Claas is claiming a new world mowing record after knocking down 141.1ha of alfalfa in eight hours. Exceeding the previous record by 40.5ha, which was set on grass, not alfalfa, and a mower without conditioner, the new record was established by Tate Mesbergen from Mesbergen Farms (US).
Driving an Axion 800 with a Disco 1100 RC mower conditioner, and accompanied by a support team, with a maximum field speed of 30km/hr and more than 50km/hr when travelling between the four fields, the mower averaged 17.6ha/hr and an average of 5.24t of dry mass/ha. “Not all fields were close to one another, so it was a real challenge to quickly fold up the mower units for transport and hurry along the roads,” says Tate.
Not everything went according to plan and there were a number of heavy showers the day before the attempt, which delayed the start by a few hours. The driver also made two unplanned stops. The first was between the first and second field.
“I hit a piece of concrete on the first field and had to check whether the mower unit was damaged,” he says. Fortunately, no harm was done and none of the blades needed replacing. The second interruption took place to check that the mower was correctly folded before it was transported along the road to the last field.
Verified by impartial witnesses, Claas will be sending the necessary documents to Guinness, so that the world record can be officially confirmed.
