https://www.ventrac.com/ From Gary Hensley’s California ranch, you can see beautiful views of Sacramento and Napa Valley. Hills and 5 acres of grass surround his home, and while he likes the challenges of figuring out how to manage this type of property, with all its beauty, comes risk. Summers are dry, and winds are strong in California, making this year’s wildfires stronger than ever. And Gary had the third-largest wildfire in recorded state history knocking on his doorstep.

Gary says wildfires are something you have to prepare for but never think will happen. He and most homeowners in California have learned how to create defensible space around their homes and buildings to protect it in the event of a wildfire. This means reducing the amount of combustible material surrounding the house and in its place using fire-resistant materials like concrete, swimming pools, cement board, and more.

He’s very glad he prepared for this fire pro-actively with his Ventrac. This is the first year he has been able to mow 100% of his property because of his Ventrac 4500’s slope capabilities. Doing things like mowing the grass surrounding the property reduces fuel for the fires and keeps their flames more manageable.

The fires, which were all started by lightning strikes in the area, quickly spread to be 50-60 miles wide, and Gary’s small neighborhood prepared to evacuate.

He believes that his ability to mow all of his land helped establish defensible space around his home and kept the fire from burning too hot. Where the Hensley’s property did burn, it was at a much lower intensity and much lower height.

They feel humbled and blessed to have their home remain untouched from the flames. Aside from the perimeter fencing, the damage was minimal, and Gary is hopeful that the grass will reseed and grow back in the spring.

Going forward, Gary will continue to maintain his property with meticulous care. He wants to help out his neighbors, who don’t have the means to maintain their property as well. And thirdly, he would like to look at how the Ventrac Power Rake can help create a firebreak by taking the grass down to the dirt level.

Ventrac provided the right tool to help manage the fire and clearance needed to establish defensible space around his home. And Gary has hope going forward that being proactive about fire abatement with his Ventrac will keep the fire’s damage at a minimum again.

Products featured in this video: VENTRAC 4500: https://www.ventrac.com/products/tractors/4500 HE482 POWER BUCKET: https://www.ventrac.com/products/attachments/he TOUGH CUT: https://www.ventrac.com/products/attachments/hq680 KP540 POWER RAKE: https://www.ventrac.com/products/attachments/kp540

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