Haying ... as a kid

This Thursday we are doing a throw back, but not

From my blog.. but from a memory of way back.

When I was a kid.. I lived on a horse farm.. Horse farm

Means a summer was divide between haying and showing. My mother showed 3 gaited horses and then changed over

To jumpers in the 1950’s.

My first job in our summer haying was as a stomper.

I was to stomp down the hay on the back of the truck

As  Dad threw loose hay on to the flat bed. And Mom

Helped me stomp the hay.  

Many times the truck was put into first gear and it

Idle down the field as we went.. with my brother

Strapped in to the passenger seat. Not for safety

But to keep him out of the steering wheel area.

He was 4 years younger than me.

Then I graduated up to driver.. By 10 I could reach

The pedals, so I got to drive the truck.. so Dad didn’t

Have to run and jump in to take it down the next row.

I lost that job, when my brother got old enough to

Reach the pedals.  And I return as stomper but by

Myself, as Mom joined Dad by throwing hay on the

Other side of the truck.. That way we could do two

Rows at a time.

Also my job was riding the rake.  The rake was a piece

Of equipment.. which scared the hell out of me. As I

Pictured falling off of it, and having the tines rake me

Into the ground.  I started that about 8 or 9 years old.

It is after the hay is cut and starts to dry. So you go out and

Rake the hay in rows.  Mom would drive the pick up, while

I rode the rake. The rake consisted of a long tow tongue

That connected to the truck.. attached was two huge

Wheels, and axle.. with a seat in the middle. The seat

Was one of those old metal seat with holes in it.

Along side was a shift stick of sorts. You pull it

To pick up the tines, and then you let it go for the

Tines to go down and gather hay for the next row.

Wasn’t so bad when I was a teen, but I swear Mom

Stepped up the speed when I was older.. as we

Would go up and down the slight hills of the fields.

When we got done piling the hay on the truck, we

Would take it home.  We would hay other’s fields,

Who didn’t have horses or cows.  My brother and I

High on the top of the hay…as Dad drove down the

Highway or back roads to home.  Today, the police

Would have stopped him, and probably got accused

Of child abuse.   And child labor.

When we got home.. we would unload the hay in

A huge pile near the barn.. We didn’t have a loft.

Once again we were the stompers.. As mom and dad

Pitched the hay on the pile. These stacks would be

About 10 feet high.. And about 9 feet thru. And then

It would be topped with canvas to keep the rain

And later snow off of it.. There was a stall that

Mom and Dad would put hay from the stack, to

Use each day. And then filled up again on

The weekend. Some time breaking trail thru the

Snow, to the barn. Using wheel barrows.

By the time I was a mid teen, we had got a

Farmer to bale the hay..and then I had to throw

Bales up on the truck with Dad, while my brother had to

Stack the truck, so we could travel back home.

Mom drove the truck.  

All hell would break loose if any bales fell off.

Plus the fact, we were on top of these loads,

Going down the road at about 40 mph, heading

For home.

By this time, I am hating haying.. I no longer had

A horse, thanks to Mom.. (see Bucky) so I had

No horse in this rodeo.  But it was required.

Now jump about 20 some odd years ahead.. I go

To visit the folks in R.I. and I am a west coast girl.

No haying.. (when I had horses, I bought hay).

But I get pulled in haying when I was on “vacation”.

It always was a working “vacation”.  Planting flowers

And haying.  But the folks paid the plane ticket, so

Figured they were entitled.   And some how.. it did

Not seem so bad.. after all I was only there a week.

Then the whole family moved back there.. and my

Kids got involved. My son’s worked, with throwing

Bales of hay on the trailer.. even my daughters got

In it as well.  While sometimes I had things I rather

Do, but we went over to help out.. The call would

Come in.. hay down.. will be baling in 2 days.

No riding on top of the load… and by this time,

The folks had more modern equipment. Only down

Side was putting it in the loft. The putting it on the

Escalator was the fairly easy part.. keeping up and

Etc. The bummer, was the loft itself.. Once we got

The load in the back part of it.. so the back door

Was closed and hay up against it.. it was HOT!!

Sweating hot.. sticky hot…losing weight HOT.. lol.

While it wasn’t so bad… I don’t miss it a bit. Lol

Oh, my father was old him Yankee type of farmer… So the

Kids wages was…. A quarter (this is the late 1970;s early

1980’s.. and a trip to Dairy Queen for an ice cream cone.

My old man was TIGHT!!!