**Skits about Tractors and ROPS** [^1]

## 

The first three skits describe what ROPS are, how much they cost, and
provide information about the number of tractor overturn fatalities in
Kentucky.

These last four skits recreate conversations of real farmers about their
experiences with tractor overturns or their concerns about possible
tractor overturns in the future.

### Contents

Script for "What's a ROPS?" [2](#script-for-whats-a-rops)

Script for "What's a ROPS cost?" [3](#script-for-whats-a-rops-cost)

Script for "What killed these farmers?"
[4](#script-for-what-killed-these-farmers)

Script for "It won't happen again. He's learned his lesson!"
[5](#script-for-it-wont-happen-again.-hes-learned-his-lesson)

Script for "I had a close call the other day."
[6](#script-for-i-had-a-close-call-the-other-day.)

Script for "What changed your mind?"
[7](#script-for-what-changed-your-mind)

Script for "Why did you replace that ROPS?"
[9](#script-for-why-did-you-replace-that-rops)

##   {#section-1 .unnumbered}

## Script for "What's a ROPS?"

Child: Dad, what's a ROPS?

Dad: It's a roll bar for farm tractors.

Child: Why's it called a ROPS?

Dad: ROPS stands for "rollover protective structure."

Child: What's it do?

Dad: If the tractor rolls over, it keeps the driver from being crushed.

Child: Does it hurt you if you get crushed?

Dad: Yeah, I'm afraid so.

Child: Dad, how come we don't have a ROPS on our tractor?

Dad: Good question! Guess we should get a ROPS. You'll be driving a
tractor soon.

Announcer: Studies at the University of Kentucky found that one in nine
Kentucky farmers overturn a tractor during his or her lifetime. And
these are the lucky ones who survive! Some of these farmers are severely
injured and others are permanently disabled. Many others are killed in
tractor rollovers.

ROPS save lives and money. A serious injury from a tractor overturn can
result in medical costs of more than \$200,000. Most tractors can be
fitted with a ROPS and seat belt for less than \$1,000, including
shipping and installation.

## Script for "What's a ROPS cost?"

Wife: Honey, we need a ROPS on our tractor.

Husband: Oh, I don't know \-- I'm careful.

Wife: It's good to be careful but its better to be safe! You had a close
call last spring when you were bushhogging the pasture. Remember?

Husband: I know \-- I didn't see that new hole! But ROPS cost too much!

Wife: Not anymore! Now you can get a ROPS from a dealer for about \$800
for most tractors, including installation and shipping!

Husband: That's still a lot of money.

Wife: That's only about \$2.20 a day for a year! It's cheap compared to
your health and life. I love you and worry every time you drive the
tractor. The kids and I need you alive and well.

Husband: Yeah, I know.

Wife: And you know the best part?

Husband: I have a feeling you're going to tell me.

Wife: Right! A ROPS lasts as long as the tractor. That \$800 will
protect us for a lifetime! Remember, I drive the tractor too, and so
will Billy and Becky when they are older!

Announcer: Over the last 15 years it is estimated that 233 Kentucky
farmers have died from tractor overturns. Many hundreds have been
injured, some severely, and some permanently disabled. Costs associated
with serious injuries and deaths from tractor overturns often result in
loss of the farm. During a rollover, a ROPS and a fastened seat belt
keep the tractor driver from being injured. Isn't it time you got a ROPS
for your tractor?

## Script for "What killed these farmers?"

Sound effects: Plunk! (Turn an empty plastic or metal bucket \[or waste
can\] upside down under one arm. Use the eraser-end of a wooden pencil
to tap once on the bottom of the bucket or waste can. Tap only
[one]{.underline} time.)

Announcer: This sound represents one Kentucky farmer's death.

Announcer: During the five-year period from 1994 to 1998 many Kentucky
farmers died from unexpected injuries.

Sound effects: Tap, tap, tap,\... (Drum on the bottom of the bucket or
waste cans 71 times using the eraser-end of the pencil for a drumstick.
Tap at the rate of about two or three taps per second until you count to
71. Then stop.)

Announcer: What killed each of these 71 farmers?

> (Pause for three seconds.)

Announcer: Tractor overturns!

(Pause for three seconds.)

Announcer: How many of these tractor operators were protected by a
tractor roll bar and a seat belt?

(Pause for three seconds.)

Announcer: None!

(Pause for three seconds.)

Announcer: How many of these farmers would have died if a ROPS and a
seat belt had protected them?

Sound effects: Silence (Maintain silence for 3 seconds before the
announcer continues.)

Announcer: That's right! All would have lived!

Announcer: Get a ROPS and seat belt on your tractor! Think of it as a
one-time payment on a whole-life insurance policy for you and everyone
who drives your tractor! Call your local tractor dealer today. If you
care about yourself and your loved ones, arrange to get a ROPS and seat
belt installed on your tractor.

## Script for "It won't happen again. He's learned his lesson!"

Farmer's wife: What did you say a ROPS costs?

Neighbor: About \$600 to \$1000, depending on the tractor.

Farmer's wife: Wow! That's too much! We've got six tractors! We'd go
broke!

Neighbor: Didn't you tell me that your husband rolled a tractor three
years ago?

Farmer's wife: Yes, he did. Bob was using a small tractor to pull a
wagonload of six round bales down a hill. The wagon pushed him off the
road, and the tractor rolled over on its side. He was thrown off and
bruised but wasn't hurt.

Neighbor: Bob was lucky. He could have been killed.

Farmer's wife: Yeah, he was lucky, but as he says, he's had his close
call and he's learned his lesson.

Neighbor: Do you mean he doesn't drive tractors anymore?

Farmer's wife: No, he drives nearly every day. But he's careful now and
the odds are he won't roll a tractor a second time.

Neighbor: A study at the University of Kentucky found that 1 in 9
farmers overturns a tractor during his or her lifetime, and that
one-third of these people had a second overturn. And these were just the
ones who lived! Many of them were badly injured. Bob can be careful, but
he can still roll a tractor. He could be struck by a car and overturned
while he's driving on the road. He could drop a wheel into a ditch or
creek. He might not be so lucky next time.

Farmer's wife: What can we do? We don't have \$6,000 to put into these
old tractors!

Neighbor: Well you could start by getting a ROPS and seat belt on the
one or two tractors Bob uses most of the time and for the most dangerous
jobs. Just think, if Bob gets hurt or killed it will cost you a lot more
than \$6,000. Isn't his life and your happiness and peace of mind worth
a couple of thousand dollars? Just last year, you guys paid \$4,500 for
a new ATV. You ain't broke!

Farmer's wife: I'm not too happy about the ATV. That thing scares me.
But Bob loves it. But, you're right! We could find the money for a ROPS
or two. It's a matter of convincing him \-- and me too I guess, \-- that
it's worth the money.

## Script for "I had a close call the other day."

Doug: I had a close call the other day.

Paul: What happened, neighbor?

Doug: I was putting out round bales in the pasture using my old tricycle
tractor \-- you know \-- the one I put the three-point hitch on? I had
my three-prong hayfork on the hitch.

Paul: So, what happened?

Doug: You know how cold and windy it's been. I thought I'd back up to
that small sink in my east pasture and set the bale down in the sink, so
the cattle could get down in the holler and out of the wind.

Paul: Yeah, so what happened?.

Doug: It was getting dark. A bunch of goldenrod stalks and weeds covered
the slope into the sink. When I backed up, I dropped both back wheels
off a ten-inch ledge at the edge of the sink. The front end of the
tractor reared half way, straight up! The only thing that stopped it was
the round bale hitting the ground just inside the sink. It happened in a
heartbeat! When I dropped the bale, the front end of the tractor came
down. Then I backed down into the sink a little, got turned, drove
around the ledge, and got out.

Paul: Wow! You're lucky! If you'd dropped only one wheel, or had the
bale higher, you would have flipped over backwards!

Doug: Yeah, it was a close call. It scared me. Don't tell my wife, OK?

Paul: OK, but let me ask you something. You've got two newer tractors,
both with ROPS, and both with three-point hitches. Why were you using
that old tricycle anyway?

Doug: Well, I hadn't used if for a while. I like to run it now and then.
The big ROPS tractor was hooked to the feed grinder, and I didn't want
to take the time to unhitch it. The other tractor was in the barn behind
a wagon full of corn, and I couldn't get to it without moving the wagon.
I thought I'd save time and trouble.

Paul: Yep! And instead, you almost got yourself killed! I won't tell
your wife, or mine either. It would worry them too much. But I'll tell
you something! You ought to get rid of that old tricycle, or at least
restrict it to running the hay elevator and jobs that don't have much
risk of a rollover. You're too good a neighbor to lose and too good a
husband and father to die early.

## Script for "What changed your mind?"

Eddie: Hey Al, what's with all the ROPS on your tractors?

Al: Well, I thought it was time to get 'em on. That's all.

Eddie: Hmm! Wasn't but last summer you told me they cost too much.

Al: I changed my mind. I do that sometimes, you know!

Eddie: Yeah, me too.

Al: Well, I guess Sally changed my mind\...

Eddie: So, the wife told you to get with it and get those ROPS on your
three tractors, huh?

Al: No, that's not how it happened. Look, I'll tell you something, but
Sally doesn't want it spread around. It's too embarrassing to her.

Eddie: OK, so what happened?

Al: About a month ago, Sally was raking hay over across the road \-- you
know \-- the place with the narrow bridge across the ditch from the road
into the field. I told her to be careful. She got into the field OK and
got the hay raked. When she came home she decided to leave the rake in
the field and bring in the full hay wagon I'd left up there. On her way
out, she was watching the wagon and dropped a tractor wheel off the
bridge. It rolled plum upside down! It threw her into the ditch, just
inches from where the back tractor wheel came down. She got wet and
dirty but wasn't hurt.

Eddie: Well, I'll be darned! I didn't know that! Glad she's OK!

Al: We got the tractor out and back home that same day. It wasn't broke
up much, just a bent fender, bent steering wheel, and dented hood. The
next day I went to town and ordered ROPS for all three tractors. I
couldn't stand the thought of losing her. She loves farming too much to
lay off doing farm work. She's good with the tractors and machinery too.
So if she's going to drive, she's going to have a ROPS and wear the seat
belt.

Eddie: What about you?

Al: Me too!

## Script for "Why did you replace that ROPS?"

Sam: Hey Paul, is that a new ROPS on your tractor?

Paul: Yep.

Sam: What happened to the old ROPS?

Paul: I traded it in for a new one.

Sam: What on earth for?

Paul: The ROPS that came on that tractor was an upright. I couldn't use
the tractor to clean out the livestock barn because the ROPS wouldn't
fit through the barn doors. So I got a new fold-down ROPS.

Sam: Why didn't you just take the ROPS off the tractor?

Paul: Too risky! Too many folks around here have got themselves killed
when they rolled a tractor over on top of themselves.

Sam: Your land's flat. What are you worrying about?

Paul: Yeah, it's flat, but I still got sink holes, stream banks, and I
have to haul hay and equipment on the highway once or twice a week.
There's a heap of ways a body can get into trouble and flip a tractor.

Sam: What did it cost you to replace the ROPS?

Paul: About \$800 including trading in the old ROPS and the shipping and
installation charges for the new ROPS.

Sam: Whew! That's a lot of money!

Paul: No, not really when you think about it. I can fold the ROPS down
and clean my barn. When I'm done it only takes about 15 seconds to flip
the ROPS up and lock it into position. My wife and two boys drive that
tractor too. They run hay wagons and silage wagons back and forth on the
highway from my fields to the barn. The traffic is heavy, and people
drive too fast. When they're buckled in with the ROPS on the tractor, I
don't worry about them near as much. And I feel safer myself too.
Besides, the \$800 for the upright ROPS saved me the cost of buying
another smaller tractor that would fit in the barn.

Sam: By golly, you're right! There are lots of other things that cost
\$800 not worth near as much!

[^1]: Developed by the University of Kentucky KY CPHF ROPS Project staff
    during 1996-98 with support from CDC/NIOSH Cooperative Agreements
    U06/CCU412900-01, -02, -03 to the University of Kentucky, Southeast
    Center for Agricultural Health and Injury Prevention. The views
    expressed in this document are those of the authors and not
    necessarily those of CDC/NIOSH or the US Government.