DRY CRIK Journal

Mule: Belly-up

Unfortunately, the Kawasaki Mule got away from me yesterday morning when I stopped to pick up a sack of mineral supplement that I’d lost a couple of weeks before along the road up the mountain. The weight of five bales of hay (600 lbs.) and the incline were more than the emergency brake could handle, apparently, slipping slightly before I got out. As the only parking/locking device, I reset it and sat there to make sure it would hold. Bent over to pick up the sack, I saw the Mule moving out of the corner of my eye. I was part way back in the saddle as it accelerated (free-wheeled) downhill backwards. Though I thought I could get all the way in before it went over the edge, I wasn’t confident that I could get to the brake peddle while it was still on the road. End over end, crashing trees and brush, scattering hay bales, fencing tools and cameras, it came to rest a couple hundred feet below.

I’m OK, though upset with the shape of the Mule. The fine line between humor and tragedy depends on how it all ends. Horse or mule, there are no guarantees.