When I was a teenager one of my first summer jobs was working on a farm. Those were the days when you loaded hay by hand onto trucks and trailers. And then you unloaded it and stacked it—by hand. It was really hard work.
As hard as that job was, the one I disliked the most was picking rocks out of the farmer’s fields. That was so tedious and while it was about the only way to do the job back then, it surely was an inefficient way to get the job done.
That’s why I chuckled when I read Allen Thayer’s story about the Hasbargen family and how they use their side-by-side to help with the job of rock picking. Still a tedious job but much more efficient with a vehicle right there to help with the work. And then throw in the fact you actually get to drive the side-by-side to and from the fields. Work and play mixed.
There are ATVs and side-by-sides, or UTVs, for just about everything you can imagine these days. With the rash of new model releases from just about every major off-road manufacturer in the past few years, it seems the line between work vehicle and those designed strictly for recreation is getting blurred.
Or is it? What’s the primary use of your off-road vehicle? Work, play, hunting, fishing or a combination of two or more of those?
Back in the day, most off-road vehicles were designed and built primarily as work vehicles. Sure you could maybe do a little playing on them but they were slow and didn’t really have the type of suspension where you could fly along a trail littered with rocks or other obstacles.
Today that has all changed. There are high performance vehicles and there are vehicles designed and built primarily as work vehicles, whether it be for the farm or ranch or construction site or checking powerlines.
It’s those vehicles in the middle that tend to blur the line between work and play. Some people call them rec-utility vehicles. Whatever you call them, they are quite versatile and equally as capable of working hard and then taking you to your favorite fishing hole or hunting spot when the work is done.
Even if you’re not a farmer or rancher, chances are you’ve used your ATV or side-by-side for some chores around the house, even if it’s plowing snow. After all, you’ve made the investment; why not use it all you can?
For some, the more versatile the vehicle, the better. It doesn’t really matter if the vehicle is more of a work vehicle as long as you can still play in it sometimes. Or visa versa.
You just have to choose what works best for your situation and lifestyle. Okay, that’s not rocket science. So the real onus is on you to figure how what works (or plays) best.
As I prepared to put this issue of Dirt Toys together I looked at the specs of dozens and dozens of side-by-sides and ATVs, trying to figure out which vehicle(s) I would choose if I were a farmer or rancher. That’s tough. There are so many good vehicles out there these days. Most have decent towing capabilities and can carry a moderate size load in the cargo bed. And they certainly are more economical to operate than a pickup. I’m not suggesting ATVs and side-by-sides are a replacement for a pickup but these off-road vehicles are a great piece of equipment to have around for getting to the fields for smaller jobs.
I do know I would, if my finances permitted it, get an ATV and a side-by-side. They each would be valuable on the farm or ranch for different reasons. I would choose something between 35-50 horsepower as that should be plenty for most any farming or ranching job. And I would definitely lean toward a unit with electric power steering.
Once I made my purchase, I would sit in the vehicle for just a little while and flash back to my younger years of picking rocks and smile. Those days are long gone and I would be thinking how much I’m going to enjoy that kind of work just a little more these days.
