Farm tires: making dreams into reality. (includes related article 'That was then, this is now') (Commercial Tire Dealer)

Farm tires: Making dreams into reality

Thomas Farmer stretched his arms and yawned as he sat down upon the grassy hill overlooking the golden expanse of his acreage. It had been a long day in the fields, and the heat of the sun made him very sleepy...

He'd only been asleep minutes when he woke with a start. A man, dressed in farmer's overalls stood over him, extending a helping hand. Thomas pulled himself up, rubbed his eyes, and looked around in amazement. The landscape of his farm had changed quite a bit.

"Is this a dream?" he asked.

"It's the future," replied the farmer.

Well, it seems Thomas fell asleep for quite a while, decades in fact. He took a little nap in the late summer of 1951 and not unlike Rip Van Winkle, he woke up forty years later to find an incredible reality -- the advancements of the farming industry.

Not everything's different

Thomas couldn't figure out what had happened. So he tried to feel his situation out very carefully. "That's quite a crop you have," he said, pointing to the vast field of wheat.

The farmer shook his head. "It could've been a lot better."

The overall economy has always been a major factor in farming and it always will be.

1991 proved to be a mixed year for farmers. The drought hit a number of places hard. The war in the Middle East brought the world economy to a halt.

Still, a number of farmers made money.

But they were extremely cautious of what they bought. They saved their money. They remember the mid-'80s too well.

This …