Posts Tagged ‘wheelbarrow’
Custom Workout
A while back we spread a thin base layer of gravel in the round pen and I drove on it with the 4-wheeler, hoping to pack it down. I’m not sure it helped. The turn radius that was required seemed to disturb the surface about as much as it packed it. I’d call it a draw. We let it set for a week or so, walked the horses on it some, then decided it was good enough. Time to move on to putting down layer-two: lime screenings.
It has been dry enough lately that the dump truck was able to back all the way through the paddocks up to the gate that opens to the round pen. I made a couple of test runs with our wheelbarrow to move material in, quickly deducing the tractor would be the more effective method. That meant I needed to remove a panel from the round pen, but that can be accomplished with a reasonable amount of effort. Tasks like that are why I don’t need to go to a gym and lift weights to maintain my chiseled physique.
Trying to maneuver an object that is too tall and almost too heavy to lift, while being careful to protect myself from exacerbating problems with degenerating discs in the lumbar region of my back, is an amazing workout on the rest of the body.
To be successful, there is a point when the too-tall object slowly begins to lean in an undesired direction that a person needs to give up trying to hold it upright, and let it gravity have its way. I pick my battles. It is a way to survive, allowing me to pick it back up and finish moving it where I want.
Strangely, I find the effort of moving the pile using the loader on the tractor almost as tedious as, and much less satisfying than, using the wheelbarrow. I suppose my unskilled technique with the machine is a primary reason. I expect I’d enjoy it more if I was proficient at it, but I don’t enjoy using it enough to spend the time necessary to master the nuances that currently evade me. Maybe in time…
When the entire round pen was covered with a thick layer of lime screenings, I experimented with a few methods of packing it. The tamper worked really well, and it was another great workout for the arms and shoulder, but I couldn’t justify spending the time necessary to do the entire surface by hand like that.
Dezirea made a gesture toward assisting me as I worked, but then chose to pack only a very small area by standing still for the majority of her visit.
I switched my energy to dragging a metal fence section across the surface, which gave it a nice appearance, but didn’t contribute a whole lot to packing it. Today I will bring in the 4-wheeler again to gently drive around, and drag that fence section. We’ll let time pass to help the surface settle and then order the delivery of sand to finish off the surface.
I’m mulling over how I will spread the sand with the tractor without disrupting the lime screenings at the same time. It will be a chance to practice taking my machine skills to a new level.
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Trailering Poop
We finally put our new ATV trailer to use for cleaning the paddocks. The ground seemed to dry up quite a bit yesterday, so we took advantage of the opportunity to drive inside the fences and made fair progress on removing more of the winter’s-worth of accumulation. We have been working in steps, cleaning small sections at a time as they become dry enough. Using the ATV in place of a wheelbarrow increases our capacity nicely, and while working to prove the concept, we knocked off a new portion in each of the two paddocks.
I am pleased with the horses comfort around motorized equipment. They are not intimidated in the least by the rumbling engines of the tractor or ATV. We left them roaming free inside the paddocks as Cyndie opened a gate for me to drive in. Here is a shot I took of Legacy as he stepped in close to check on the quality of my work.
We have yet to figure out the ideal method of unloading the trailer. The main location where we have been putting manure for compost has gotten rather tall, and isn’t currently situated so that I could drive up and over it. I have created a ramp within the pile that allows me to roll the wheelbarrow up and around for dumping, but that isn’t sized for the ATV trailer.
It was decided that we would expand our compost operation to multiple locations, placing more of the product in proximity to where it will likely be used. With the wheelbarrow, it didn’t make sense to go traipsing around the property to unload, but now with the ATV that is not a problem.
The first place we picked was across the driveway, up among the pine trees. There are enough trees there alone that we can probably spread the majority of our collection in that vicinity. We do want to provide a modest amount somewhere near the labyrinth garden, too, but Cyndie is concerned that it be far enough away so as not to disturb the pleasant ambiance we are trying to develop there. I think that can be achieved.
It feels good to be making gains on the cleanup of the paddocks as they begin to dry. Too bad today I am called away to the day-job and Wednesday is shaping up to be another winter storm. Poop trailering is on hold for a while again. It’s spring, two steps forward, one step back. We’ll get there, eventually.
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Too Fun
It is a good thing that I chose the 8-cubic-foot sized wheelbarrow when I recently shopped for one with two wheels. Anything smaller and we would be making a lot more trips in and out of the paddocks to dump it, and anything larger and we wouldn’t be able to push it when it was full. I have been removing between 16 and 24 cubic feet of manure at a time, every few days, when I get around to tending to the task. When that wheelbarrow is full, it is very heavy to push.
Unfortunately, my grip is failing me, which doesn’t help when moving a heavy wheelbarrow, because the inflammation through my carpal tunnel (both left and right) is raging day and night lately. It seems that everything I do is an irritant, and my thumb and first two fingers go numb when typing on a keypad, when gripping a rake or shovel, scooping manure, moving the wheelbarrow, holding a steering wheel, gripping the wood splitter, or sleeping at night. It even bothered me while trying to hold a fork during dinner last night.
One would hope that the sleeping wouldn’t be a problem, because my doctor prescribed wrist braces to keep the hands in a neutral position all night, but 4 o’clock in the morning is a time when the pain and numbness seems to bother me the most.
It probably doesn’t help that I have started to frequently throw a ball for Delilah to find. My arm is killing me from repeated attempts to throw farther than I am realistically capable. But hope springs eternal, and I continue trying to throw that thing as hard as I can. It is just so irresistible to watch Delilah use her nose to hunt the ball down, returning so proud when she comes back to me with it clenched in her jaw.
It took her a while to get the hang of the game, but now she behaves as if she understands exactly what I am saying. If she didn’t see where I threw it, I tell her she needs to find it with her nose, and she will start traversing back and forth across the yard in front of me, nose to the ground, as fast as she possibly can. At first, I would just throw into the mowed grass, but I quickly increased the difficulty by throwing into the woods. It boggles my mind that she can find it in there, especially when she has lost track of what direction I threw toward. I will go back to splitting wood while she hunts, often expecting she will never find it, and then suddenly, she is at my feet, with that ball in her mouth, hoping I will throw it again.
It is a game that has become too much fun for both of us.
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