<html> <head> <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1"> <style type="text/css" style="display:none;"></style> </head> <body dir="ltr"> <div id="divtagdefaultwrapper" style="font-size:12pt;color:#000000;font-family:Calibri,Helvetica,sans-serif;" dir="ltr"> <p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0">Hmm, haven't looked at brakes in 12yrs. Oh, I live in Eastern North Dakota. Dead flat. Average slope of 12" per mile. Friction is my brake.</p> <br> <br> <div style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> <hr style="display:inline-block;width:98%" tabindex="-1"> <div id="divRplyFwdMsg" dir="ltr"><font face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size:11pt" color="#000000"><b>From:</b> Chris Zach <cz@alembic.crystel.com><br> <b>Sent:</b> Sunday, November 18, 2018 3:53 PM<br> <b>To:</b> Elec-trak list<br> <b>Subject:</b> (ET) This deck died for your sins....</font> <div> </div> </div> <div class="BodyFragment"><font size="2"><span style="font-size:11pt;"> <div class="PlainText">I'll be honest: In about 10 alternate realities I am dead, and no longer <br> posting on this list. In this one however I merely have a banged up leg, <br> so I thought I would write up my error such that others do not repeat it.<br> <br> Spent the day mowing leaves and hauling the bags up to the curb with my <br> E20. It's a pretty heavy tractor; several hundred pounds plus batteries. <br> The brakes needed adjustment, but they would hold it at a stop, so I put <br> off getting them adjusted till later. Besides, the motor in regen mode <br> can stop the tractor easily, and it doesn't go too fast.<br> <br> After taking the last load up the hill I turned to the driveway to go <br> down and back into the yard. My driveway is pretty long, about a 30 <br> degree slope, and the tractor can get a good bit of regen. This time <br> however when I went down the tractor popped out of L.<br> <br> First reaction was to hit the brakes. Nothing, the tractor was speeding <br> up and was basically freewheeling. Could not get it back into gear so I <br> thought about bailing out. At the bottom of the hill are 4 cars: 2 <br> porsches, a minivan and an older electric. By the time I decided to hit <br> the cars, it was too late to angle for the electric and if I hit the <br> minivan I would probably go through the rear hatch. So the Porsche it <br> was, with the thought that I would go over the top of the car and deal <br> with things later.<br> <br> At the last second I realized there was another option: A hard 90 degree <br> turn into the woodpile. There was one that was only 10% full, so I <br> turned the wheel and prepared to go off the side. The tractor turned, <br> dumped me, slammed into the woodpile, and the deck took the force of the <br> blow as it was retracted up.<br> <br> The deck is now bent like a cruller, it's kind of neat to see. Granted <br> it was old and rusted but I think I will need a replacement. I went off <br> the side, bumped into the minivan, and was quite oddly fine with the <br> exception of a badly bruised and cut up leg.<br> <br> This could have gone much much worse. In fact it's pretty much <br> impossible that it went as well as it did. The moral of the story is <br> this: Adjust your brakes on your tractor. Never drive it if they are not <br> ready to stop it. Been doing this for 20 years, and I really almost <br> bought it this evening.<br> <br> Noted for future reference.<br> <br> _______________________________________________<br> Elec-trak mailing list<br> Elec-trak@cosmos.phy.tufts.edu<br> <a href="https://eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcosmos.phy.tufts.edu%2Fmailman%2Flistinfo%2Felec-trak&data=02%7C01%7C%7C23ca33fb9f5a4bb4d65e08d64da0519a%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C636781748290327055&sdata=pgbm3%2FMIKSFHxuMSsOy2HEmLxPtcV%2F2sucMTPmUdW80%3D&reserved=0" id="LPlnk225101" class="OWAAutoLink" previewremoved="true">https://eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcosmos.phy.tufts.edu%2Fmailman%2Flistinfo%2Felec-trak&data=02%7C01%7C%7C23ca33fb9f5a4bb4d65e08d64da0519a%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C636781748290327055&sdata=pgbm3%2FMIKSFHxuMSsOy2HEmLxPtcV%2F2sucMTPmUdW80%3D&reserved=0</a><br> </div> </span></font></div> </div> </div> </body> </html>