Midwest farmers make 147-mile trek

Farmers are complaining loudly about fuel prices . . . but waste fuel on a 147 mile joy ride. Oh well, guess fuel costs are not such a big deal after all.

EVRYONE is complaining about the high fuel prices.
2. this is a once in a blue moon occasion, not a constant happening.
3. the average family will use far more fuel for a week long "chevy Chase" style vacation in the mini van. So if some farmers want to drag out an old tractor once a year its not a big deal. I would have far more fear of a break down and an expensive old part to track down for repairs than the gas price for a joy ride if I had an old tractor. But some nostalgia once in awhile is fine. no different then all the old cars at the Don & Millies on friday nights until recently--Wich I enjoyed looking at while driving by.

no problem-the government (out taxes) is paying for the fuel anyway. Farm welfare-subsidies will pay for it. Their are few buisness that get paid wether they work or not but the farmboys are one of them.

I live in Scribner and the sound of a tractor drew my attention this morning. And another, and another... They just kept coming down my street. What a sight to see 119 tractors go by, and to think of all the miles of field that those machines had seen. Thanks to the folks who put this on and I loved my "tractor parade"!

Yes "m" farmers ahve a wonderful luxury of the government (which is you and I) paying them subsidies and then, in turn, we purchase their products.
147 miles is a lot of plowing, cultivating, etc on a family farm.
With high gas prices you don't see families rounding up all of their friends and forming a caravan to take a 147 mile joy ride - but they don't get subsidies. "M" you are on target.

First of all most of those subsidies goes to the large corporate farms, not the small family farms that dot the midwest. 2. That farm bill also includes money that goes to food stamps and school lunches which evryone was complaining about in an article about rising prices earlier this week.
3. Another section regarding the farm bill was drought/disaster relief. I have relatives who run famliy size farms in the area and they do NOT get the government checks you are all complaining about. Yes crop prices are the best they have ever been, but the 4.60+ deisel and utilites, seed, & fertilizer prices are also up. Also keep in mind property taxes. People complain about the taxes on their cars & homes. Farmers pay taxes on All property: Equipment, buildings,(both the farmhouses they live in and the buildings they use for farming) acres of land they own. Plus many farm families have to pay their own health insurance & expenses w/o the benefit of some large employee plan like a Valmont, Hormell, or Wal Mart for example. Small family farms do not have 401K plans either so farmers must use IRA or Roth IRA plans for retirement planning on their own w/o some type of matching plan like a large "city" business for example. It cuts both ways. There is both good and bad to "farm life" but to attack some farmers who drag out some old tractors once a year b/c of the farm bill is unreasonable. The time to attack the farm bill is when it shows up in an article dealing with the farm bill itself. No one complained about the old car shows at the old Don & Millies parking lots the past Friday nights.

Not all of them are still farming. Some of these people have given up farming or passed it on to their children. One memento they hold on to is their tractor. Just like the old cars that a lot of people hold on to and take out every blue moon. That is what these people do for a little nostalgia.

My guess is that this is one thing some of these old guys look forward to every year and they take pride in their tractors. (I doubt they are even all used in fields...some are restored and used only for parades. Guess Fremont should cancel it's parades since that is too much gas money spent to drive around dignitaries and people from the community. Maybe the whole state should just cancel all parades due to gas prices.)

Quit complaining about something you only know a fraction of the story. No one is criticizing how you spend your fuel.

I am beginning to see a trend that everyone wants to use these comment boxes to complain when really they should use their energy to research the whole story.

Try living the life of a farmer.For the first time in 25 years of marriage we have had a year where we actually made money. Everyone jokes about all the money given to farmer... well us small family farmers don't get that money. We work our rears off just like the rest of you who put in your 40 hrs then get to enjoy your weekends and evenings. If you didn't have farmers, you wouldn't eat buddy. We are all not subsidized but Uncle Sam...if it's such a easy life, why doesn't everyone do it. Some big farmers who co-op make the rest of us look bad...we are all just trying to make living, just like you.

You people make me sick you complain about the fireworks,now you complain because men with there tractors want to take a little trip.Geesh people let people live and enjoy what they want to do,you don't like it then don't look out your window's.I happen to be a person who grew up on a farm and for the one's who haven't you have no idea how hard a farmer work's in the field and then has to pray when a storm come's up that the hail won't wipe them out.Quit complaining so much and enjoy life

BTW "m" your remark about whether farmers work or not is also totally bogus. farmers work far longer hours then the average city boy working a 9-5 job 5 days a week. Especially if the farmer has livestock. Dairy farmers can't tell the cows "Sorry its 4th of July-- no milking, feeding, or watering." Dairies go 7 days a week- blizzards, 100 degree heat, rain and evrything in between. So when the rest of the nation is hung over on new Years morning, farmers are up early milking, (or with any other holiday for that matter.) So to say farmers dont work is totally irresponsible. Btw why is it a waste when farmers drive these old tractors, but its not a waste when someone restores an old antique car?

I think people just like to complain. I was out and about on Saturday morning and saw theses tractors headed down 23rd Street. It was the coolest thing! I was honking and waving at them the whole time.

Farmers, thanks for feeding me.

yey!! for the comments on the good things,no one says anything obout the stream of boats and campers I see going down the highway on any given weekend or holiday. If you don't know the facts about the farm bill maybe you should look them up, food stamps welfare, wick,free school lunches,( and there are a lot of these, almost anyone on welfare receives this) medical assistance for all the welfare also come from this, only a farmer buys live stock feeds and cares for it and sells it for less than his cost, if they would put a price on it so they would make a decent profit like other people do you really would complain about the prices at the grocery store. the company that makes the plastic sack for the carrots gets more for his sack than the farmer does for his carrots, Have a good day and think before you start to critize someone elses way of life

paid subsidy or not its still a waste of fuel. whether or not there is a shortage or an over abundance of fuel, its a waste. park all the tractors and let those who want to see them do so. i also see the civil air patrol flying around fremont for the last few days. another waste of fuel. you dont need to fly that often to keep up your license. people, like children, dont seem to have their priorties set. quit complaining about fuel prices. stop all the waste. also i have talked to farmers about how they are doing financial wise and they all say they are doing just fine. if you look at farms in general, you will see new homes, new pickups, and a lot of new farm equipment. sure they are in debt, but they wouldnt have the new equipment if the banks and other institutions didnt know that they will be making good money.

Not all farmers have new equipment my dad was a farmer for many yrs and he did not have brand new tractors he was using the same tractors when I was little and we didn't have a brand new home.But it was a loving home that's the problem with city folk you think all farmers have brand new homes and new equipment and think farmers live high on the hog I got news for you not all farmers do.Just remember that the next time someone wants to put down a farmer and I'm proud to be called a farm girl

to fremonter:
i never said ALL farmers. i said farms in general, which means alot but not all,(for those of you that dont know what it means), are doing well. read the comment carefully before answering. get your facts straight. farmers are alot better off now than years ago. i do agree that its very hard work. i have worked on a farm on occasion and i am not afraid to say that i could not do it full time. i have all the respect in the world for farmers. its a tough job.

to fremonter
the civil air patrol is hosting their flight academy. they are teaching young cadets to be certified pilots. these indivduals are under 18 and will be a FAA pilot after they complete the academy. and they will pay FAR less than taking a comerical class. so perhaps you should get the facts and just sit on the side lines till you know what is going on. it is people like you that we went to war.

My Dad was a farmer until last year and had some old tractors. I didn't know the thing was going on til I saw them driving in circles in the mall parking lot, thought it was kind of cool! Just enjoy it folks, just like the old cars and lighten up, they aren't hurting a fly! Enjoy the chance to see something unique.

To see all of these tractors out is awesome. My Grandson and I spent an enjoyable hour looking at them on the Main Street in Scribner. At age 11 he is excited about wanting to "fix up" the old John Deere his "Great Grandfather" farmed with and is in the shed but hasn't been used for several years. I am sure that he and Dad will spend a lot of "QUALITY" time restoring this tractor and a piece of History will be saved. He will be spraying Green paint -- NOT as GRAFFITTI -- but as a labor of love. There is NO value to be put on something like this.

Well said Tex and JLK it's nice to know there are still people out there who enjoy these kind's of thing's.Your right Tex there not hurting anyone there enjoying life and I think it's great