Drop a Hat
2002
Darwin Award Nominee
Unconfirmed
by Darwin
(Early
2002, Kansas) Just outside of Wichita, a 21-year old farm boy was driving a
grain harvester across his winter wheat field to collect the crop.
This
particular piece of farm equipment has huge rotating blades that cut down the
wheat stalks. At some point during the harvesting, the driver's cowboy hat was
blown off by the wind and hurtled some distance in front of the blades.
Thinking
that the tractor was not moving fast enough to warrant stopping -- or perhaps
just not thinking at all -- he jumped down and ran in front of the tractor to
collect his hat. It was still being blown around by the wind, and after chasing
it for a bit, he finally caught up with it. Meanwhile, the harvester had caught
up with him, and his body was found scattered across the wheat field.
Local
authorities were contacted by a neighbour who noticed the tractor crossing
Highway 96 with no driver.