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Borrego Springs, CA

Friday, March 14, 2014

Had a little ‘Oops’ today :(

I was off to see Stephanie this morning to put in a complaint about the condition of the grounds surrounding the two RV sites here at the Winnie facility.  The grass had grown to about 12” in height, and as I said before it was distressing both Emma and me.  It’s not like I hadn’t tried to get it taken care of.  I had asked a number of people about it, but had gotten no where.  Barry and Lynn had brought out a weed whacker a couple of weeks ago to take care of a section or two, but with the recent rains the grass has just gone wild.

All I wanted was a lawn mower so I could take care of it myself.  I told Stephanie that, but she tried to find someone else to do it for me.  I already knew that wasn’t going to work, so she finally told me where a lawn mower might be located.  I did tell her that I had done plenty of mowing at Tamarac and already had my steel-toed boots just waiting to be used.  All I needed was some ear plugs.

There are a whole lot of cavernous storage areas at the Winnie facility, and of course, the mower wasn’t where it was supposed to be.  I tracked down Nathan, one of the maintenance employees, and together we were able to track it down.  Here it is:_MG_9922                                             Emma, of course, had to give it the all over nose test!

Oh boy!  I’ve never operated one of these 360 degree pivoting mowers before, and I let Nathan know that.  Note the roll bar (?) in the back.  I somehow didn’t take that part into my consciousness.  (can you sense a minor disaster ensuing?)  Anyway, he gave me the needed training on how to operate it, and had me practice on the huge slabs of cement until I kind of got the hang of it.  He did mention that it had very sensitive controls.

_MG_9924

Once given the go ahead, I made my way to the RV sites kind of like a drunken sailor.  Sensitive controls is putting it mildly!  You barely breath on one of those two hand controls and the thing starts careening off a straight line.  And if you pull back, like on horse reins, it zips backwards.  No foot brake either.  Let me tell you it was a learning curve! 

I decided to start mowing in a rather large sort of open area until I got my sea legs under me.  Disappointed smile  That was a good decision.  I didn’t want to be anywhere near my rig until I was more at ease.  I was either grimacing or laughing as I made my way through what seemed like a hay field.  I was sure glad no one was watching. 

Eventually I could almost mow a straight line, and I was maneuvering around plantings pretty well, so I inched closer to my actual RV site.  This first outing I didn’t worry about getting cut grass onto the pavement.  My goal was to just hack it down.  I finished the areas around my patio, and headed over to the other side of the rig.

_MG_9928

That’s when disaster struck.  The front of the mower suddenly came up off of the ground, and I was no longer going forward.  It seems that roll bar I hadn’t noticed got hung up on the slide.  Uff-dah!  I tried backing up to get out of the situation, but went forward too soon resulting in several gashes and…

_MG_9933

ripping off this corner piece of the bottom of the slide.  Oops! Surprised smile  I’m hoping there’s an easy fix for this and would appreciate any input on how to put that piece back on and fix the scrapes. 

_MG_9934

These little minor defugalties happen in life, and I’m just happy I’m the one who did it and not someone else.  All in all, it was a real hoot driving that crazy mower.  And just look at Emma standing in her little yard.  The grass was higher than her belly before.  I leave you tonight with what Emma thought of the new mown yard.

75 Anahuac NWR 2013-201420

You know what?  Within ten minutes she proudly laid a bomb that I didn’t actually have to search for! Winking smile  Mission accomplished!

Thanks for stopping by… talk to you later,  Judy

35 comments:

  1. As long as Emma is happy, how bad can it be:) I have always wanted one of those mowers, just because it looks so cool. If I ever get one, I am going to try to avoid close quarters as long as possible. Watching those guys along the roads, they sure make it look easy. Now I know better. I would think you could get a gel-coat repair kit. All marine stores have them and some touch up paint. It is hard to see how to reattached the loose piece from the picture, but I am sure someone handier than me will know:)

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  2. Oh no, you popped a wheelie at just the wrong time and place. Thank goodness it was only a minor scrape. I think that trim piece is just epoxied on. Winnebago uses a lot of epoxy all around our motorhomes, On mine, on more than one occasion, I've had to reattach parts that have fallen off.

    Also, check in your Winnebago black bag (the one with all the manuals). There may be a couple of vials of touch up paint. Ask me how I know this... ;c)

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  3. My God, woman, you have way more nerve than I would have! No way would I even sit on the mower even with the engine turned off. You did a fantastic job of mowing according to the pictures, and Emma gives full approval.

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  4. Glad the oops was not worse than it was. Mowers can be fun to operate, once you learn how. Next time, it will be easier.

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  5. Sounds like ride em cowgirl!! Sorry for the oops. It's all Emma's fault. Tell her to fix it.

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  6. Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy - Emma is one very happy pup. I just wish we had a video of you learning to drive that monster. You are one brave woman.

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  7. I have one of those mowers too-- we mow commercially in the summertime....there is definitely a learning curve to the darn things...I have put mine in the ditch, in the creek, around a utility pole and chewed the leg off a lady's picnic table with it. The only thing I can say is just get back on it and try again....eventually I have learned to mow in a straight line.... Oh I forgot to mention I left mine sitting on a hill one day (the thing wanted to ball hoot with me) I turned off the key and walked to the truck and vowed to never ride it again -- I also lost my shirt under it - melted it around the spindle - hardly a piece left...lol

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  8. Now that's a story....had me laughing and grimacing too. I'm with Sandie...wish we had a video!
    Emma is one happy pup and such a lucky girl to have you taking care of her.

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  9. So sorry about your rig, hope its an easy fix!! Boy O Boy, you did get the Mercedes of lawnmowers. So glad you and Emma are happy tonight!!

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  10. Woo Hoo! You have a new skill (more or less). And Emma does look really happy . . . and oopsies are bound to happen . . . and now you'll have more learning as you figure out how to repair the oops. Overall, not such a bad day!

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  11. Well I'm relieved that it was only your motorhome and not your very own body that was the oops! Emma sure looks happy.

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  12. Oh what a happy puppy Emma is! But oh so sorry the lawnmower went wild as soon as it neared your rig! Maybe its time to invest in a few swimming noodles to protect the sharp edges of your slides from those wild mowers?!

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  13. Hee haw! Ride 'em cowgirl. You had your very own rodeo going there.

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  14. Just seeing Emma getting that newly-mown grass scent on her must've been worth all the headaches. Hope it's an easy fix!

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  15. Sorry about the collision with your motorhome. Not all zero turn mowers are like that. Before buying ours, we test drove another brand and it was terrible to drive. The one we bought was easy, no learning curve to speak of and had good control.

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  16. The first (and only) "injury" our motorhome has suffered ... in 13 years.... is when I hung up a zero-turn mower on the back rear panel. Bill used some Bondo, some sanding and a little new paint... looks okay. I had had many, many hours using a zero-turn mower... my only excuse was that this one was a different brand than I was used to and the deck was different. But in my case, it was definitely driver error ;-) Yours doesn't look too bad... doesn't look like it needs major surgery ;-)

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  17. Boy do you have more guts than I. I would have used hand clippers on the grass before I would jump on that monster and start cutting. Sorry about your little accident. I am sure one readers will have good advice for you.
    Emma looks like a very very happy gal.

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  18. It's kind of like operating a skid steer loader. You have to rewire your brain. Hopefully your fix won't be too expensive.

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  19. What a hoot--too bad that motorhome got in the way!! Here's a not so funny story about those kinds of mowers--the minister who married me to my first husband in another life was operating his zero turn mower on a side hill above a pond turned over into the pond and drowned! So you be careful on that thing!!

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  20. Ooopps is right. But mission accomplished for the most part. Hope that is an easy fix on your slide.
    Yes you can see Emma is one happy girl.

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  21. As I was reading your story and you mentioned the roll bar I thought maybe you rolled it. Yes, better it was the rig than you that got injured!
    Gayle

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  22. They didn't have a simple push mower...hope you can live with or there is a simple fix for your damage:)

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  23. I am with Paul - A little epoxy glue and some touch up paint and you will be in business. You need some padding on that roll bar.

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  24. Dennis uses epoxy for everything...I don't attempt to drive anything that has a roll bar...If it wasn't for bad luck, Judy, you'd have no luck at all! Gimmee my good 'ol John Deere 30 year old tractor...As long as you and Emma didn't get injured, it can all be fixed in time...

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  25. We use a zero-turn mower here on the property and, yes, it was a learning curve. I kinda got stuck briefly in a muddy spot going uphill . . . for an instant I saw myself and mower sliding into the Musconetcong River . . . fortunately, that didn't happen and I got unstuck. Have to watch for openings to groundhog dens here, but at least I know where they are. Ours doesn't have a roll bar, which kinda makes me feel better . . . like maybe it doesn't need one as much as yours does!

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  26. Your determination to get the grass cut is a wonderful thing, and Emma is lucky to have you! I think that you are pretty brave to drive that" foreign" mower. I hope you act pitiful and make them feel a bit uncomfortable about not mowing when you asked!

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  27. Ouch! Those mowers take a little getting used to. I found out that driving under low-hanging branches is another good way to "engage" the roll bar!

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  28. Oops! I'm always glad when it's someone else that messes up the new car, (my Dad did that) or runs the mower into the side of the truck (husband did that)...but once I backed our truck over our mower...right after I parked the darn thing behind the truck. Forgot it was there...and that was YEARS before I got old and lost all short term memory.

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  29. Glad you survived that learning curve. I'm envious! I can't wait to get a mowing job. Even though I totally hate the idea of a grass lawn.

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  30. Judy - just wondering. Did you get the e-mail I sent you about the RV park?

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  31. Too bad about the booboo but it's not that bad. Epoxy and a little paint will make it look a lot better and you did a great job.

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  32. We had this done TO our last 5er when it was in storage. It was parked at the end of the row, and the young son of the owners tooled out in a mower like this one. He tried to drive it under the front of the 5th wheel, also forgetting about the roll bar. He got it stuck. Then he tried to power on through. Then he tried to back out. He actually pulled the front off its blocks and not only damaged underneath the bedroom but also ran the unit into the roof supports of the storage area. Fortunately, his parents took care of it!

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  33. Never driven one of those, now I know why :-)

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