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German traveler working across America to learn more about ag

 

 

By MICHELE F. MIHALJEVICH

Indiana Correspondent

 

CLAYPOOL, Ind. — For his former job with Krone, Alex Conrad visited the United States a few times, mainly in the western part of the country. The nature of the work usually meant going back and forth from the company to a hotel, with little opportunity to explore the surrounding area.

He’s back, with a different plan – this time he’s touring the country on his own by motorcycle. During his travels, Conrad is visiting with farmers and Krone customers to learn more about their way of life and how it compares to his native Germany. And his plans don’t stop at the Lower 48’s borders. He hopes to go north to Alaska and end his journey in the South American country of Chile. The entire trip could take 18 months to two years.

The idea of touring Pan America came after Conrad left Germany-based Krone in 2011. He spent time traveling around Europe by motorcycle. "I liked the lifestyle and tried to find a way to continue to do it," he explained. "I stop at places where I can work.

"I’m curious and I just like trying new things like operating and working on (farm) equipment I haven’t seen before."

His latest U.S. visit began when he arrived in New York City in early April. He spent time in Memphis, Tenn., at the headquarters of Krone North America. Krone manufactures equipment for the hay and forage industries.

In early June, he spent time with the Parker family, owners of Parker & Sons Equipment near Claypool, Ind. He planned to head to Alaska by mid-June and hoped to reach his destination by the end of July.

When asked his biggest impression of northeastern Indiana and other areas of the Midwest, Conrad laughed and replied, "It’s all flat." He then added, "It looks like a mixture of farming on the West Coast and in Europe. It’s not as big or extensive as on the West Coast but bigger than in Europe."

Farmers in Europe generally use smaller equipment and have fewer acres than their counterparts in the United States, Conrad noted. For example, an eight-row corn planter would be common, whereas an American farmer might use a 24-row. German farmers are limited in part because larger pieces of equipment aren’t allowed on the roads there.

Farms of fewer than 200 acres are commonplace in Germany. The major crop for feeding cattle in Germany is rye grass; alfalfa isn’t grown there. Corn is an important crop, though yields of most crops are generally smaller than those in the United States.

"(Farming) efficiency isn’t as high (in Germany) as it is here," he noted. "German farmers are under much more pressure than here. This time of year they work 15, 16, 24 hours a day. They just don’t stop. They keep going and going, which puts more stress on."

U.S. producers tend to do most farming with their own equipment, while in Germany, farmers outsource some of the jobs, such as hiring a custom harvester, he said.

Conrad has some general goals for his journey – such as making it to California by the end of September – but he’s trying to be flexible during his stops along the way. For example, he planned to stay with the Parkers only a few days but ended up staying more than two weeks.

"I’m seeing a whole different America than I was used to," he stated. "The people are so friendly. I camp a lot and when I stop at a farm asking if there’s a good place nearby to pitch my tent, they often invite me to put it in their backyard.

"I can’t recommend (this way of travel) enough. I had a big desire to do this; I was at a point in my life where I needed to change something. I’m so happy at the moment."

Conrad’s family lived next to a farm while he was growing up. He remembers helping around that farm when he was 12-13 years old and said it was that experience that fueled his interest in agricultural machinery. During his visits to the United States, including this one, he’s heard three types of comments when people find out he’s from Germany.

"They’ll say, ‘Oh, you’re from Germany. Do you have refrigerators over there? Do you have TVs?’ Or they’ll say, ‘You’re from Germany. That must have been a long drive from there to here.’"

Conrad said he’s learned to respond jokingly to comments such as those, but one other remark pretty much leaves him speechless: "They’ll ask, ‘Germany – is that where Hitler lives?’ I really don’t know what to say to that."

Other people travel across the country by motorcycle, but Conrad doesn’t know of others doing that with a focus on agriculture. During his journey, he’s writing stories about agriculture equipment for Traction, a German magazine. He’s also writing a blog about his experiences. The blog, written mostly in German, may be found at www.world-ag-traveller.com

6/25/2015