I really drove a COMBINE!!

Remember back in May when we went to Illinois and I rode in the ginormous tractor with my father-in-law? Well.... When we returned to Illinois in early November, I thought for sure I had missed harvesting, but thanks to Mother Nature (lots of rain!), the combines were still working. On the day we were there, they were harvesting beans. Paul (my father-in-law) doesn't drive the combine when doing beans (only corn), but he asked David Masching (the farmer he works for) if he would take me for a ride. I was admittedly not overly excited about going out with someone I didn't know, but Paul went out of his way and I couldn't say no. It turned out to be a fantastically good time!!! David was super nice and really funny. He was really easy to talk to and besides general conversation, he explained everything to me. Let me tell you - farming is not what it used to be!!! The combine is actually equipped with a GPS. Each field they work is downloaded and the computer shows you where you have been and the production and moisture of the crop. It's really pretty amazing. All of this information is stored and after harvest is done, David can analyze it to decide what adjustments to make the next year. Very high-tech!!

I didn't take pictures for a while because I was embarrassed (heehee). But at some point during my ride, David insisted I DRIVE the combine and he was going to take my picture with his cell phone. That's when I admitted I had my camera. I really was scared to death to drive, but David was a great leader and it turned out just fine. David even took a few pics for me. I think Joe was a little surprised to see me behind the wheel when he pulled up to pick me up and David thought that was pretty funny.


Multi-tasking: "Downloading" the beans to a trailer while driving and continuing to harvest more beans.


Thanks to David for a great ride. I have a whole new respect for the farmers.