Technology Tune-Up for Spring Planting

technology
As farmers prep for spring planting, don’t forget to upgrade the technology in your machinery. It’s every bit as important as a mechanical tune-up on your tractor. (Photo from blog.caseIH.com)

Technology is as important to today’s farm machinery as the nuts and bolts that held old-school equipment together back in the day. Maintaining your machines is a never-ending task when it comes to farming. When you’re lubricating moving parts, changing filters, or checking bearings, don’t forget to keep the technology that runs your machinery up to date.

Just like the typical equipment maintenance farmers all know and love (and occasionally hate), the technology the runs your machines need a regular tune-up as well. Technology advances quickly, and farmers have to be just as quick to keep up, which can sometimes be an overwhelming task.

Farming sure has changed a lot, hasn’t it? We know have to make sure the technology running those machines is as up to date as the machinery itself. (Photo from agupdate.com)

“As technology advances, you have to keep up to date with the software upgrades,” says Chris Ehman, Case/IH Aftermarket Solutions marketing manager. “That becomes even more true now as 3G is either going away or gone for good, depending on a farmer’s location. That’s why it’s even more important to get connected than before now.”

The new technology brought massive changes to the way farmers run their operations. For example, modern technology now gives farmers instant access to every machine in their fleet.

“The new technology in the CASE/IH Connection Portal frees up farmers to do their work, share data, and to manage their fleet wherever, whenever, and however they want,” he said. “It allows you to gather that data throughout the year and easily visualize what’s happening in your fields.”

The technology gives farmers a better grip on optimizing the performance of their fleet. Computerization helps Case IH owners of equipment made in 2010 or newer the chance to coordinate all of their machines and share their data to a central computer.

“Farmers can see each machine’s data as it’s running, including the location, the machine’s status, engine hours, idle time, acres per hour, and fuel levels,” he said, “so it helps them better track of what the operators are doing with the machines.

“Another way the technology helps farmers is with the security of their machines,” Ehman added. “It can set up geofences and curfews. With geo-fencing technology, you can set up pre-defined working areas for your machines and get alerts if they leave that specific area. And the curfew setting will alert you if the machine is working outside of a pre-defined timeframe. It gives you a lot of peace of mind at the end of every day.”

And if you’re one of those who don’t consider yourself “technologically efficient,” the software will help you know when it’s time to update. You’ll notice error codes and alerts that will get sent via the tech portal.

“That alert will help you understand what’s happening with your equipment out in the field,” Ehman said. “It will help you decide if it’s a simple setting that needs to be adjusted and can get fixed over the phone, or if a tech will instead need to make a trip to the field. If a tech support worker doesn’t need to come out and fix the issue, taking care of it over the phone can be a real time and money-saver.

“And if a tech is needed, they’ll have a much better understanding of what the issue is and what’s needed to fix it,” he added. “That makes the repair move at a quicker pace and gets the machinery back into operation and making money for the farmer. Quicker repairs, less money, and more uptime is always a good thing.”

At the end of the day, Ehman said farming is one of the most challenging occupations in the country. There’s a lot at stake and many difficult decisions to make. The agricultural economy has struggled in recent years, and farmers need success this year without question.

“A profitable operation is possible, and these new technologies help make that happen,” he said. “You don’t have to wait to benefit from the advantages of the new technologies. The equipment you already own can be capable of so much more than you may realize.”

Data protection is a big deal for farmers, and Ehman says companies like Case IH are taking good care of that vital information. The company is upfront in saying that farmer’s data belongs to each individual farmer and that farmer alone.

“For our dealers and our partners to access that data, they have to get permission from the farmers,” Ehman said. “That is a move in the right direction for Case IH as a company and a brand.

“The technology we use to analyze that data has come a long way as well,” he adds. “We’ve gotten much better at collecting and aggregating the data from multiple machines on the operation, and then overlaying that with yield data and field maps to allow farmers to see all the conditions that may be affecting their yield. It’s moving past the machinery data and into more of the farming and agronomic data.”

Any farmer can then use that data to help improve their yields and return on investment. A 4G update will get farmers into the Case IH Connect Portal with an AFS Connect subscription. That will let farmers take advantage of the new 4G technology and the benefits that come with it.

Hobbies broadening my horizons in middle-age

Hobbies. I’ve never really had much time for them through the course of my life and I’m honestly not sure why as I sit here and write. Too busy trying to make ends meet? Too lazy? The truth, as it is with most everything in life, is probably somewhere in the middle.

Hobbies
Probably shouldn’t be surprised that this was one of the first things I found while walking through the shelter-belt, reliving some old memories. (photo by Chad Smith)

I’ve never really been the adventurous type. Always seemed to want to play it safe and never do anything other people might find unexpected. Then, I moved to the Twin Cities and discovered urban exploring. It’s been a rather eye-opening experience since adding it to my still-growing list of hobbies.

I saw people going to places very few others went to. That spoke to me and I honestly wasn’t sure why at first. Then, as I got a little further into the hobby, it started to dawn on me through the feedback I got mostly through Facebook. “I really enjoy following your explorations,” is something I heard on a regular basis.

This old girl was far and away my favorite old vehicle that I discovered during a Saturday
afternoon exploration. (Photo by Chad Smith)

Plus, I got feedback from people I didn’t expect. The City Administrator at Rushford, Minnesota, Tony Chladek, is a busy fella (and does a great job) but he mentioned during a phone call how much he enjoys my urban exploring photography. He said the same thing I get in a lot of feedback; “I really enjoy following you into places not a lot of people go.”

Hobbies
Just how strange IS my brain? The first thing I thought of was a conversation I had about a place we used to like to eat in Watertown, South Dakota. “What was the name of that place that had the old Wagon Wheel out front,” I had asked. “The Wagon Wheel,” came the answer. (Photo by Chad Smith)

The current Secretary of Agriculture in Minnesota, Thom Peterson, is a long-time Facebook friend who also mentioned he likes following my explorations. It was funny how he mentioned it after we’d finished an interview for a newspaper article I was writing.

While going through abandoned places, I find it a lot of fun to try and picture what life must have been like back in the day, all those years ago. How different things must have been three decades ago? And, how similar some things might have been as well.

That’s what hooked me into it. Going places that other people don’t typically get to go. But it’s even more than that. It’s the history behind some of these places that also fascinates me too. Spent an afternoon a while back exploring the Pokegama Sanatorium near Pine City, Minnesota. One of the most interesting things I found there was documentation and medical papers that went back as far as 30 years.


Got a tip from a Facebook friend and fellow urbex (slang for urban exploring) enthusiast about a bunch of abandoned vehicles tucked away in a shelter-belt near the Mazomani Trail that I had recent explored. I sure found a number of vehicles that had been stashed away a long time ago.

Far and away the BIGGEST piece of machinery I found abandoned in the tree line. Thought
for a crazy moment I’d found the remains of Optimus Prime. (Photo by Chad Smith)

Man, did walking through a shelter-belt bring back memories of life on the Gerhold Farm. My brother, Travis, and I spent all kinds of time exploring the tree lines around the entire farm. If I remember right, Grandpa John had his own vehicles stashed away among the trees as well.

Talk about some serious nostalgia that made this soon-to-be 50-year-old smile like he was all of fourteen again. Of course, my wife will occasionally say that me and my grown sons can collectively be 14 years old as well. Not sure that’s a compliment?

Hobbies. We all need one or two. If you don’t have one, get one, okay? Hobbies make life more interesting.

Hobbies
Didn’t everyone’s grandparents drive one of these at one point? (Photo by Chad Smith)

Nature always wins in the end, doesn’t she? (Photo by Chad Smith)

Hobbies
What must life have been like when someone was actually sitting behind the wheel? (Photo
by Chad Smith)

Mill ruins explore in Hastings, Minnesota

Mill ruins are so much fun to explore. Minnesota seems to have its share of these old buildings scattered around the state. Time to Explore Minnesota. We’ve all seen or heard the commercials from time to time, haven’t we?

Well, as I’ve unfortunately had a little more free time lately (thanks COVID-19), I’ve taken that commercial a little more to heart than I have in the past. And yes, I’m keeping socially distant. Instead of feet, my distance between me and other carbon-based lifeforms stretches for miles, okay?

Mill
I saw this even before I reached the abandoned buildings of Old Mill Park. Seriously people? On the trees? (Photo by Chad Smith)

After exploring an abandoned farm that didn’t have much left to it, I was off to Hastings next to see their Old Mill Park. That kind of thing is even more interesting to me after spending a couple days poking around Mill Ruins Park in the Twin Cities. While this one wasn’t as big as Mill Ruins Park, the history was just as interesting.

It turns out this is all that’s left of the old Ramsey Mill in Hastings, built back in the mid-1800s. My first thought as I was walking down the path to the old structures was “man they’re tall!” And I was more right than I first knew. The old mill was no less than four stories tall. Alexander Ramsey and Dr. Thomas Foster built it right next to the Vermillion River.

Mill
The four-story-tall structure sits right on the bank of the Vermillion River in Hastings, Minnesota. (Photo by Chad Smith)

The big structure was called a “grist” mill. What that means is it ground cereal grains into flour and what were called “middlings.” Those are the parts that aren’t flour. Middlings are a good source of protein, fiber, phosphorus, and other nutrients. People use them to produce foods like pasta, breakfast cereals, puddings, and couscous for humans, as well as fodder for livestock and pets. How about that? You and I learned something today. I didn’t know what middlings were either.

It’s interesting that Ramsey actually sold his interest in the business in 1877 but the place still retained his name. The mill would operate for another two decades before a fire broke out in late 1894. A Wiki article says it unfortunately may have been arson. It was really too bad because the mill had just cranked up its production to 125 barrels a day, higher than it had ever done before.

The Ramsey Mill was hit by a fire in 1894. While there isn’t much of the physical structure left, there’s still a lot of history there. (Photo by Chad Smith)

I don’t actually know when it shut down officially. The oldest photo I could find online was in 1902, when folks in Hastings were already calling it the “Ramsey Mill Ruins.”

As I was leaving the Old Mill Park, I glanced off to the right and saw the most remarkable little tree that seems to be growing right out of the end of the overhang. Those trees can grow in the strangest places, can’t they?

Anti-Veteran, Anti-Women Vandalism in SE MN

This makes me very angry. Evidently, the anti-veteran sentiment is alive and well in rural Fillmore County of Southeast Minnesota. Seriously… you spray-painted graffiti ON a horse? A living thing? And not only was this moron evidently anti-veteran, he (or she) was also anti-women. Dear God, what are we coming to?

Press Release from Sheriff Tom Kaase:

On Thursday May 31, at approximately 1:17 AM, the Fillmore County Sheriff’s Emergency Communications Center (911) received a report of criminal damage to property in the 14000 block of 171st Ave., in section 7 of the York Township, in Fillmore County. The home owner was alerted by a driveway sensor that someone was in the area of his residence at about 11:30 PM. He went outside to see who was there and didn’t find anyone. He began looking around his property and found serious vandalism. He found vulgar, disparaging remarks spray painted on his building, a horse trailer, and also on a horse located on his property. Some of the disparaging messages were against our veterans. There were also disparaging remarks made against women. The property owner and victim is a veteran of the United States Air Force. In addition to the spray painted vandalism, the victim’s United States Flag flown in his yard was stolen. A horse also received a minor injury and it is unknown if that was self-inflicted or caused by the suspect(s). The Fillmore County Sheriff’s Office is investigating this crime and asks anyone with any possible information to please contact our office at 507-765-3874. People with information may remain anonymous.

Veterans, women, horse
I cannot believe someone would actually spray graffiti on one of these magnificent animals, but that’s precisely what happened on June 1 in SE MN. (Photo from sprucepets.com)

Thank you.
Sheriff Tom Kaase

If you know anything about this, please drop a dime and call the police. Let’s get this taken care of!