Franklin County Soil & Water Conservation District partners with several others Districts throughout the state to host Workshops for Gravel Road Maintenance & Construction with the Front Runner/Grader Rake. The Front Runner is an attachment that fits onto the front of a 3/4 ton pick-up truck utilizing a snowplow mount. We now have couplers that will allow using different size trucks. The Front Runner is used for road grading, maintenance, site cleanup, landscaping, finish grading, and snow removal on soft roads.

The Front Runner consists of a row of heavy duty, flexible, spring steel tines individually bolted to a rugged welded steel frame. A set of adjustable gauge wheels is attached to this frame in front of the tines for support. The entire attachment forms the configuration of a miniature road grader.

Anyone wishing to use the Front Runner/Grader on a loan basis must attend one of the Unpaved Road Maintenance Workshops.

Features and Benefits of the Front Runner:

• Penetrates the surface and can be controlled better than rear-mounted attachments.
• Works faster than a blade because of the flexibility of the tines.
• Restores the road crown by pulling material from shoulders, and separates unwanted debris.
• Gets you onto your roads earlier in the Spring when they are too soft to support other equipment, also helps dry out the road.
• Can be used to plow early and late winter storms when snow plows would dig up the surface.

Workshops will be hosted at the following locations during 2007. For more information please contact the host District.

• July 21, 2007 - Bangor USDA Service Center hosted by Penobscot County SWCD
• July 24, 2007 - Milo Town Office hosted by Piscataquis County SWCD
• July 25, 2007 - Perry hosted by Denny's River Watershed Council call 733-2042
• August 18, 2007 - Hartland hosted by Somerset County SWCD
• September 11, 2007 - York County SWCD Office