I attended the Farm Science Review in London, Ohio, last week. This was my first big farm show since becoming managing editor of Farm World. I thoroughly enjoyed it, despite unusually warm September temperatures. (You can see scenes from the show on pages 6-7C this week.)

The show is approximately 100 acres and that does not include the demonstration plots. When I arrived, I started at the Farm World building to get information about the show from our veteran sales staff. I also picked up a golf cart.

Silly me, at first I was going to decline the golf cart, but several people insisted I should take it. I am so glad I did. Even with the cart, I did not make it down every single row in the five hours I spent at the show.

My first plan had been to drive down each aisle just to see what types of things were offered and then go back and take photos and wander the booths that interested me. I quickly realized I would never have time for this to work effectively. The show was just too big.

My first stop was to visit some cows; I am always drawn to anything with animals. Cattle were the only livestock at the event, and due to the high temperatures those showing the cattle were going to great lengths to keep the animals cool.

Several firms had permanent grain bins set up on the show grounds. This allowed visitors to see what the bins looked like constructed and to tour the interiors and get safety tips. The folks at Brock Grain Systems offered to let me climb to the top of their bin so I could take some overall shots of the venue.

I declined at first, because I am extremely afraid of heights. I didn’t used to be so scared, but as I’ve gotten older, this has gotten worse. I am on a search and rescue team and during a search last year, I was on a railroad trestle going over a river when I made the mistake of looking down between the trestles.

I ended up not being able to move, convinced that if I did, I would fall. No one noticed I wasn’t moving and soon all of the firemen and my teammates were at the other end. I had to call one of my teammates via telephone and get her to come back and help me off the bridge.

Images of that were what kept me from wanting to climb the grain bin access ladder, which was a series of steps with landings, so it wasn’t like I would be climbing straight up something. But then I learned another agri-newspaper had sent someone up to take photos and I felt challenged. I decided to try it.

I ended up making it almost to the third landing. Had the steps been solid, I might have kept going, but I could see through them straight to the ground – and that was it for me. At least I did get some shots of scenes above the crowd.

Golf cart etiquette may need to be a seminar at shows like this. Lots of people were driving golf carts. The roadways at the show were supposed to be one-way with each road alternating the direction of travel. There were giant arrows pointing which way golf cart travel was supposed to flow. About 80 percent of the drivers were going the right direction, but every once in a while someone wasn’t.

Everyone chose their own way to park their golf cart when they wanted to stop and visit a booth. Most people pulled all the way off the roadway and were careful not to block the entrance to someone’s booth or the entrance to a tent or building, but not everyone did that. I saw a few carts that were parked in such a way it made accessing a booth difficult.

And golf carts definitely need turn signals. At the ends of the aisles there were carts going multiple directions, as well as crowds of people. Many people used hand signals to indicate a turn, but not everyone, which meant drivers needed to be on their toes. There is definitely a learning curve also to the acceleration of a golf cart.

I had a great time, and I encourage anyone who hasn’t been to visit a farm show. Grab a golf cart, though.