Thankful for Farmers 

On Thanksgiving Day in 1986, the Green Bay Packers defeated the Detroit Lions 44-10, a Kermit the Frog balloon was floated in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade for the tenth time (to celebrate the Muppets’ 30th birthday), and a Thanksgiving dinner for a family of ten cost just $28.74, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF). A lot has changed since that Thanksgiving in 1986. For example, there are now three NFL games played on Thanksgiving Day, Goku from the anime series Dragon Ball makes his balloon debut in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade this year, and a Thanksgiving dinner for ten will cost $48.90.

Why the Biggest Tire Isn't Always the Best Tire 

The trend for agricultural machinery to become increasingly large and powerful might lead farmers to believe that bigger is always better. Though larger machines frequently lead to increases in overall productivity, having the biggest tires may, in fact, reduce the efficiency of your farm equipment. Recently, I helped a customer dispel the mistaken belief that “bigger is better” by outfitting their tractor with the tire size they needed to optimize performance and avoid the other pitfalls that could arise out of “over-tiring” your equipment.

Spooky Sites and Solid Tires 

It may not be ghouls and goblins lurking around dark corners that scare today’s skid steer operators; rather, it’s debris, downtime, and punctures that keep them up at night. And while dark basements, haunted woods, and creepy old houses provide the chills this time of year, these scary work sites unnerve operators all year long. Luckily, skid steer operators can make these sites a little less frightening by equipping their machines with solid tires.

As of Jan 1, 2021, Alliance Tire Group and Alliance Tire Americas, Inc. changed their names to Yokohama Off-Highway Tires and Yokohama Off-Highway Tires America, Inc respectively. The Alliance, Galaxy and Primex brands and product names remain unchanged. Product information is available at www.yokohama-oht.com.

The Alliance Agristar 374, a new R-2 radial tire for muddy rice and sugar cane fields from the Alliance Tire Group, combines deep-lug traction with excellent roadability. With its unique tread bar design—more than 3 inches deep—the new tire features a pair of "step" reinforcements to reduce lug movement and heat buildup while delivering the tractor's torque to soft ground. This stable footprint exerts great traction in mud and even, long-lasting performance on the road. The Alliance Agristar 374 lug also features a flat tread profile, as well as a wide nose that creates a dense center line to keep the tire steady and smooth on the road while minimizing irregular tread wear from pavement.

Flotation Tires: From Farm to Forest 

Though the cutting and harvesting of timber is the primary concern of logging operations, the protection of the forest floor from heavy equipment is also a priority for forward-thinking operations. Increasingly large and powerful logging machinery could cause damage to the ground and rip up the root map, slowing the time it takes for the forest to regenerate, reducing the rate of biomass production (resulting in less income), and making landowners unhappy. Fortunately for loggers—and forests—the use of flotation forestry tires is a simple way to minimize compaction and rutting.