An Outline of my Scythe-related Activities

Profile of Peter Vido

The first ten years of my relationship with the scythe and what had initially moved me to begin speaking on behalf of the scythe renaissance I had, several years ago, explained in a lengthy essay (The Scythe in Retrospect and its Future); thus I will now include only a brief sketch of that period. Beginning in 1990 I've spent progressively more time learning how best to apply the scythe. As a full-time farmer, with animals to feed, I do not merely trim a few small areas inaccessible to machines; I mow a lot. Each season, as I experiment with yet more makes and models of blades, (tailor-fit with homemade snaths), some other intricacies come to light... and new questions arise.

The ideas communicated in The Scythe Must Dance (our Addendum in The Scythe Book) and on this website stem in part from rediscovering and testing old scythe-related knowledge; some are unconventional twists of my own. The latter I've offered to the scrutiny, criticism and feedback of experienced mowers in the old home of the scythe.

Since January 1999 I've taken twelve (for me philosophically contradictory) flights across the Atlantic to some of the countries where scythe use has not diminished to the degree it had in North America. I visited every working scythe factory in Continental Europe, and have tested the products of every other scythe maker known to me (there are only a handful of them elsewhere in the world) plus many accessories presently on the European market. During each journey (as well the interim periods via letters and phone) I continue to consult with technicians, historians and farmers alike. All this has been very educating and greatly adds to my experimentation here on my home base. Still, I do not "have it all figured out" and have always objected to being called an "expert"; I am merely a serious student.

On the contrary, my involvement with the scythe-connected folks in Europe has been a two-way street and already has borne the kind of fruit I've been able to savour. The learning - the collective learning - taking place is to me of inestimable value to the Scythe Renaissance. Also, without asking for it, I've received acknowledgment for my contributions. Neither individuals nor companies have taken unfair advantage of my scythe-related activities. I move in circles where the people, be they farmers, scythemakers or historians, know this tool and appreciate it on a level unimaginable in North America. As I present some new little details (which sometimes challenge traditions) to their large repertoire of knowledge, most handle it with grace. In return, they are willing teachers and it is refreshing to bounce ideas back and forth.

I've spent time on the farms of some of the world's fastest mowers, peening champions and those whose lifelong occupation was the forging of scythe blades. My temporary residence in Europe is on the grounds of an Austrian scythe factory. No, I'm not an employee; their sole material support has been that one room free of charge. But they are my benefactors in other ways - as I am also theirs. Some of their technicians have taken interest in my unconventional ideas from the start. In their free moments beside their regular tasks and many hours after work we debate and brainstorm innovations. To provide substance to their side of ongoing "arguments" they've been inspired to use the tool and learn to peen by hand. (One of them never mowed before; now he teaches courses, both in Austria and Germany and takes this new role very seriously.)

Two new adjustable snath models, based on my design ideas, have been introduced to market in Austria, Germany and England (with a variation in Switzerland). After two years of trials with producing blades truly "ready to mow" (upon purchase) small batches are now sent out with the edges sharper than was the case with any factory-- ever!

That the First International Scythe Symposium and Festival (the organizing of which was initially my idea) actually took place was probably the biggest single reward up to that point for all those miles covered, hours talked and letters written. That the Austrians let me teach courses to their own public during that week I consider an honour. And that the owners of Dick Tools GmbH in Germany and The Scythe Shop in the UK (both of whom attended the Festival) had invited me to do the same in their respective locations in 2005 is another one.

That seminal event in Austria in turn inspired the first scythe festival in the British Isles. Both of these have had repercussions (see: event for 2006), with more scythe courses held in Europe than ever before. In 2005 along with several other "friends of a feather" we started the Sensenverein …sterreich -Scythe Association of Austria. In some European countries these are not uncommon. (Switzerland, for instance, has four of them.) They mostly consist, however, of the scythe-competitions crowd. This one is different in that its focus is the eco-cultural application, with an educational and service format directed to passing on the skills to the younger generation and increase the awareness of scythe's environmental potential.

I expect that this will become an approximate blueprint for groups in other countries - and as such, consider the birth of this Sensenverein as the most important milestone of my European activism.

For the 2006 season I am scheduled to instruct courses (some as part of symposia/festivals, others not) in Canada, Slovakia, Austria, the Czech Republic, England and Wales; I know that much more learning awaits me because all students are also my teachers, of course!

It needs to be emphasized here that scores of others also deserve credit for the positive developments discussed above and the list of my co-workers (both temporary and steadfast) is long. Sometimes I merely provided the spark and others built their own fires; more often I've needed to keep dragging in additional fuel or some of them would simply go out again. Occasionally I've blown the flames too close to people's comfort zones (because I feel that we do not have an eternity to wake up) and have consequently been accused of being "overbearing". In many instances, especially in North America, even that did not rock the boat enough...

In order to balance the sheet of the above "accomplishments", at least some of my "failures" are listed below:

• On the retail front I did not manage to present a convincing enough case to the North American mail order scythe sellers in favour of what I consider first-class service. My follow-up alternative, the vision of a scythe service co-operative network, has likewise not yet been implemented.

• I failed to awaken the serious interest of international groups whose stated purpose is agriculture-related assistance to the "Third World", in some regions of which the sickle is still the primary harvesting implement. (The global trend has been to progress the peasants--often in one big and culture-shattering leap--from the sickle or machete to debt- and dependency-generating machines. Because the Samaritans are often so slow and the Corporations so aggressive, the latter usually get to the front lines first...)

• Most environment-focused organizations (governmental or NGO) that we approached regarding the applicability of the scythe for specific situations in "First World" nations have also turned a deaf ear so far, not by way of reasonable explanations but simply by not responding.

• We also failed to wake up our very own Canadian Ministry of the Environment, which has spent God knows how much of this country's people's money on its Kyoto-related rhetoric. (Read the letter.)

• Only a fraction of the information I have accumulated has found its way into these virtual or other printed pages. And because useful information needs to be shared, this may be my biggest shortcoming to date. In part this is due to my various philosophical, business and computer-related principles, but also because I am less proficient with a pen than a scythe and there are only 24 hours in each day...

My personal interpretation in all of the above cases (as you can guess) is not that in promoting the scythe I'm somehow barking up the wrong tree, but rather that I have not yet found a tone of bark which is at once diplomatic, convincing and efficient.

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2 Mar. 2005
Modified 20 Mar. 2006
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