Have to Have Big Tools On a Big Ranch

This image is courtesy Clark Truck Parts Inc. This truck is due on the ranch shortly for some modification for fire duty next dry season. It is a hybrid, custom manufactured and assembled 5 ton M813 truck. It has 6 wheel drive, an 850 cubic inch diesel, and many other custom installed features. To give you an idea of scale, the tires are 52 inches high. I also plan to use the troop hauling characteristics to take large groups out to the dinosaur outcrop.

Motorcycles are a necessary item out here. We actually have 3 dirt bikes. We have a 640 cc Honda 4 cycle, a 400cc Honda 4 cycle and a 220 cc Kawasaki 2 cycle. All are "dirt" bikes of course. They are the fastest way to get all the way across the ranch in the backcountry. They are also very capable of going into gullys to get stubborn cattle out of their hiding places. The only thing better than a bike to push cattle is a horse. Unless of course you are trying to push a Bull away from his cows. Then a motorcycle will usually not be the first choice. I have used one for bull pushing before and wish at the time I had a horse or an ATV. I watched an angry bull hit a fence post and literally blow it up with the impact. I also went head to head with a Bull on an ATV once. I would not try that with a motorcycle.

These vehicles are all serious 4 wheel drive machines. Two of the ATV's are 4 wheel drive and the middle one is 6 wheel drive. They are very handy when pushing cattle from pasture to pasture. I also do a lot of exploring for dinosaur bones on the ATV's. They are very agile and can go places that the bigger jeeps will not fit through. The two Jeeps on the right are highly modified from stock machines. The red Grand Cherokee is my "daily driver" and is almost a rally truck. It has a high performance v8 engine and full time four wheel drive with air lockers front and rear. It will go almost anywhere as long as there is enough clearance underneath the vehicle. If clearance is an issue, the green 77 Jeep CJ7 on the right is virtually unstoppable. Rocks, mud, hillslopes, gullys are all passable with this vehicle.

This is a 700 RMK Polaris snowmobile. We keep two of these on the ranch. They haven't had much use over the last couple of years but the big snows will come sooner or later.

Here is our case 430 skid steer. It has many attachments for its front end. The 6 way dozer blade (shown), a backhoe, a trencher, a forklift and a 4 way bucket round out it versatility. We use it for many chores around the ranch.

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