 |
|
|
|
|
...My Life as 'Drive away' driver
|
Trip 64f2 - New Chev - Box ... to Stockton, CA Took a few days off for Thanksgiving ... now the weather looks ... not good ... I-80 looks like they are getting hit hard with snow ... More when I get back ... 11/28/04 - 5 AM ... Not sure till I get up if I'm running today or not ... things have been a little unpredictable on the home-front the last few hours ... but all is quiet and I make a break for it. Need to get copies made so I can turn in paperwork and get paid, or it will be another two weeks, not that there will be anymore left for me out of these runs ... Meet the other driver at 7, am finally fueled and rolling by 8:30 ... should have started his truck when I got there this AM, but its his truck, and my free ride back to Omaha. Not much for excitement on this first stretch of highway but by the time we are on the last couple of miles in IA, its starts to snow ... nice big flakes ... Good news, the IH dealer did leave my truck outside the locked gate. Had called them about noon on Saturday to remind them ... For the first 1,000 miles with this truck I have been running about 60, but now I'm going to run with this guy for the rest of today and he is pushing 65. It was about an eight hour ride to Omaha and we split the driving just in case we decide to max out the day ... 14 hours, he may want to ... I don't much care, I have already bought a plane ticket for Wednesday so no rush ... A short while into NE I get a call from the other driver ... bad news, the Interstate is closed from North Platte to Ogallola. We had hoped to get to Ogallola tonight, its the last major town before we split ... I'm staying on I-80 to Sacramento, the other driver will be dropping down to Denver on I-76 and then on to LA. He's not sure of his route ... I-70 had been closed due to a rock slide, now a single lane is supposed to be open in each direction ... unless its closed due to snow ... Doesn't take too long to find out why the highway is closed ... on the less than 100 miles from York to Kearny we see a couple dozen cars in the ditch, but no trucks. At one overpass there was a couple of cars just off the road on top by the bridge ... then I saw three way at the bottom of the overpass ... two upside down, one upside right. We stop at the next rest area where the other driver and I talk about those in the ditch ... and assume with three in the ditch, must have been tailgating ... inside the rest area, there is a young guy waiting for a ride ... I overhear part of his conversation and ask him about it once he's off his cell ... He was coming across the bridge doing about sixty and lost it ... no control has he left the road, down the incline and rolled ... by the time he's stopped at the bottom he watches the next guy roll down the hill and land about 80 feet from him ... by the time he's out of his truck he watches the third car come down the incline and land 80 feet from the second vehicle ... no injuries ... this guy is a little upset because he had spent a lot of hand labor on his truck this past summer ... "... just be glad your still here and can spend time working on your next truck ..." I told him and walked away ... We are still about a 100 miles out of North Platte when we get another bad sign ... one along the road ... 'Road closed at Kearny ... all vehicles must exit' ... day one ... I have only more my truck 150 miles before having to shut down ... But, may be one of the lucky ones, been doing drive-a-way for a year and half and have never had to shut down because of weather before ... and it is 8 PM, so its not like its an early shut down, just earlier than we wanted ... Better here than in North Platte, it looks like they just closed I-80 at this exit so we are one of the first ones to the Motel 6, had we gotten to North Platte we may not have gotten a room ... We aren't the first in line ... there is about 5 people ahead of us and soon there are as many behind us ... Good news ... the Motel 6 did not take advantage of the situation ... rooms are $34. One of the guys behind us is looking at a map to find a way around I-80 ... the rest of us are letting him know that is not such a good idea ... there is a reason the Interstate is closed ... As soon as we drop our bags in our room we walk next door to the Country Kitchen for a meal ... thought it would be packed, not the case, I guess all the locals must be home and just a few of the travels were hungry ... food is OK ... no complaints, just typical CK food. The Interstate is still closed when we head back to the motel, I call 511 for a traffic update ... it only gives the current conditions ... no forecast as to when the highway will re-open ... a few more late night calls to home ... things are finally quiet there ... 11/29/04 - We got a six AM wake up I think ... checked with the front desk ... roads are open ... we go out and start our trucks and then walk next door back to Country Kitchen for breakfast. I only want a couple of eggs and toast, but they won't let me order from the 'seniors menu' and I end up with the buffet instead ... cash isn't going to last long like this ... Change of scenery this AM ... no semi's in the ditch last night ... tonight they are everywhere ... plus a few cars ... and a couple of moving vans. One looked like the one from the motel ... the guys that thought they'd find a way around the closed roads ... And there was a Budget truck on it's side, but the car and trailer were still upright ... the semi's 1) the first one we see is still upright ... and moving ... he's jack-knifed in the ditch, trying to drive back out 2) This one already has a tow on the scene, he is right in front of a rest area facing the wrong direction ... and not going anywhere anytime soon ... the whole trailer undercarriage is sitting along side of his trailer 3) Not real sure about the next one, a Swift truck ... now he's upright but leaning, not sure if he had rolled or not ... he is now facing the highway with the front wheels just about on the highway with the trailer deep in the ditch ... two huge tow trucks are just leaving and one is still on the scene 4) Ouch ... took a while and a real close look to figure this one out ... the cab and sleeper and trailer are all split wide open ... and laying on their side ... as we drive by we are looking at the floor of the cab and sleeper ... and 'stuff' is everywhere 5) A reefer on it's side ... tractor is gone 6) Reefer on it's wheels, in the median ... tractor is gone We stop at Ogallola for fuel ... a non Flying J stop ... a TA ... should have stopped at the Sapps across the highway ... there's a line. Not making any good time today either ... at one point we passed a convoy of 18 wheels ... and we were doing about 30 mph ... I haven't had able to wash my windshield, washer not working ... its out of fluid ... but adding fluid doesn't help ... and the buckets at the station are frozen solid. Do remember to tell the other driver he's missing a blinker and break light before we part ways ... About 50 miles past Ogallola / 50 miles to WY the roads ... and sky ... clears and the bad roads are behind us ... me, we've parted ways. One bonus of going home for Thanksgiving ... I was able to pickup plates for both NE and WY so I don't have to get permits. Never know what to expect at the WY port of entry ... sometimes they tell us we have to mount our plates on the rear of our trucks, other times they don't mention it. I'm hoping they don't mention it ... I haven't brought any tools and didn't buy any at the last truck stop ... Surprise ... This guy says I don't need WY plates ... All he asks for is my BL showing I am moving a new truck from a manufacture to an end user ... and my normal transport plate. Says the only time we are to use the WY plates is moving a new truck from one dealer to another ... from past runs I know that we also can not use WY plates on used trucks, on those you must purchase a permit .... ??? but next time I'll get a different guy and a different set of rules ... 300 miles down, 300 to go ... not sure where I'll stop for the night ... have only been this way a couple of times before ... by the time we had gotten the first 50 miles this AM I knew getting to the drop by Tuesday night was out of the question ... getting to the drop wasn't the problem ... the only Avis location in Stockton is a non-airport location and is open limited hours, so that is the limiting factor ... so a Wednesday delivery it is ... still not a problem for catching my flight ... and it should help my milage ... which isn't the 10 mph I thought I was getting early on. About 100 miles out of UT I was ready to stop at a Motel 6 for $29 but ... I debated ... debated ... and didn't. Decided to split the last two days at an even 630 miles each. Which lands me in ... Little America ... not your average truckstop ... carpeting, chandeliers ... For something that is supposed to be an 'oasis from the elements' ... it isn't the way I would have designed it. I would have had all the motel rooms in one building along with the restaurant. Tonight it is cold ... <> -0- ??? with a windchill and I have had to park about a half a mile from my room and then have to walk back and forth between the restaurant and my room. Oh ... the room ... I finally find the front desk and ask how much for a room ... "$59" ... no thanks and I start walking away ... "Do you have a CDL?" I do ... so the room is $35 for me. I usually ask about discounts but I guess the sticker shock threw me ... But what a room ... $59 would be a good price for this room ... instead of maybe getting a packet of shampoo/conditioner, this room has a little bottle of ... shampoo ... a separate bottle of conditioner ... a bottle of body wash ... a bottle of lotion ... besides the bigger than normal bars of soap. AND the bed had a huge comforter ... warm ... slept good. Food at the restaurant was good too ... 11/30/04 - 6 AM again ... still cold, but truck starts good ... 6 AM central time that is ... wasn't really thinking this morning. I should have earlier or later, I'm going to get to Salt Lake City about 7:30 ... rush hour ... I could have run another 60 miles last night ... there is a Motel 6 at Evenston ... then I wouldn't have broken my streak ... Motel 6's about 10 out of 10 nights on the road ... no delay at the scale ... Coming out of the Flying J west of SLC I take a wrong turn and kill a few minutes before I realize my mistake ... I've been going to complain to Flying J about their toy truck I bought ... it's supposed to be a 'replica' ... but I had yet to see a Flying J fuel truck with a sleeper ... until today. They do use them from SLC to Reno ... The Great Salt Lake ... boring ??? or interesting ... This is the area of the Bonnieville salt flats ... out here there isn't any place for kids to write their graffiti so they find rocks and leave messages on the flats along the interstate ... a few message are made of bottles but most are of rock ... mile ... after mile ... At 60 mph I'm running mostly legal on this trip so no sense in taking any chances, I stop at the last rest area in UT and get my log book up to date ... no reason to get a fine for being lazy. These NV inspection stations always make me nervous ... mostly because I have never been stopped at one ... but they are closed on both ends of the state today. Northern NV isn't a whole lot like Vegas ... still snow on the ground, the terrain is more line OR to the north ...400 miles to Reno ... No plans on where to stop in Reno ... am guessing they will have cheap motels ... only see signs for one ... $29 ... but it turns out to be downtown so I keep going until I see a Motel 6 for $29, but miss the exit ... road construction. By chance I noticed a Chevron station after I was past the exit ... this turned out to be a huge time saver. They had a tall sign and I was able to see it as I tried to find my way around the side streets of Reno ... in less than 15 minutes I was back at the motel. Asked for directions to a good buffet within walking distance ... the two clerks could not agree on the one a couple of blocks away ... they did agree the food was good from the menu ... Rail City ... Not a bad price and lucky for me it was 'pasta night' ... but a small buffet it was ... one bucket of lettuce ... a half dozen toppings ... one featured meat. But it did have plenty of pasta ... the Alfredo was good ... as was the Chicken Cordon Blu. But the ravioli tasted like Chef Boy, as did the lasagna ... All in all, I'd go back ... and order from the menu. (When I tried to find the casino motel on the Internet and found out I hadn't spent the night in Reno ... I was really in Sparks.) 12/1/04 - 6 AM ... 4 AM local and I'm rolling ... which should get me into our customer in Stockton just as they open at 7 ... Maybe not ... mountains ... slow going ... there is so much sand on the road that you can't see the white lines on the roadway ... Bad sign ... sanding trucks are sitting on the exit ramps ... waiting ... for me or someone to end up in the ditch so they know where to sand next ... but no problems. Was still dark but the country here just north of Lake Tahoe. Wasn't sure how I was going to get to Stockton ... computer says I-5, the map looks like CA-99 would be shorter ... good to have a couple of choices, in case one doesn't work out. Welcome to CA ... and freezing cold weather ... But I do find CA-99 and the customer ... called a cab ... $20 ... picked up my rental car to head to SF. Had thought of visiting Alcatraz but I've been told by a couple of people that it could take more time than I have ... and I'd better get to the airport in plenty of time. (just checked Alcatraz on the Internet ... looks like the tour is 6-8 hours ... Alcatraz Island Tours ... National Park Service ... wouldn't have had time.) Would have liked to have seen it ... first time I thought of it this trip was when I started thinking of 'my' country song ... I've Been Everywhere ... 'cuz the second verse starts out ... RENO, Chicago ... and when a couple of country singers do it, one of them says ..."I know somewhere you haven't been ... Alcatraz." So with lots of time to kill I stopped to eat breakfast, just pulled off the Interstate and found food ... this exit had lots of food ... I picked Mimis Cafe ... WOW ... great food ... had basically the same thing I had a couple of days ago at Country Kitchen for about the same price, under $10 ... but the difference in food ... wow. The bread was great, the eggs, the potatoes, the bacon ... all of it great ... this was at their Dublin, CA location ... says they have 90 locations, including Omaha, Denver, KC, Orlando. Back in the car I find the airport ... then decide to drive up to the Golden Gate bridge ... somehow I manage to the same thing I did last time I was SF ... got lost. But that's when it gets interesting ... first thing I saw was the prison bus ... then the homeless, with their six feet staked out on the sidewalk ... all their positions on a blanket. And of course their streets UP ... and ... DOWN. Don't think there are any short jaywalkers in SF ... they wouldn't last, lots of times coming over hill the only thing you could see ahead of you is your car hood and the sky ... ... I finally end up at the waterfront ... and I can finally find where I am on the map ... and I can see Alcatraz ... But by now I'm down to only a couple of extra hours to play with ... and I still have to get back to the airport. Couple more homeless on the waterfront ... a small museum, but not one of interest to me, at least not today ... so after a half hour I moved on. Did find 101 back to the airport ... not nearly as interesting as the side streets ... too many people, too many buses. Mass transit runs on electricity, both the buses and the few old street cars. Miss my exit back to the airport but quickly recover, fuel and drop my car. A couple of people had told me ... leave lots of time so you don't miss your flight ... but why? I walk up to the ticket counter ... no other customers, five people behind the counter, the one who waited on me was reading the paper ... and at security ... ??? four lanes open ... no on else ... within a couple of minutes I have walked in the front door and gotten to my gate, and now I have hours to wait ... At first I try to sleep but my cell wakes me but goes dead before I can answer it, so now I need find a electric outlet ... the only ones are on the poles away from the chairs, so for the next couple hours I sit on the floor as my battery re-charges. Finally it's time to fly ... a nice nap and a good sandwich ... neither was about to happen ... tonight Sun Country is serving a different kind of sandwich ... and the lady next to me wants to talk. OK, older woman, maybe she'll have some interesting stories of the good old days ... not so ... I spend the next three hours answer questions like "Are you married?" ... "How many kids do you have?" ... over and over again ... she didn't know where we were ... or where we were going ... by the end of the flight the stewardess's both thanked me (for keeping her company). Was interesting leaving SFO ... could see the Golden Gate and the skyline and Pacific ... but the sun was setting so it was soon dark ... pilot said we'd be flying over Reno ... soon I could see city lights ... at 31,000 feet I could see the outline of movement on one of the billboards as we flew over ... what is this energy shortage we keep hearing about? Home again ... for less than eight hours ... |
||||||
| ` |