Let me tell you about our tractor cruise

Cliff and I left home on our Oliver 1855 tractor around 8 AM Saturday.  We were supposed to be at Mayview by 9:30, and by george, we barely made it on time.  There were about 40 tractors waiting for us.  

After a long ride sitting on an upside-down bucket on the 1855, I opted to take the trolley for the next leg of our journey.  Here we are at Mayview, just starting the cruise.  

We have plenty of help on the tractor drives.  There were four "county mounties" and a couple of city cops making sure nobody got hurt.  

Our first potty break was in front of the Odessa, Missouri, high school.  We do have a porta-potty with us at all times, since about 75% of the participants are over sixty years of age and need to pee often. 

porta-potty in front

This is pretty much where the speedometer stayed during the cruise.  

This lady was taking a picture of her husband and son, who were right behind us.

Her husband and son were right behind us on this leg of the journey.  

I love looking ahead and seeing so many tractors.  

We arrived in Bates City at almost straight-up noon, and we ate on the premises of KAT Excavation.  Our meal was waiting for us:  Brisket, pulled pork, cheesy potatoes, slaw, and baked beans.  Not to mention several kinds of home-made pies.  

After our bellies were full, we headed toward Luffland Industries, where we got a tour of a local company that seems to be growing and thriving.  They manufacture many farm-related items.  

After this, Cliff and I left the rest of the cruisers and turned our faces toward home.  Everyone else was going back to Mayview, but they hadn't ridden a tractor all the way from Wellington to Mayview to begin with.  Most of them had hauled their tractors there on trailers.  Cliff and I had about all the tractor riding we wanted.  

Here's a funny side note:  I wear my Fitbit most every day to count my steps.  Yesterday we didn't even go on our usual daily walk, but because the tractor is a little bumpy, the Fitbit told me I had walked six and one-half miles.  I sincerely doubt that I even walked two.    

The first tractor cruise I went on seemed to last forever.  I had no idea you could spend that much time traveling on the back roads on a tractor.  Honestly, I thought it would never end.  However, once I realized that's how things worked, I learned to take my Ipad, post pictures on Facebook as we went, and enjoy traveling through the countryside at the same speed my horse Blue and I used to travel.  Good times.