Alley Oop

Although I deserve to have my picture in this post, you will not see it since the camera is in my pocket when I am doing the acrobatics needed for this task.
This is what the back of the farm truck looks like. Since I cannot drive The Big Red Beast because of all the quirks, I get to be in the back to stack bales. I really do get the easier job of the two.
Standing in the back of the truck, an elevator lifts the bales off the ground and lifts them over the side of the truck where I can grab them and place them in a pattern so that they fit nicely. I can easily load between 110-130 bales in the truck for a load.
The acrobatics part comes in when I have to get into the truck. Most people, those that have longer legs than me, usually climb up the rungs that are located just behind the cab and jump over the corner. I cannot maneuver that trick and tend to get stuck in the corner unable to get a knee over the edge. A tall step stool or a short ladder would make it easy to crawl into the back but is totally unrealistic out in the field.
So here is my trick to load into the back. Since I have very good upper body strength, I stand close to the back of the truck with my left side toward the truck. I grab the chain that hangs across the back with both hands and swing my right leg up onto the ledge of the bed. I can just catch the heel of my right foot on the ledge. Then, I lift my left leg up between the truck and my right leg and get that foot up onto the ledge also. With both feet up, I can lift my backside onto the diamond plated metal bed. I am now flat on my back and can roll forward into the bed.
The whole procedure produces a lot of noise with pants, grunts and groans from me and downright laughter from anyone who is watching. From the descriptions that I hear, I don’t appear to be very graceful as I flip and flop around. Others around me try to help by lifting, pushing and pulling from above, but it really doesn’t help with them wheezing with guffaws and all.