"I'M LOVIN IT"

Me and Ole Blue, My Trainers Truck

Merry Christmas every one.
Ok, now where did I leave off... Oh Yeah!, I was headed to New York!
This turned out to be a great start. We turned ole Blue north and went a bit out of our way thru Oklahoma City. We did this for a couple of reasons. We have five days to make this 2 1/2 day trip, so we decided to slip by the house and surprise our wives with a visit. The other reason is I can go up to 75 mph on the Oklahoma Turnpike :), and get that visit a bit sooner. We slide into Joplin Friday night and my bride was there waiting on me. (I had called her while on the "Pike" and let her know I was coming in.) She was all dolled up, smelling good, and looking fine when I got there. We took a 34 hour reset since we had the time to reset our clock and enjoyed a day or so with our wives.

Jerry my Trainer and Me ready to leave for New York

Sunday about noon I met Jerry at the old Hoods Truckstop on I-44, kissed my wife goodbye and left out for NewYork City. This trip took me thru St. Louis MO, Effingham IL(Where I actually typed up the past weeks update), Indianapolis IN, Columbus OH, across Pennsylvania, thru New Jersy, and into New York. Ohio... Trucks 55 mph... OMG this was pure torture. PA was just gorgous, drove right thru the Poconos. New Jersy started to pick up with the traffic. We were sitting on the New Jersy turn pike since it was a good place to stage our trip into New York City. This took us just a few miles south of where we needed to enter the city, but there are very very few places you can park a big rig once you leave PA headed east. The turnpike service plaza was very convenient. We were sitting there Tuesday morning about 9:30AM ready to cross over the GW Bridge and go thru the city to get to Long Island. I called our consignee and asked first if he could take us early since we had a Wendsday appointment. I was told that the chances were slim. I then asked if it was possible to park there over night and got a good reply of "We have plenty of parking" and will attempt to off load you this afternoon. So off we went... Crossed the George Washington Bridge and you are immediatly in the Bronx!

George Washington Bridge, New York

All this was pretty interesting for an old country boy. I had driven up to the point of the service plaza on the NJTP, but Jerry said he would take us into the city so that I could look around as we went thru. He told me I would get plenty of experiance since I would be bringing us back out when we left. I snapped a couple of pictures to share with you all. Anyway, long story short, I did not see anything that would scare me away from driving the rig thru the Big Apple. Sure it's crazy, lots of traffic, lots of lanes to pick from as you work the rig around and thru the city, but I still love every minute of it.
We sat at the receiver up untill about 3 PM and was told it would be in the morning before we get unloaded.

Next morning, I finally get a dock assigned and go to back her in. These docks are inside the building. All 42 of them! The only proplem that I see is they were built for trucks that use a day cab and pull 38 or 40 foot trailers. I'm in here with an OTR condo cab tractor and 53 foot trailer! After many attempts and pull ups, it's finally getting close to where it needs to be. The dock forman is getting impatient and Jerry says he'll finish getting it into position just to please the customer. This dock is so tight that we drop the trailer and take the tractor back outside while they unload it so that other trucks can squeak by the front of the trailer to use the other docks.

We leave there with a new load assignment for W. Haven CT. I drive us out of Long Island and about a hundred miles north to our new location. I'm still loving every minute of piloting the rig, even in New York City. The new location was a small company that had a three door dock. Again, they were built for backing a wagon in using horses I think. This was just off of a small two lane street that had a wall oppisite of the docks. I end up pulling up on the sidewalk on the same side of the street as the docks and sort of make a backwards u-turn into the docks. Of course I have the traffic blocked on both lanes of the street and make several pull ups to wiggle ole blue into the docks. Just as soon as I get one lane clear on the street, the cars start pulling around the rig to get on there merry little way. I just continue to watch the traffic and slip my rig on back into the dock. Made a perfect touch down and have the trailer nice and squre to the dock. I sit there and wait on my new load for about and hour when the MobileMax goes off and tells me that this load has been canceled. I walk into the warehouse and he said he just didn't have enough product to fill a trailer yet. So off I go to seek out a truck stop to sit and wait for more orders. Just as I get back on the highway, the MobileMax goes off again with a new load assignment. Jerry won't tell me what it says and only says to find a place to stop the rig and he'll let me figure it out. He then tells me, He does not think we can get there from here. LOL
After I get down to the next truck stop just inside CT, I look and our assignment is to pick up at Lakewood NY. Now this is in what is called "upstate" New York and I have two options to get there. I can either go northeast a bit and then turn back west or I can go south back into the edge of New York and go west. We choose the south route that takes us to state Hwy 17. Now this is the Future I-86 and is pretty good road. It takes me thru the Catskills and Alleganys all the way across the state of New York. I end up actually South of Buffalo down near the PA state line. We pick up a load headed for Calexico CA. If not for takeing some time off for Christmas this would have been a great run. We just take it to Joplin MO so that it can be relayed by another driver.

When we arrive in Joplin I have 8242 miles under my belt and have now qualified to be assigned my own truck. No more chaparone for me. :)
I am assigned a 2005 KenWorth T-600 with C-15 twin turbo Cat engine and 13 speed Tranny. She is a beautifull truck with only 153,000 miles on her. Looks to me like she's just broke in and ready to take care of me as I travel the rest of these United States. After a very through inspection I find a few minor things that I want took care of by our shop as I take my days off. I'm going home for Christmas and Paco and I will be back to accept our new assignment Tuesday morning. Stay tuned.

Living the Dream

HELLO FROM EFFINGHAM, IL

I promised myself that I would update my journal at least once a week while out on the road. I'm running a bit behind in keeping this promise. I'll try to do better in the future. Maybe in a few months when I get Belinda on board with me, she can help me keep it up.

Ole Blue wanting to get rolling.


For now, let me bring you all up to date. I left Laredo TX headed for Smyrna, TN. This trip took me back thru Austin, Dallas/Ft Worth/Little Rock and Memphis TN. We had spent our second night in W. Memphis with the final leg to take us thru Nashville and down into Smyrna. Just as I pulled out of our West Memphis terminal and pointed across the Mississippi River bridge, Jerry said something ugly and then said he had left his blanket in the dryer at the terminal. Now Jerry is very fond of his blanket. Actually I think he resembles Linus on Charlie Brown and must have his blanket. So I start making plans as I cross the river on how to get him and his blanket back together again. Actually Jerry starts telling me this is practice for when I miss my turn when looking for a customer and it would be good for me. I'm looking for a place during morning rush hour traffic to do a U-turn pulling a 53 foot trailer with an over the road tractor. We spot that "Danny Thomas Blvd" actually makes an over pass of the interstate, so I whip her off on that exit, smartly cross three lanes of traffic and catch the on ramp headed back west across the river. I seem to always hit the major cities at rush hour.

Ok, we now have Jerry and his blanket reunited and I head back across the river and point her east. A few hours later and I'm in Nashville for the first time. I head on south from there and deliver my freight to a small company in Smyrna. I then get a dispatch that send me to Dover TN. I head north thru Nashville about 5 PM that afternoon. Did I mention I love to hit all the major cities during rush hour traffic. I just grin and laugh and love every minute of it. We go north just across the Kentucky state line and spend the night there at a nice Pilot truck stop. Early the next morning I head along a very nice two lane highway that takes me thru the "Land between the Lakes" It was a most enjoyable drive. I pick up my freight at a well tucked away little place in Dover TN headed back to Texas.

The job from Dover was needed in Mansfield TX. This is a suburb of Ft Worth. The morning of my delivery was very foggy. I'd rather drive on ice then I had in fog. Anyway that delivery went well and we had a dispatch to pick up north of Ft Worth in Roanoke TX. Actually, the day before I had called Lancaster TX terminal since they handle the Dallas/Ft Worth area and explained that I was a student driver in training and had not yet been challenged with area that I had driven for the past two weeks. I said I needed some East coast or mountain driving experience while I had a trainer on the truck with me. So he pre planned me a load from Roanoke TX to Farmingdale NY. I had no idea where Farmingdale was but gladly accepted the load and then looked to see where it was. NEW YORK! BIG TIME! Whoo Hooo, I'm going to New York, Not just New York, but the big Apple itself. Yep, Farmingdale just happens to be on Long Island and my trip plan is telling me to go across the George Washington Bridge, across the Bronx and on to Long Island where I will find my customer in Farmingdale. I should be there Tuesday and hope to get unloaded then. My expected time of arrival is actually Wednesday morning, but I may get lucky. My next post will tell of the experience and we shall see if I still love the big cities at rush hour after I have been thru the Big Apple. LOL

Living my Dream

I'M BACK

Yep, I'm back in Laredo TX. We left here Tuesday afternoon headed for West Memphis, AR. We made that run as a deadhead. With the empty trailer, you don't even know it's back there except when you look in the mirrors. This was soon to change. We got to W. Memphis and took a 10 hour reset and was then dispatched to Sikeston, MO. The load I picked up there was quite heavy. We had gross weight over 77,600 and when I went to pull it away from the dock I just grinned and said, "Oh Yeah Baby!, We got a box full now". You are very aware of when you have a full load. I shifted thru each of the 13 gears to get her moving and up to speed on the hiway. It was not very many hours and before I knew it, I was in my old hometown of Brookhaven MS. Yep, my second load and I'm in old stomping grounds. We were told that we could take our ten hour break at the WalMart DC, but the parking there was just on the industrial road with no bathroom or any thing else. I suggested that we just move up the road a bit and spend the night at the OLD Brookhaven Truckstop. When we got there we decided to get a bite to eat before we hit the sack. I ordered pancakes and sausage. Jerry got bacon and eggs, toast and hashbrowns. Forty five minutes later we were still waiting on our food. Seems the 11 PM shift change is not a good time to place an order. Finally our food arrived and mine was well done. Pancakes were almost black. Jerry and I was laughing, and I said, I'd just eat them as they were. There was no way I was going to wait another half hour or more to get another order. Actually, they were not burnt and were very tasty. I guess after you run for over 8 hours and tired, it's all good.
We left Brookhaven the next day and headed to Mobile AL, to trade our empty trailer for a loaded one that came out of Florida. The driver we relayed with was from that area and wanted to take his days off. We then took that loaded trailer to Laredo, TX.
That is where I am now as I bring my journal up to date. So goes the life of an over the road trucker. This puts me at just over 3200 miles in my very first week. Not bad for an old dog learning new tricks. Until next time....

Some of the trucks on call in Laredo, TX


Living my Dream

MY FIRST DAY

Joplin the day before I left for my Training Run.

Well it was a long wait and seemed to never get here. I finally got in the truck Sunday morning. My finisher wanted to get us out of town and away from the ice and snow, so he drove the first two hours or so and got us to Muskogee, OK. I took over and got behind the wheel and Jerry just said get us moving. He was great and let me make and recover from my mistakes on my own. We had great conversation and the day just quickly drifted by. I really was not thinking about what was ahead very much, but it was no time at all and I'm in Dallas, TX. I'm glad that this first day actually ended up being on Sunday. The traffic was fairly light and I got good experiance drifting through a big city and practicing my lane control. Just as I got on south side of Dallas ready to merge back onto I35 we hit a "break check".

That's trucker talk for all vehicles are stopped. So now I got a bit of practice at creeping along. I'm pretty good at creeping along and managed my way across three lanes of traffic and made my intended off ramp.
I thought Texas was wide open country mostly but was in for a rude awakeing as I traveled down I35. Austin, San Antonio, and even the little border town of Laredo are huge compared to what I thought they were. We checked into Laredo this morning and got out orders to deliver the trailer across town at a local wharehouse. I got to drop my first trailer in a fairly tight little yard they had next to the wharehouse. Actually put it into the last spot they had there in between a couple of other trailers. I know this is old hat to any other driver, but I was proud that I got this into a place where I could not get full school taught 45 degree setup.
More soon to come I'm sure. Stay tuned.

Living the Dream