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Ouch...lawn tractor slide sideways down hill, into tree

Melensdad

Jerk in a Hawaiian Shirt & SNOWCAT Moderator
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
I think it was the branch pressing against my rib cage that stopped the lawn tractor from rolling over. :sad:

I was mowing along my driveway, there is a short steep slope along the drive. Its mowed regularly with the Ventrac 3000 articulated 4wd tractor and never had a problem. Until today. I didn't take the apples into account. We've got some large OLD apple trees scattered through our woods, well they have been dropping apples and the tractor tires crushed and were spinning on the apples, I lost traction and the tractor just started sliding down into the trees.

My left arm is scraped, but nothing serious. My rib cage on my left side, on the other hand is in some serious pain. I don't think anything is broken. I've got some good abrasions across my side, no doubt I'll have bruises later. Right now its Aleve and ICE PACKS for me.

I had a lot planned for the day, not sure how much I'll get done now!

On the bright side I finished dropping rocks over the top of the fence by my pool. We built a 5 to 6 foot wall adjacent to the swimming pool and then put a decorative aluminum "wrought iron" fence on the top of the wall. The fence is about 18" away from the wall because there is some geotextile fabric behind the wall going into the dirt. So we had to figure out what to do with that 18" of space, planting shallow rooted plants would be reasonable, but deep rooted plants wouldn't work because of the fabric. So we decided on decorative rock. There will be decorative plantings on the other side of the fence. Also moved a few more yards of topsoil into the back yard where we used to have a rock garden. That rock garden was reduced in size and will soon be planted with more grass and some flowers.

But damn, my side hurts :doh:
 

tsaw

New member
GOLD Site Supporter
Glad your not seriously hurt. The Ventrac 3000 machine you mention.. Do you have the one pictured below?
 

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Rusty Shackleford

Automotive M.D.
SUPER Site Supporter
damn. ive never used a tractor on much of an incline. push mower for me. but then i dont have much of an incline to mow. glad you are alright for the most part. luckily the tractor didnt tip over on you. relax and take it easy. have some ice and some beer.
 

Melensdad

Jerk in a Hawaiian Shirt & SNOWCAT Moderator
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
Glad your not seriously hurt. The Ventrac 3000 machine you mention.. Do you have the one pictured below?

Yup that is the type of lawn tractor. Its designed to be used on reasonably steep slopes, and it is, in fact, amazing on slopes. It can do "figure 8s" on roadside slopes, can cut across the side slope in places where a traditional lawn tractor would roll down the hill sideways.

Its never slid sideways on our slopes before. Honestly it was the apples, they are soft and the tractor crushed them and simply slid on them the way Oliver & Hardy slip on banana peels.
 

tsaw

New member
GOLD Site Supporter
Its never slid sideways on our slopes before. Honestly it was the apples, they are soft and the tractor crushed them and simply slid on them the way Oliver & Hardy slip on banana peels.

I know what you meant. :yum::yum:
 

tsaw

New member
GOLD Site Supporter
Maybe you need 4 of these? :yum::yum:
 

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Melensdad

Jerk in a Hawaiian Shirt & SNOWCAT Moderator
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
I know what you meant. :yum::yum:

Hey, I was in pain!!! Laurel and Hardy is what I meant to write, but with you on the boards today I guess I'm really lucky I didn't say Joe & Frank Hardy (The Hardy Boys). :biggrin:



Look at it this way - sliding is better than flipping. ;)
Tell that to my ribs. But honestly I think the tree was my savior, had it been a rock or something low I might have gone over, but hitting the tree pretty much stopped any rolling momentum.
 

Snowtrac Nome

member formerly known as dds
GOLD Site Supporter
Bob i hope you are feeling better if you continue to motocross that mower look a chest protector and helmet on the serious side i hope you are feeling better and i will refrain from Big Al jokes so you don't have to laugh
 
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