continued from page 12 “I started driving a tractor about 12 years ago” Bo proudly said from atop her recently purchased orange hydrostatic Kubota, complete with front end loader and bucket. “I had borrowed people’s tractors for years and years. You can wear out your welcome.” So Bo went on the hunt earlier this year. “I looked at one in Buckingham County and the price was right!” Of course, no tractor purchase would be complete without a party to honor its arrival. A few months ago Bo had hers. And in one word, she said it was “fabulous.” In other parts of the world or even other parts of the U.S., seeing a woman driving a tractor might be a little unusual, but in Nelson, it’s very usual. “Oh, no, no. I’ve never seen a woman that lives in Chile mowing the grass, using a trimmer or anything. I was glad to see it here,” said Nancy Hellerman of Goodwin Creek Farm & Bakery in Afton. The day we talked to her, she was all about green – John Deere green. But she’s usually a Kubota girl too. “The John Deere is a lot more fun,” she explained. Nancy was born and raised in South America and moved to the United States a few years ago. Before moving to Goodwin Creek, she had never even been on a lawn mower, much less a tractor. “It was fun, lots of fun,” Nancy laughs, remembering the first time she rode a tractor. As a kid, I too remember my first ride on a tractor. It was with my dad back in West Tennessee feeding the cows in the winter. The days before the big round bales.
Bo Holland of Screech Owl Farm was so thrilled about getting her Kubota, she threw a tractor party (above). When she’s not baking bread, Nancy Hellerman tends to the field at Goodwin Creek Farm on her John Deere (right). Yvonne Harris of amFOG uses her Mahindra to load anything from firewood, to mulch, to mums (opposite, top). Heidi Crandall of Hat Creek Farm tunes out the world on her Deere (opposite, right).
14 NELSON COUNTY LIFE OCTOBER 2008