Dave Huper, middle, is joined by his son, Eric, left, and grandson, Caldyn, right, in operating Huper Ag Enterprises. Besides raising their own crops, the Hupers also operate a custom farming operation including planting, harvesting, spraying and manure hauling. Eric and Caldyn also run a machine repair shop.

There are now three generations of Hupers helping operate the family farm operation known as Huper Ag Enterprises.

Each Huper, Dave, his son Eric and his grandson Caldyn, got involved in farming at a very young age.

“What is that they say?” Eric mentions. “You are the product of your surroundings.”

In addition to the crops, mostly corn and soybeans, the family-run farm produces, a machinery repair business operating under the name EDH Service and Repair is also a part of Huper Ag Enterprises.

“We also do custom farm work including planting, spraying, harvesting and manure hauling,” Eric says.

Dave shares his interest in farming began at a very young age.

“I graduated from Wells-Easton High School in 1975, but I really started farming when I was in the first grade,” he says. “I did some repair work but that was pretty low key.”

In addition to helping his father farm, Eric worked for Detke-Morbac, a John Deere dealer in Blue Earth, from 1997-2011 before striking out on his own in the repair business.

And now Eric’s son Caldyn, who recently finished classes at NIACC (North Iowa Area Community College) in Mason City, Iowa, will be joining the operation on a full-time basis.

“I technically have eight weeks of a spring internship to complete, but I am doing it here at the home farm working with my dad,” Caldyn comments. “My actual graduation is May 3. I will graduate with degrees in Ag Sales and Service and Ag Operations Management from the two-year school.”

Like his father and grandfather, Caldyn says farming and being able to repair equipment is all he has ever known.

“Dad always joked that I didn’t play with my toy tractors because I was too busy taking them apart,” Caldyn says.

Caldyn’s older sister, Daylyn, is also involved in agriculture.

“She will graduate from South Dakota State in Brookings, South Dakota, with a degree in ag education,” Eric notes.

Eric credits Dan Dylla, the ag teacher at United South Central High School in Wells, for much of his family’s interest in agriculture.

“Dan is certainly an important part of the community,” Eric states. “He has certainly played an important part in our lives.”

Eric and his wife, Kayla, met when her brother, who worked with Eric at Detke-Morbac, introduced the pair to each other.

Eric and Kayla have two more children, Brooke, who is a sixth grader and Brenna, who is in fourth grade.

Caldyn’s ability to work full-time will be a welcome addition to the repair business, according to Eric.

“Our repairs are mostly on tractors and combines,” Eric says. “We work mostly on John Deeres, but we also repair Case-IH, Caterpillars, New Holland and even some older brands like Allis Chalmers.”

While Caldyn appreciates his schooling at NIACC, he acknowledges going to class is only part of his educational process.

“I probably learn more from working with my grandfather and my dad,” he admits.

Eric shares the most frustrating part of the repair business can be waiting for the necessary parts to finish fixing a customer’s machine.

“COVID is still having a negative impact on our ability to get some parts in a timely manner,” Eric comments. “Things have not fully gotten back to normal after the disruption in the work force caused by the pandemic.”

Work at the repair shop slows down during the planting and harvesting seasons when the Hupers are busy with their own farming operation.

“But, if we had serviced a customer’s combine prior to harvest, we will certainly take care of them if they have a breakdown while during harvest,” Eric says.

The Hupers have seen many changes in equipment in their years of operation, but the biggest changes, according to Eric, has been the increase in the price of repairs and in purchasing new equipment.

“An overhaul kit for a JD 4430 tractor used to cost $1,200,” Eric says. “Now that same kit is priced at $3,000, and the newest and biggest combines and tractors can easily cost in the $1 million range.”

And while John Deere’s largest tractor from the early 1970s weighed in at 13,280 pounds and had 175 horsepower, Eric says Deere’s current largest tractor, the 9RX-830, has a base weight of 74,000 pounds and 830 horsepower.

Fixing big equipment is not the only thing Eric does.

“I started collecting toys when I was a kid,” he shares.

His impressive collection is mostly of John Deere toys, but he also has models of Farmall, Case-IH, Allis Chalmers, Minneapolis Moline and Oliver toys.

“I have pretty much every different kind of implement John Deere has made,” Eric admits. “I have hay balers, grain drills, planters, plows, disks and sprayers, in addition to tractors and combines.”

His knowledge of equipment doesn’t extend to just the real ones used in farming operations. Eric can also look at different variations in the models of a toy and say what year it was produced.

But, collecting toys is something that is not shared by the other members of the operation.

“That’s Dad’s thing,” Caldyn emphasizes. “But I do enjoy looking at his collection.”

One of Eric’s most prized toys is a gold-plated model of a John Deere 3010.

“It was something Ray Detke had received from John Deere in 1961 as an Achievement Award for meeting tractor sales goals,” Eric explains. “It had been stored upstairs in the John Deere building. I asked Ray about it one day, wondering what he was going to do with it. I came to work the next day and it was at my work station.”

Just like the equipment he operates and works on, Eric has also had to get used to the prices of toys increasing in the last few years.

“They are expensive but they are still cheaper than the real thing,” he says, laughing.