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It worked, but Frank is correct, it is extremely dangerous. A tractor when the front wheels start to raise, there is a point of no return and the tractor will rotate on the rear axle, thus flipping the tractor. If I remember correctly it happens in less than a half of a second once all things line up correctly. Hence the reason for ROPS (roll over protection structures) on all new tractors without cabs. All cabs have ROPS capabilities built into them.
Ah, that explains it. I was trying to figure out what was so unsafe about it, but hadn't thought of the possibility of flipping the tractor backward.
When I was in about 4th grade, my dad let me have my first go at driving the Ford tractor. I was essentially sitting in his lap, but running the pedals and the steering wheel. I learned real quickly what he meant when he told me to let the clutch out slowly. I popped it the first time and we did a wheelie, stopped only by the grading blade he had attached on the back.