Fighter jet pilot turns Bobcat tractor enthusiast

Acreage owner operates Bobcat CT235 tractor and implements to complete landscaping projects

A Bobcat CT235 and implements make construction and landscaping jobs fun for acreage owner Ashley Rose.

Once an accomplished U.S. Navy pilot, Ashley Rose previously flew F/A-18 Hornet and A-7 Corsair II fighter jets for a living. Today, she is semi-retired and spends her days driving a new Bobcat® CT235 compact tractor on her acreage outside of Augusta, S.C.

When Rose and her husband started landscaping their eight-and-a-half acre property, they began with a 25-horsepower garden tractor and a pull-behind trailer. While this may have been adequate for smaller projects, Rose quickly realized she needed something with more power.

“When I got my first load of mulch, I started to move it, shovelful by shovelful, into my little trailer,” Rose says. “After a day of that, I told myself it would take me the rest of my life to move the mulch because I needed almost 90 yards of it to complete the Japanese garden and landscaping projects in front of our new home.”

Rose rented a larger tractor before she and her husband decided it was time to buy one.

Bobcat tractor stands out among others

“We looked at every dealer and model in town, and when it was all said and done, we liked the features of the Bobcat model the best, especially that it weighed more than the others,” she says. “It has some nice detail features, including the splash guards in front of my feet to keep me from getting mud on me.”

In addition to the CT235, Rose bought a Bobcat box blade, finish mower and front-end loader to grade a new path to the nearby lake, mow a couple acres of grass, and build storage areas for gravel, sand, dirt and mulch.

“We’re currently using the Bobcat tractor to help build a new three-bay garage — moving dirt, grading and backfilling — one stall for the tractor and two stalls for my workshop,” she says.

Customer service at Bobcat dealership makes a difference

“The thing that pushed me toward Bobcat was the additional features for the price, which I thought was a good value, and the dealership. I felt really good about Bobcat of Augusta and our salesman,” Rose says. “And I knew Bobcat had a great reputation with its line of skid-steer loaders.

“The rental program at the dealer really impressed me. The fact that if I need an implement, the dealership has them in stock and my salesman can bring it to my property. Little things like that made the difference.”

After 24 years of service in the U.S. Navy, moving from city to city and state to state, Rose can finally settle into her new home and her new cockpit: behind the wheel of a CT235.

You can learn more about the new line of Bobcat compact tractors and implements at www.bobcat.com/tractors.