JUst after Ballygarret, came upon a tractor drawing a load of round bales on a long, flat trailer - its a narrow, bendy road with no visibility for overtaking, so no option but to sit it out and hope he turned sooner rather than later.
Inevitably, the queue of cars started to form behind me and the usual impatient eedjit crawling up me a*se, moving out and in hoping to pass!
The bales were two high and wide and hitting off the hedgerows, trees, wires etc - hay flying everywhere. Despite several places he could have pulled in to let traffic past, he just kept going, probably under pressure (make hay while the sun shines - we're doing it ourselves so I do have sympathy too!) or maybe hungry for supper. There isn't even an alternative route to take - once on that road it's really just farms and houses drives.
Any way, I'm keeping well back, trying to be patient but feeling a bit annoyed at the by now 20min hold-up and almost at Curracloe, then notice a nearside bale starting to stick out a bit, not just tufts pulled off - nothing I can do to warn the farmer except signal "slow down" to cars behind and hold back more myself. After teetering for a few seconds the bale fell off, bounced across the road in front of me, ending up in the opposite lane - thank good ness no-one was coming the other direction.
All the cars behing put on their hazards and I beeped continuously and kept warning oncoming car to slow down. The tractor didn't stop for about 1/2 mile, don't know if he didn't know or was waiting for a pull-in place.
He obviously hadn't fully secured the load, or reckoned on the overgrown hedges and trees pulling off the bale and he certainly wasn't looking in his mirrors to see the bale moving.
I didn't stop - I'd had a long day, Maybe it should have been reported....I just felt glad to have been alert and alive.
Anyway, just to say, if ye can't get past these huge fe*kers, stay well back from them or if you can, pull over for a few mins to let them go on.
Also, on the topic of hay, plenty of those spikey turners on the road too, some wider than the tractor, beware if passing.
Be careful!
This post has been edited by somedayisnow: 23 July 2011 - 11:00 PM
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