I spent the period of 20-29 December on the property. In 2012, I've managed to be there on both Equinoxes and both Solstices. I don't know why that seems significant, but I did plot where the sun rises on the horizon on each of these days. Astronomical dates such as the Equinox or Solstice are important because they have occurred since the beginning of our planet and mark important annual events.
We had lots of snow and even more wind. For three or four days, winds were steady at 20-30 mph, with gusts in the 50-60 mph range. Our house is set upon a promontory and is exceptionally exposed to the elements. The wind actually twists the house noticeably, which is unnerving until you get used to it. I always expect the house to take off like a spaceship and fly away like the house in The Wizard of Oz.
We had a large snowfall on the 26th of December, and our road drifted to more than 1' of snow. My new truck was pretty good in the snow, but it is going to take me some time to learn to drive this monster. Nicely, the tire chains I had for my old 4Runner fit the Chevy 2500 perfectly, and having chains on your vehicle dramatically improves maneuverability. It powered up our steep driveway through deep drifts. This truck will prove to be quite an asset around the property/farm.
Monday, December 31, 2012
Sunday, December 9, 2012
Farm Truck
This past Saturday, I bought a used truck in nearby Harman. A REAL truck. I'd been looking for some time, and had very specific requirements. It absolutely had to be a 3/4 ton, so that meant either a Ford F250 or Chevy 2500, and I did not want any sort of extended cab. The truck will be for hauling wood and lumber and manure, so I wanted the full 8' bed. Obviously it had to be 4-wheel drive, and in my dreams it would also have a manual transmission, which are very hard to find these days.
Local friends suggested I go talk with Linda Teter at Midway Motors in Harman, and she listened carefully to what I said, wrote it all down, and took my phone number telling me she would find me something. This was back in September. About a month later, I stopped by to see Linda, and she told me she had just the truck I wanted. It needed some work, and so it wasn't until Saturday that it was ready for me to pick-up.
It is a 2005 Chevrolet 2500HD, 4-wheel drive, regular cab, full 8' bed, good off-road tires, 88K miles, and with a manual transmission. Best of all, it's green!
This sucker is BIG (9,200 lbs). This makes my old 4-Runners look like toys. It's got a BIG 6L V8 300 hp engine, a huge cab, and it runs great. I actually had a bit of trouble getting it up our driveway because it had too much power. It laughed at climbing 300' on a muddy road. And, it was a blast driving a manual transmission. This is how I will be able to get a load of horse manure up to the garden or how I can haul a load of 7' locust logs for fencing, or how I'll haul the Prius out of the ditch when it gets stuck in the snow.
This is my new farm truck. Now I can drive my Prius back and forth from Columbus to West Virginia ($40 in gas) rather than my old 4Runner ($100 in gas) and still have a useful vehicle when I get there.
Local friends suggested I go talk with Linda Teter at Midway Motors in Harman, and she listened carefully to what I said, wrote it all down, and took my phone number telling me she would find me something. This was back in September. About a month later, I stopped by to see Linda, and she told me she had just the truck I wanted. It needed some work, and so it wasn't until Saturday that it was ready for me to pick-up.
It is a 2005 Chevrolet 2500HD, 4-wheel drive, regular cab, full 8' bed, good off-road tires, 88K miles, and with a manual transmission. Best of all, it's green!
This sucker is BIG (9,200 lbs). This makes my old 4-Runners look like toys. It's got a BIG 6L V8 300 hp engine, a huge cab, and it runs great. I actually had a bit of trouble getting it up our driveway because it had too much power. It laughed at climbing 300' on a muddy road. And, it was a blast driving a manual transmission. This is how I will be able to get a load of horse manure up to the garden or how I can haul a load of 7' locust logs for fencing, or how I'll haul the Prius out of the ditch when it gets stuck in the snow.
This is my new farm truck. Now I can drive my Prius back and forth from Columbus to West Virginia ($40 in gas) rather than my old 4Runner ($100 in gas) and still have a useful vehicle when I get there.
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