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9/12/10 Not much new on the MN leg of this
trip. Once into IA I see that Pilot has opened a new truckstop across the
street from the 'new' welcome center in IA at mm ??
A lot of this trip
was 'memory lane,' this has changed, this hasn't. Picked up there, dropped
here, rode the bus through this area.
Memories … Slept in truck at
a Shell station, woke up and was blocked in but by the time I got back from the
restroom the other truck was gone. Slept in a truck at a Connoco station and
saw some gal changing in her sleeper until her guy pulled the shade shut. They
had started on that truck stop three years ago and it's still not done, doesn't
look like it's being worked on. Visited someone here, picked up some people
there. Got towed to KS from here, and here. Bus driver got lost here. A couple
of stations closed that used to be BP, Flying J Des Moines is now a Loves. What
are these new Love's shacks? Hadn't seen them before, little shack with a pull
through on each side.
This trip had really started on Thursday when I
went to the customer to pick one of them up. Friday morning I came in to do
some local work and two of the units were gone but they had no one assigned to
the third one. Wasn't really ready to go on a trip but a few hours later I
agreed as long as I didn't have to leave until Sunday. (Had family plans for
Friday night). One of the requirements was that I had to fuel it yet Friday as
the station is closed Sat and Sun. Did get it done but the day lasted longer
than I planned. One 'opps' was getting to my second pickup right at lunch time
and having to wait a ½ hour, that helped put me late enough that I
caught some rush hour traffic.
I had started driving three years ago
just as this route was being set up so I knew the stops by name but not from
the ground. This is one of the CNG-Compressed Natural Gas-Alternative fuel
vehicles we move. Some of the stops are 450 miles apart, if you don't have
enough fuel, you have to get towed. Driver expence. A few months ago our
company was moving trucks from PQ to CA and they had smaller tanks so the
trucks either had to be towed or flat-bedded for a few hundred miles.
On this trip my first stop is Kansas City, MO. KC is doing some road
work so that is always fun, but the road needs it. Fuel stop is south of town
but need to go through to get to it, can't use the bypass. This fuel stop I
found using the map, it will be only one of two the whole trip. BUT another fun
part of these Alternative fuel stops is they have a max purchase before the
pump needs to be restarted. And sometimes the pumps don't have enough pressure
so they kick off. AND having not been to each pump I don't know the unique
features and sometimes end up restarting the pump without getting any fuel.
Four restarts in and my credit card is put on hold so I have to switch to my
debit card for the last restart. I've run into this before including up in
Canada where the station put a $400 hold on the card each time you restarted
it. I couldn't get the pump to work and locked up both my credit card and my
debit card. Luckly the debit card is easy to reopen, the credit card not so
much.
I wasn't on any real timetable this trip, I just wanted to get
going early enough on Sunday to get to the first fuel stop when it was still
light. Barely, the sun was setting when I pulled in and it was well dark by the
time I was done. Most of the stations take about an hour to fuel. Need to learn
to read my paperwork, I thought we were supposed to stop every three hours with
these units but it really is every four so that cost me an extra half hour the
first day. Most days it's not an issue due to the spacing of the fuel stops.
I had hoped to make it to Witchita the first day but decided Emporia,
sixty miles shorter, would have to be all. In part because I made the extra
stop. In a way that was OK, I know the motels/resturants in Emporia but not
Witchita.
I pull in to the motel right at 10p, spend a few tries
trying to park between the other trucks but I can't make the corner so I
finally give up and just park where the cars aren't parked. I usually stay next
door at the Motel 6 but tonight the CLC card makes this one cheaper, or so I've
been told. Once I get the bill I find out the '6' would have been cheaper. The
motel clerk thinks the resturant out back is open until 10:30 or 11 so I
quickly drop my stuff in the room and head over. Two guys are talking in the
lot when I walk up and both offer to by me a beer. One of the guys is the
bartender and he walks in with me (I find out later the other is the owner). He
askes what I'll have and I said I was looking for food,
"Sorry, the kitchen
closed at 10p."
So I thanked him and walked out, by now the other man who
I'd seen in the parking lot is just leaving and asks why I'm leaving.
"Sorry, I need some food before I crash for the night."
"What do you
want?" He asked as he pulled back into his parking spot.
"That's OK." I
said, "I'll walk across the street."
"No, no. What do you want?"
He's
now out of his truck and walking back in, so I asked my choices. Once I sit
down at the bar I find out that the second person is the owner and he'll be
re-openign the kitchen to make the sandwich himself.
"What's the
occation?" I asked.
None, guess they either just really wanted my bussiness
or that is just how they do business. At some piont he said he could see that I
was was 'a tired driver after a long day on the road.' Maybe he had seen our
drivers before or maybe he guessed because I walked and didn't drive from the
motel. Being the slow eater I am I did have to get the 2nd half of the sandwich
to go, they had already stayed open late because of the football game and the
bartnered was threatning to shut the TV's off before the extra point if there
was one. Turned out that wasn't an issue. As soon as the screen showed FINAL
the TV's were off.
I used to hate getting in late to this town when I
started driving because this place wasn't open yet, Another resturant next door
only has lunch hours ?? and the Burger King used to close at 9, BK now is open
24/7.
9/13/10
(It's now been two weeks since I made this trip,
now I think I know why I quit posting, it's takes a lot of time.)
I'm
up at the end of my ten hours, do my inspection and get rolling. Not much new
on the KS turnpike, still the only place I've found where the cattle 'loading
pens' have their own exit and overpass. The one downside of these 'alterative
fuel vehicles' is you don't stop at gas stations/truck stops so there is no
bucket of water to wash the windows, but finally on midday my second day it
starts to rain.
I've been to OKC enough to know in general where the
airport is, I'm looking for I-44, I know it's a toll road to the east but not
sure about the west. When I get where it crosses, it shows I-44 east as a toll
but doesn't refer to the highway going west as either I-44 or a toll road so I
decide to stay on I-35 until the highways cross again. Either I missed it or it
doesn't say that I-44 west is the same as I-35 south for a few miles. A couple
of exits later I find I-44 west and this time I'm comfortable that it is not a
toll road, it's not. Still raining but not hard enough to slow traffic.
I have a map of where the station is supposed to be but I can see that
is an empty lot so I turn the other direction, the building numbers soon show
that was the wrong thing to do. So I have to leave the airport and come back
in, this time I find it right away. But it's another pump that doesn't want to
keep pumping, this one I have to restart 13 times to get a fill. And I want a
fill because my next stop is a slow pump and I will need to drive 55 to make it
to the stop after that. My credit card was supposed to be cleared but same as
yesterday, it lets me use it four times and then 'denied.' So again I switch to
my debit card but that too only allows four swipes and I'm denied. So I have to
call the fraud department which gets me cleared, they also give me a direct
number (which I have already lost). This all takes time and again it's taken
over a half hour to fuel.
It did stop raining while I was fueling, not
a big deal as it was under a canopy, but as soon as I head out it starts
raining again.
We are supposed to stop again in Elkhart, OK for more
fuel. But when I get there I still have more fuel pressure than this pump will
push so I pull back on the ramp and was on my way, now only driving 55 until I
get to ABQ tomorrow.
The Bit Texan http://www.bigtexan.com/ is the Wall
Drug of I-40, miles and miles of billboards '72-oz steak free,' (If you eat the
whole thing and all the sides.)
I've been down this road only a couple
of times, but I find the motel where ABF used to use as their layover, it's
mid-day now so not sure if they still use it. And the town where we picked up a
pickup from a trailer court. The La Kiva motel is still in Amarillo and still
cheap. (just realized as I'm typing this I don't need to pick up all the coupon
books unless I'm going to use them. All the same info is online) And I have
links to them
online
https://sites.google.com/site/jimonthewayhome/home6/misc_help01
Lot's of cheap motels in Amarillo, I think there was at least a dozen with
rates under $40 and that was just the ones right on I-40.
Not much for
rest areas in TX, a few wide spots in the road and even some of them are
closed. Somewhere on this stretch I do pass a feedlot, miss those on US-54, but
it's been a while since I've had a rig that I could use that shortcut. By the
time I get to the NM scale it's dark and I can't see what the person is
motioning me to do, they finally step out and motion me to park. But no
comments, that's a good thing. $10 permit and I'm on my way to Tucumcari.
A driver has suggested the first three motels for me on this trip, at
the time he hadn't spent the fourth night and I didn't ask him the next time I
talked to him. Nice welcome arch at the NM state line but it's too dark to try
to get a photo. Tonights motel is the Gateway Inn on the east end of town. Word
is that he'll take $32 cash instead of the $34 on the sign or other offers,
comes to $36 with tax. Not a bad place, there is plenty of truck parking behind
the gas station next door and tonight there is plenty of room in his lot. The
most I count is four cars at any one time, PM or AM. And the place is one door
from Denny's where I had their philly cheesesteak and pick up my coupon book
for the area. A lot of these places now have free wi-fi but I haven't gotten in
that habit yet. Even with wi-fi I could be doing these write-ups then instead
of two weeks later.
9/14/10
Up with the sun, as usual I get my
vehicle inspected and started before turning in my keys, it's happened that the
truck doesn't start often enough that I'm a little gun shy. I've decided to try
and take pictures of all the Route 66 motels in Tucumcari. Looking at them now
it's not as easy as I thought to take these shots when I'm driving, even at 25
mph. The cheapest one I find is still $17 with a few more in the <.> $20
range, didn't' check any of them out for truck parking. There is supposed to be
34 motels in Tucumcari, at some point I may post the pictures from my trips. So
far all I'm posting is pics of some of the things I've driven. They are at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Driveaway/photos/album/0/list
Under Jim B
1, 2 and 3
About halfway between Tucumcari and Santa Rose, <> 60+
miles of nothing, I see a man on the frontage road pushing a grocery cart that
likely holds all his belongings. He has long walk no matter where he's going.
One of the drivers trys to make it to Santa Rose but that means making
it to Witchita the 1st night, but I don't see the point as he still stays in
Phoenix the 3rd night. I can see that across from the Motel 6 there is still a
place for $24, I've stayed there, not bad. The rest of the motels are not as
cheap as Tucumcari, but there is a big lot next to the Motel 6 that trucks park
and you can walk to most of the motels on the east end of town.
I make
it to ABQ with plenty of fuel but can't find the pumps, have to call another
driver again. I can't believe dispatch has been giving drivers these maps for
three years. Looks like I've got something to do when I have a day off, get
them accurate! My first trip through I end up in an area that says 'No trucks,
no buses,' even after I call the other driver I still miss it and around and
around I go. Same issue again, credit card only allows three swipes, remainder
on the debit card. Hate using that much from the checking account. Don't
remember what the hangup was this time but I'm over my ½ hour again for
fueling. I talked to the same driver a week later and found there is an even
easier way to get into this spot, I'll add that to the map too.
Casino's seem to be doing OK out here, even one I don't remember so it must be
new. It's right on the freeway only the frontage road between it and the
building. All the Flying J's I've seen/will see on I-40 now have Dennys. Also
see the first Pilot I've seen with a Dennys but it wasn't built as a Pilot, it
was an independent when it opened so that may have something to do with it. Ah,
Route 66, maybe some day in my RV and a 4-wheeler I will be able to take the
original highway.
ABQ was my first break for the day, Holbrook is my
second, McD's where I'm able to grab some wi-fi and a wrap. Holbrook also has a
few cheap motels left, but few. A few years ago I stayed at the same motel my
Dad had stayed at back in the mid-40's for $2-3. When we realized it was the
same motel I wanted to take a picture, but by the next time I came through it
was gone. Maybe the chains are getting together and buying up the old places
and bulldozing them ??
By now I'm going to be up against the clock so I
don't dare stop and take any more pictures, can see lots of fires burning in
the hills. Can see the mountain by Flagstaff from 20 miles away, I thought it
was 40, but maybe only without the haze. No time to stop in Winslow, AZ, but
the freeway is finally done. The climb to Flagstaff doesn't slow me too much or
use too much fuel, and the ride down the other side uses more fuel than I
thought it would. Hate riding the breaks that much but what else do you do with
an automatic. 'All trucks must exit, break check.' I stopped, must mean the
breaks work? One truck behind me sails by, it exited, but never stopped. Did
see guys under their trucks with wrenches.
It's going to be close, but
once I'm in PHX I finally decide to go for it. I miss the fuel stop on the
first pass and have to turn around, again, nowhere near where the map says it
should be. Pump has lots of pressure and I only need to restart it once. I've
talked to a second driver who did not recommend staying at the EZ8, he's stayed
there but preferst the Travelers Inn. (I had called him for directions to the
pump and motel, he never gave me directions to the EZ8 and the wrong directions
to the Travelers Inn). After leaving the pump I went right past the '8' so now
I know where it is, lots of trucks. I have a general idea of where the
Travelers is, I remember looking at coupons years ago. Also saw a motel on the
northside with plenty of rooms/parking for $29, I'll have to look up the name.
At the time I went past I was holding on with both hands. I'd been on the road
for most of 14 hours and feeling it.
The driver was correct in that the
motel was next to the QT, but he said it was behind it. Yes it's 'behind it'
when you on the freeway. But I was looking for it 'behind' once I was on the
sideroad. Also he hadn't given me a name but had guessed this was the one he
was talking about. So once around the back streets then into Travelers,
security tells me where I should park and where I can park. Should is the
truckers area, can is anywhere there aren't cars. I pick the car lot, seeing
I'm already there. I don't want to try to back between trucks at this time of
the night. Even in the car lot I hit the curb and leave a some nice red paint
on the tire that neither I nor the wash can get off. The Travelers Inn will
only tell me that the CLC is the best deal, I think the truckers rate is $64?
Final cost from CLC is $49. I get a 'freeway view' room but don't notice the
sound, not even the engine brakes coming up the ramp. The meal of the day
today/night is breakfast at Ihop. There are also two fast food places that
share the same parking lot. Food is something I'd have to check on for the $29
motels, but not an issue if I start eating earlier in the evening.
9/15/10
Rolling before light, another good reason for staying at
this motel. It's on the west end of town, I'm past downtown and heading out
during the morning rush. Don't see any other other good towns or motels within
reach. CA waves me through their fruit inspection station, that is normal. CA
scales usually have an 'empty' lane so not too likely we'll get stopped. At one
there is an inspection station and the next inspector is standing in the next
lane waving the next lucky customer in. At the last scale I'll hit today I do
have to cross an actual scale and I get the arrow for the re-weight but no flag
to come in.
Need to stop and fuel and weight in 1000 Palms, again the
fuel location is wrong, the directions are wrong and I end up on a dirt road. A
few miles down the road the map is wrong for finding the scale, but at least in
the correct direction. Takes two weights, they don't record it correctly the
first time.
Pass a town called Desert Center that is mostly deserted,
looks like someone planted and watered palms for a while, the are full sized
but now most are dying. 'No services next ? 50 ? Miles?' Almost as bad as Utah.
A lot of nothing until LA. Nearing LA I see a car on it's side against the exit
sign, people are helping someone stand up, no police yet so it must have just
happened. I'm coming through the area late AM and there is still a lot of
traffic.
I pick out the Rush dealership where we brought maybe 100's of
trucks a few years back. From here I need to find I-210 , I-5, CA-99. I do end
up missing the I-5 exit, I head south instead of north. They have a lot of 'No
trucks,' 'Trucks OK' signs and I missed the direction part. Break time and I'm
not to my next fuel stop so I pull off at an exit that allows trucks. Not much
for a truck lot, I don't even get out. Just spend my ½ hour on my
computer looking for motels.
Last fuel stop (and the first) were the
only ones with the correct directions, even this one was wrong. It had extra
miles by bringing us in from the wrong direction. From here I'm looking for
cheap motels, I can see a few from CA-99 but I can't tell if they have truck
parking. The billboard for one sounds good, and looks good but it is the only
thing at the exit. I need food tonight. Not the cheapest place in the book but
I have an exit number with two $40+ CLC motels. One's a Days Inn, the other is
a Vega Bon. I go for the Days Inn, 'truck parking' is curb side. Lots of fast
food across the street one direction and a Dennys the other direction. As I'm
walking to Dennys I'm realizing that I can't get back on the freeway directly
from where I am. No left turn from my street, so I'm sort of looking around.
Some guy on a bike asks if he can help and then rides along side of me walking
on the sidewalk. When I stop for the light he pops the question "Can you spare
a couple of dollars? Picking cans has been slow." In a rare case, I reach in my
pocket, not wanting to pull out my cash I only pull the outside bill. I can see
it's a $20, he must have seen it too 'cuz he said he would wait while I got
change … I find $1.50 in quarters and tell him that's it.
Another
breakfast, this time at Dennys. On my way back to the motel I walk closer to
the buildings and stay off the sidewalk, then cut through the McD's lot.
Another 14 hour day.
9/16/10
The truck wash is a couple of miles
back and opens at 6am, I do my inspection at 5:30 and get there just as they
are opening up. Didn't know how long of a line there would be. Zero, just me.
$20 later and I'm on my way.
I didn't know how long this trip would
take so I gave myself an extra day. But I only wanted to pay for a one day car
rental so I don't want to deliver before I can get my car and don't want to
return my car so early that I'm stuck at the airport. About 10 miles from my
drop I find a McD's to kill an hour. Spend the time getting my paperwork in
order … Opps, supposed to have called the drop 24 hours in advance.
Drop map could be better, the issue is the driveway is not on the same
street as the address is so I get to make another U-turn. Made a couple of
those this trip. The first person I ask has never heard of the person I'm
looking for. The second guy has and tries to reach him. My person says "He'll
have to wait, he was supposed to call ahead and now I'm in a meeting." My
response was "I have a plane to catch at 2 pm (it's now 11 am) …
tomorrow." A few minutes later the guy shows up with his 'meeting' and they
both inspect the unit. He does remind me that I was to have called. I
apologize.
Once the paper work is signed I call the rental agency to
get picked up at noon. I could have walked, it was only about a mile away. Now
a whole 24 hours, what do I do? I've seen a few 'In and Out' burger places
including one across the street last night, so I decide that is lunch if I can
find one. http://www.in-n-out.com/ I do find one near Vacaville, we used to
drop a lot of used trucks in that town. Yes, In and Out, your choices are 1)
hamburger, 2) cheeseburger, 3) double cheeseburger … Ah, let me think now.
Next on my list is Alcatraz, I've been on the north end of SFO and seen
it from shore so I have a vague idea of where I want to go. I do manage to get
in the general location. What happened to SFO's 'grand central?' Used to be
able to catch the train, city buses, Greyhound all from different levels of the
same building. Now that building is boarded up and Greyhound is using a mobil
home for an office a few blocks away.
Parking $15 … OK, I didn't
see the small print that says 'before 11am.' It costs me $18. Now to walk to
the boats. I look both ways at the piers and head the direction of the Golden
Gate bridge. A mile or so later I find the pier I'm looking for, and a sign I'm
not … 'Next availble tickets are for SATURDAY.' Today is Thrusday, now
what? I've just spent $18 to park. Oh and it's foggy, can't see the Golden Gate
from here, should be able to. So I'm not interested in going on the boats that
just go around the island, or the ones that go out into the ocean or the bay,
nor the tour buses. Visability is only a few blocks. I do remember stopping in
this general area a few years ago. Parked on the street just a few blocks from
here. Not anymore. I did wonder through Pier 39, but didn't see anything of
interest.
Missed a couple of good photo shots. When the UPS man pulled
up the pigions all fly up to him, in his truck, under his truck but by the time
I got to his truck the birds were gone. Seen a few beggers, one holding a sign
that says "Why lie, I need a beer." A <> 12 year old kid playing the
drums, someone else playing a guitar, and the guy using a baby carriage instead
of a grocery cart. He had his cooler and mat and likely the rest of his belongs
all stacked on there. Maybe the tires are bigger and it rolls better? Later I
see someone giving a banana to someone holding a sign saying 'Hungry and
Homeless.'
$18 down for an hour's walk around the Piers, now lets see
what else can go wrong. Golden Gate, I head that direction and I still can't
see the bridge from ¼ mile away, not sure if the people on the tour
boats can even see it when the pass under it. I head west through the park and
south along the coast. I stop in a parking area and walk to the ocean, I can't
see my car less than ¼ mile back across the sand. OK, lets try the zoo.
I'm only a few blocks away, parking $8. Not going to fall for that twice. The
zoo is right in town and there is parking on the city streets, I find a spot
and walk in. Zoo closes at 5pm, it is now 4:45.
How about San Jose?
I've delivered trucks there but never stayed there. Traffic isn't bad, or I
would have crossed the bay and called it a day. Opps, as soon as I pass the
last bridge I hit traffic. Stop and go for the next three hours. I don't see
anything from the highway in San Jose so I keep going. We used to drop trucks
blocks from the A's stadium, that's where we'd get on the train, so I want to
get up in that area, it's also close to the airport. I think. I do see a EZ8
which is likley cheap but I keep going.
Seeing an A's game and their
stadium sounds interesting so I turn on the radio … SFO is playing tonight
but by now I'm on the wrong side of the bay. No word about OAK so I'm guessing
no.
I find an exit that looks close, still haven't checked the maps to
see if it is the same one as I thought, and go past the Motel 6 to the Days Inn
and pull into the parking lot. By the time I can get my computer up and running
to check CLC prices, security is asking me what I'm doing. "Staying here." As
I've just found out it's the best deal. Yes, $15 more than the '6' but this is
an 'off day.' Not sure why I cared where I stayed, it was just another bed,
didn't use anything extra, none of the perks.
I do ask where some good
Italian is, they suggest Francesco's a few blocks down.
http://www.francescosrestaurant.com/
Busy place, lots of pilots. I want
their Baked Lasagna, but it's only for lunch so I go for chicken in a white
sauce. When I get it I realize it's in a white WINE sauce. It's good but not
what I expected. Oh well, I did pick a good motel and got a good nights sleep.
Not a bad day, just don't know how to vacation I guess. Oh, and the place mat
at Francesco's told me why there wasn't an A's game in OAK tonight, they are in
my home town
9/17/10
Have to have the car returned by noon,
flight is at 2. Did have a little breakfast before leaving. It was OK but not
much for the price of the motel. Two choices of dry cereal, toast, two juices,
coffee, milk. I do need to return the rental car full (or almost, it wasn't
full when I picked it up), and there is a Shell right across the street.
Closed. And an AM-PM across the street from that, very busy had to wait, then
it's pre-pay. So I use my credit card, it want's my PIN. I don't have one for
my credit card. So I try my debit card, denied. So I go inside to pay, I don't
want to over pay so I give them $10 to turn on the pump. It takes about five
tries to get it turned on. As I'm fueling I see someone back into someone elses
car and take off, didn't look like any damage to the car that was hit, but the
one doing the hitting was dented, or maybe was before. I gotta get out of here.
I'm not full but I'm leaving, I go into get my receipt, they give me one wrong
one, then another, I give up and take the second one. Then go down the street a
few blocks to a 76 station and put in another $14.
Why is it that
California still has 76 stations? And Arco Stations, and Texico stations? These
companies have all been bought out and their names changed in other states.
I thought I remembered this airport but they are all starting to look
the same. The airport is only about miles from my motel, rental car parking is
off-site. Airport is small, somene helps me use the kios to get my ticket, it's
been a while. I ask about having gotten on an earlier flight, doesn't sound
like it would have happened, glad I stayed in bed. Layover is in Denver, free
wi-fi both locations. Find out there is a Schlotzsky's at Denver so that's my
evening / daily meal.
It's Friday night so my wife is picking me up at
the airport, no taxi, no bus. |
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