Slow Tractors On Busy Highways

Dear Mongoose,

I was driving to Bowling Green last week and got behind a tractor. I understand farmers have to drive their tractors on the road and I realize they don't go very fast but I can't sympathize with someone who takes up the entire roadway and doesn't have the decency to pull over and let traffic pass. Is there a better way for them to get from one place to the other and why do they have to be so big. You seem like a person that could answer this.

Dear Farmers Only Dot Com,

You know what the farmer said when he lost his tractor?  "Where's my tractor?" Most farmers work fields that aren't all connected to one another. In order for them to get equipment from one field to the other, they have no choice but to drive on public roads. Imagine driving a tractor that can weigh upwards of 30,000 lbs. with 8 tires pulling an implement that is 15' or more folded up.  Now try pulling off a country road with no shoulder in a $200,000 piece of machinery in which the tires alone can cost as much as $5,000 each. The reason your food is as inexpensive as it is, directly relates to the efficiency of American farmers who feed 155 people each. That's up from around 25 in 1960. I guess they could buy a helicopter and airlift them from field to field, just be prepared to pay $200 for a pound of hamburger to finance a $3million helicopter, pilot, insurance, helipad and gear to airlift a tractor. Or you could just be patient and enjoy your Dollar Menu burger at 20 mph.