Towing a 14' utility trailer for a hayride?

[Underwhere]

My wife asked whether I could tow the kids around for Halloween this year.
I have a 14 foot, 80" wide trailer.
I'm wondering if this is possible or whether it's a horrible idea.


BX25 with FEL and backhoe.
I'll plan on running a grapple in front (holding a weight if needed), 4WD Low.

Thinking of getting or welding a receiver hitch for the back side of the BX (under the backhoe) and extending it.
(Longer than this pic)

I'd like to get some hay, string up some lights and pull the kids and some parents around for trick or treating.
* Hay
* Lights
* 600-900 pounds worth of people

The route:
100% paved, wide and no hills.

The trailer:

 

[Bmyers]

I love hayrides. My wife and I use to drive the truck pulling everyone for our EMS fall party (we got the job since neither one of us drank).

Yet, now days I will only go on hayrides that aren't on the road and have pre-planned route. Got the misfortune of working a hayride accident where the wagon clipped a power pole and it snapped bringing wires down on the wagon, which we were unable to save two of them, everyone else got out with minor injuries. Also, worked a wreck where a car hit the back of the wagon and sent 8 people to the hospital (car driver was drunk), thankfully all minor injuries.

Since those two events, I have become more particular about when and where I do the old hayride.

Anymore people just don't know how to drive around farming equipment.

 

[CAPT Seabee]

I used to tow my 20' flatbed around with a pile of weight on it with a JD 1025R which is a similar class. Keep the FEL+Bucket on it to counter the weight. With all the stuff on it, you're only putting 300 pounds or so on the ball. Presume you have beet juice in the rear tires. These configurations are awesome and will give the kids great memories.

 

[Jchonline]

Keep it in 4WD for extra braking. Should be ok but you can always test it by adding some weight and trying it out. No Draw bar on the BX? Might not be just asking.

 

[Underwhere]

Thanks for your opinions.

I love hayrides. My wife and I use to drive the truck pulling everyone for our EMS fall party (we got the job since neither one of us drank).

Yet, now days I will only go on hayrides that aren't on the road and have pre-planned route.

I'm with you on that. I live on a road that gets almost no traffic. It's not a through street.
I actually feel like the kids would be safer on a lit up trailer than walking on a the street with no street lights.

No draw bar. I'll be welding up something to that effect if I follow through with this.

 

[woodman55]

I have to agree with the other guys. On private property/road, do what ever you want. On a public highway, I would be very cautious of have any one on anything that was not a certified seat with a seat belt. But that's just me.

 

[dirtydeed]

I would not recommend keeping it in 4wd on a paved surface. Low range if you feel like its necessary, but certainly not in 4wd.

 

[JimmyJazz]

The is a LOT of potential liability in that sort of thing. I love the idea and my younger self would have wholeheartedly approved. Now that I am older , have more to lose, have more responsibility , and know some lawyers I would not consider it. Risk/reward. No brainer for me.

 

[John D 2]

In our subdivision, all the houses are on acreage, so the kids can't run house to house to trick or treat.

The residents sit out on lawn chairs on their driveway near the street. . .

Every Halloween we get around 100 kids all riding on flatbed trailers with hay that ride through the subdivision.

We give out single bags of popcorn to each kid.

Last year we gave out 92 bags of popcorn. It's cheaper than candy and the kids like it better.

Consider using your truck instead of the tractor to pull the trailer. You could use the flashers on the truck to give more visibility to your trailer.
It would be a safer option.

 

[fried1765]

The is a LOT of potential liability in that sort of thing. I love the idea and my younger self would have wholeheartedly approved. Now that I am older , have more to lose, have more responsibility , and know some lawyers I would not consider it. Risk/reward. No brainer for me.

ABSOLUTELY NOT.....Nice as it may seem.
We live in a litigious society!

 

[N3BP]

I would not recommend keeping it in 4wd on a paved surface. Low range if you feel like its necessary, but certainly not in 4wd.

In 95% of cases this is true. However, I tend to agree it's better to to have the front engaged for better breaking for this particular use. His cargo is people.....

 

[Underwhere]

In our subdivision, all the houses are on acreage, so the kids can't run house to house to trick or treat.

The residents sit out on lawn chairs on their driveway near the street. . .

Every Halloween we get around 100 kids all riding on flatbed trailers with hay that ride through the subdivision.

We give out single bags of popcorn to each kid.

Last year we gave out 92 bags of popcorn. It's cheaper than candy and the kids like it better.

Consider using your truck instead of the tractor to pull the trailer. You could use the flashers on the truck to give more visibility to your trailer.
It would be a safer option. View attachment 111368

That what I'm going for. Looks like a great experience for the kids.

All the houses are on at least 2 acres.

In my neighborhood we sit at the end of our driveways, have a portable bonfire and drinks.

The picture may make it seem like a busy roadway. It's actually very private. The only people who drive down this road are the people who live there as there is no exit. The type of road where we can play catch in the road and stop whenever a neighbor happens to drive by.

 

[Flintknapper]

I used to tow my 20' flatbed around with a pile of weight on it with a JD 1025R which is a similar class. These configurations are awesome and will give the kids great memories.

Same here. Every year used to have a big Bonfire down by the pond. Load up all the kids (and a few adults) on the 20' flatbed trailer with hay bales on it. Pull it very slowly around the property on the ranch roads. About a 30-45 minute ride depending on the route.

Never had an issue. All those kids are grown now with families of their own.

 

[ajschnitzelbank]

I once towed a landscape trailer carrying probably a dozen and a half adults with by B2301 (using drawbar). The only part that was scary was turning downhill on grass I felt the trailer push me just a little. That I would avoid in the future!

If I were in your shoes, I would do it. (Except I don’t understand the lack of drawbar… I’d do it assuming I had a safe hitch of some sort.) Sure we live in a litigious society, but ya can’t do nothin’ for fear of a mishap and lawsuit, right?

 

[BAP]

Do you have insurance on both your tractor and trailer that covers liability and medical expenses if someone gets hurt during your hay rides? If you don’t and something happens during one of the rides, you could lose everything that you own. Friendship and neighborly goes out the window when someone gets injured.

 

[NCL4701]

I don’t have a BX so I can’t speak directly to its adequacy or inadequacy for the specific route. Three suggestions:

1. If you’re concerned about liability issues, call your home/farm insurance agent and address coverage. You may already have coverage. If you don’t, you may be able to purchase an endorsement to provide coverage for a small amount being it isn’t a routine activity. If you have no coverage, at least you know it and can assess your risk tolerance from that perspective.

2. Yes, your cargo is people so consider a bit of otherwise over the top due diligence if there’s any question of your machine’s ability. Figure out the approximate weight of cargo if you load your trailer with the quantity of hay and people you anticipate hauling. Add a little bit more for a safety factor. Load the trailer with equivalent weight distributed similarly but use inanimate cargo (maybe just more hay bales to substitute for the people if you have a bunch in the barn). Take the rig on a test run or two. If it works well, great! If it doesn’t and you accidentally kill a couple of hay bales or chunks of firewood at least you know not to try it with live cargo.

3. Do NOT run your tractor in 4WD on pavement. Doing that with a heavy load is even worse than not heavily loaded. If you need 4WD for braking, that does NOT mean you need 4WD, it means you can’t pull it with your tractor; you need a bigger tractor or pull it with your truck but your machine is too small if it won’t get the job done on pavement in 2WD.

Edit: And if your running at night make sure you have lights on the trailer. I’ve been involved in the aftermath of about a half dozen hay rides that were partially on public roads where the trailer was rear ended because the car/truck driver saw the rear work light on the tractor, no lights on trailer, and thought they had 30’ or so that they didn’t have because they didn’t see the trailer. So far in my 33 years of dealing with those situations professionally, 4 deaths and quite a few more serious injuries. I’m retiring at the end of the year so hopefully won’t add to that count, but it is hay ride season.

 

[dirtydeed]

In 95% of cases this is true. However, I tend to agree it's better to to have the front engaged for better breaking for this particular use. His cargo is people.....

"breaking" or braking?

OP- you do realize that towing something with a BX in low range is frustratingly slow correct?

 

[Hkb82]

I’m with ncl on this one also. If you need 4wd on pavement then you probably need a better pull vehicle to haul people. Absolutely love the idea though and wish my area had something like this during Halloween. I also feel like if ya have to be told about lights and night time then your probably not the person for the job.

 

[chim]

It's a really nice idea, but I wouldn't do it. Making sure to abide by any laws and having adequate (whatever that is) insurance sounds good. But $100 Million in insurance coverage won't bring a kid back to life if you mess up. I'm certain NONE of drivers on the hayride tragedies that show up in the news hitched up a wagon with the intent to wreck it.

 

[The Evil Twin]

What's your towing capacity, 2000? You might be right around maxed out. Maybe over.
Would I still do it? Yessir.
It's flat and paved, you'll have lights.