay bale into feeding position. On his way to the field, an apparent electrical problem caused the engine to die whenever he turned on the lights, so he crept toward the field down the sparsely traveled road, without his lights. At the field lane, he stopped the tractor, put it out of gear, and left it idling while he hopped off to open the gate. After he dismounted, the tractor lurched into gear spontaneously and Jim raced after it to bring the behemoth to a stop. His attempted leap onto the tractor steps leading to the cab ended when he fell and one huge tractor wheel passed over his leg, producing a compound fracture of his thigh bone.
The renegade tractor roared off. Jim could hear it, but because it was dark and the tractor had no lights, he could never be sure exactly where it was. He could hear it come very close repeatedly, but it never passed over any part of his body again. He drifted in and out of consciousness. . .
Meanwhile, the tractor was apparently lumbering through fields, diving in and out of the ditches beside the road, knocking down fences, and crossing the road–approximately seven times as later analysis revealed.
Finally the tractor butted up against a row of hay bales at the side of the field, and the engine died as its progress ground to a halt.
Jim decided to try to get into the tractor to try to drive himself home. His broken leg was uncooperative and kept jutting out at awkward angles, so he tied his bad leg to his good one with a piece of barbed wire he found nearby. With this makeshift splint, he managed to drag himself to the tractor and hoist and pull himself into the cab. He turned the key, and nothing happened. So he waited. He rued the fact that he had forgotten his cell phone at home.
While he was waiting, he took off his undershirt and made a flag of it by tying it to a rod. He planned to poke it out the window of the tractor cab if anyone should come by on the road. He saw his wife leave for her school bus route and his daughter leave for work. Neither one passed by the tractor or noticed anything unusual. Nor did anyone else. The only one left at home was a son, having arrived home from college the day before. Jim expected him to sleep late.
After about an hour and a half, a vehicle passed by–without stopping.
But joy, joy! The driver turned around and came back because he thought something didn’t look quite right. Only then did he notice the white flag and make his way to the tractor to talk to Jim. Apparently used to getting himself out of whatever scrapes he got himself into, Jim didn’t immediately burden emergency services with his dilemma. Instead, he instructed his benefactor to go to the house to wake his son (“Don’t knock; he’ll never hear you.”) and ask him to come get his father and take him to the hospital. The passerby followed instructions, the son arrived, and, after trying unsuccessfully to get Jim into the van for a trip to the hospital, they gave up and called 911 for help. Emergency workers transported him to the hospital.
The following day Ronald visited with him in his hospital room. The leg had been set during surgery, and Jim was expected to recover satisfactorily.
Oh yes, when others went to retrieve the tractor and feed the cattle, it started right up after they shifted it out of gear.
Don’t you hate it when that happens?
posted by Mrs. I at
4:47 AM
1 Comments:
Okay--sometimes these things aren't just nightmares--you only wish you could wake up and say you are glad it was only a dream. I don't know that I would dare tell him--but he actually was quite fortunate. The outcome could have been much grimmer.
Dorcas B.
By
Anonymous, at 1/26/2007
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