continue to be shortages of certain sizes and types of tires. This will undoubtedly cause irritation to the tire dealer who is servicing the customer. Hopefully, this is a short-term problem.

It is important that tire dealers know their market and carefully plan their needs for the season. Many tire manufacturers offer special order programs to help dealers plan their inventory needs, which, in turn, assists the tiremakers in producing tires that are needed in the future.

Now more than ever, dealers and tire manufacturers have to work together to meet the needs of the customer and the future needs of the industry. No dealer wants to lose a sale because it may mean that you’ve lost a customer for life. That is not acceptable. The revenue stream starts at that retail sale in the field and works its way back through the dealership and manufacturers – and no one should forget that.

So, in preparing for the future, there is an aspect of the business that can change the dynamic of the year.

Winds of Change
I usually don’t like to talk about the weather’s impact on the business, but with farming, it’s always all about the weather. Even though we can’t control it, by observing the changing patterns, we can prepare for what the weather has to offer and better serve our customers.

Last year, states like Texas and Oklahoma burned up in a drought, which saw whole stands of wheat, corn and beans dry up in the heat of the sun. Ranchers had to sell or move whole herds of cattle because of lack of feed.

In the North, there was a rainy pattern that delayed planting and, in some cases, no crops were planted at all. When I drove through parts of South Dakota on my annual migration home, there were thousands of acres of land that lay barren because no tractor, wheeled or tracked, could get in to do the spring planting due to the wet soil conditions.

Nebraska saw a delay in planting because of heavy spring rains, resulting in a late harvest. There were many areas in which the center pivots hardly moved due to the abundance of moisture. That meant fewer sales of irrigation tires, when usually they are sold by the thousands.

This year is no exception when it comes to the unpredictability of Mother Nature. With a warmer-than-normal spring coupled with timely rains, there are parts of Texas that have some of the finest wheat crops I’ve ever seen. In fact, most farmers of the U.S. and Canada have been able to get their spring work done ahead of schedule with the hope of an early, bountiful harvest.

Here in Nebraska, the first cutting of alfalfa is done and the corn is already coming out of the ground. I have seen center pivots in action and I can only think of the pent-up demand for irrigation tires if this season is close to normal.

Think of all the tires that sat in the sun last year and didn’t move. What opportunities are out there for a dealer to out-service and out-perform the competition?

What does all this talk about weather mean to the tire dealer? Weather means dealers are going to have to be prepared to provide options to meet the changing needs of the farmer. There is not a “one tire fits all” silver bullet tire in this industry. Different weather conditions require different products and strategies, and that can be the fine line between success and failure.

Dry Conditions
When it’s dry, spring work can go by quickly and seamlessly, with few problems. But there are many factors that a dealer needs to consider. Dry conditions cause the likelihood of stubble damage in spring tillage or fall harvest, bringing on the need for high quality tire repairs or outright tire replacement.

Dealers can help their customers by educating them on best practices like correct row spacing or the use of straddle duals on combines to minimize riding on the rows. Also, the use of stubble stompers to knock down the stubble in front of the tires can save precious dollars and down time for the farmer.

Wet Conditions
A wet spring or fall causes saturated farming conditions where a normal tractor or combine setup will be ineffective in the field. What will be needed is an additional tractive footprint at the lowest possible air pressure to enable the farmer to get into the field.

This can be accomplished a couple of ways: 1) Going from narrow to wider tires to increase flotation and footprint; or 2) the addition of duals or triples to accomplish the same as above in row crop applications.

In either case, the farmer will be required to buy additional tires and wheels from the dealer. That is why it is important for tire dealers to be experts at both tires and wheels; if they are, the farmers will rely on them to fulfill all of their needs. You wouldn’t recommend changing oil without also changing the filter, right? A change in the set up means that the air pressure in the tire will have to change.

Inflation Pressure
Medium truck or passenger tires don’t have a monopoly on air pressure. It is as vitally important in ag tires as it is for commercial truck or UHP tires. In all conditions, wet or dry, it is very important to have the optimal air pressure in the tire.

When I say optimal, I mean having the inflation pressure match the load. In dry conditions, you will get the most traction and the least compaction with greatest fuel economy when the air pressure is matched to the load.

As you go to wider tires or are adding tires for duals and triples, it will require adjusting the inflation pressure to meet the load to accomplish the same as above. Farmers should be made aware of the needed air pressure. It can be done in a variety of ways. It can be as simple as a sticker placed near the wheel positions for ready reference. Be sure that sticker has the tire dealership name and phone number on it for easy recall as needed.

I used to supply special valve stems that could be calibrated to the proper air pressure and a blinking light would activate when the pressure dropped below a certain level.

It still amazes me that the large tractor manufacturers can have a refrigerator in the cab of a tractor or combine, but have no internal tire pressure monitoring system that would greatly assist in ensuring the benefits of a properly set up tractor. The benefits surely would greatly outweigh the cost.

Weather or Not
Optimism abounds for another great year in the farm tire business. Crops are planted and farmers are praying for sunny days with timely rains.

I had a couple calls recently from tire dealers concerning the robustness of the market. Even though new equipment sales have been on the rise, farmers still need replacement tires and wheels and the market couldn’t get much better.

Supply of certain sizes are tight, but sales for ag tires and the other products farmers buy are solid right now. Days look sunny indeed, but I’m keeping my eyes to the west.