I picked up another load of hay today. Loading is quick with the grapple - we put 150 bales on my 18' trailer. The hay is about 30 miles from home.

They on the way home BANG a tire blew out on I-75. Yikes. A piece of tread with steel belts came off and jammed behind the wheel preventing the tire from turning while I was finding a place to pull over. Smoke and noise, exciting! I eventually got the trailer far enough off the road for safety and set out my emergency warning triangles (don't leave home without some!) and started working on the tire. Fortunately, I had just checked the spare this morning and had a working jack.

The trailer has dual axles or the story would have been quite different. After two hours of working on uneven ground I was rolling again, made it home, and it was all over except for the unloading and stacking. A good workout for an old guy! I think tomorrow morning I'll get four new trailer tires plus one for the spare. Then go for another load.

The grapple puts 10 bales on the trailer with each grab. SO much better than loading by hand! If my friend gives up hay production some day I'll be in trouble.

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JKJ