Red Deer (Rural Roots Canada) – Real Garant was caught by surprise when a promotional video of his unique hitching system, called the Spider Hitch, went viral.

“We were expecting hundreds of views,” says Garant, who posted the video on farming pages on social media. “Within 24 hours, we hit 1.2 million views. By the fifth day, we hit 13.5 million. That was a huge surprise.”

In the rapidly evolving world of ag tech, Spider Hitch has proven to be a transformative hitching solution for farmers, making it easier to understand why the tech went viral as it did. The system helps solve a long-standing problem: the arduous and time-consuming task of aligning hitches and receivers. It also eliminates many of the safety concerns surrounding the task.

Garant, now the president of Spider Hitch Inc., says hitching can require up to three people – one person to hold up the hitch, the combine driver, and someone to give directions. With that many people involved in the process, it can pose a safety threat.

“We wanted to eliminate the safety issues of having someone in an unsafe zone, especially with inexperienced operators. With the system, the operator can handle it themselves without the need for spotters. They just pull the receiver out and hitch up the combine from up to 80 ft. away. Using the wireless fob, you draw the header into the hitch. It’s self-locking and self-latching. There’s no need for pins or clips. You just attach safety chains and wiring and away you go.”

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Response to the Spider Hitch has been positive, and farmers who have installed the device call it a game-changer and even a marriage saver.

“I had one farmer that called it that,” chuckles Garant. “He says he no longer needs to decipher his wife’s hand signals.”

Another farmer praised the hitching system for its efficiency, particularly during harvest.

“A produce farmer in Ontario says he’s seen a massive improvement in efficiency. He had to hitch and unhitch every 200 ft. to harvest cabbage. He tried out the unit and went from 2500 cabbage crates daily to over 3000 crates per day instantly.”

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Along with the viral success of Spider Hitch, it also won the Ag Innovations Judges Choice Award at the 39th Agri-Trade Equipment Expo, further solidifying its reputation as a transformative piece of agricultural technology.

You can learn more about the Spider Hitch at this link.