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...My Life as 'Drive away' driver
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210728 MN-IA 1 trash truck to Des Moines IA (delivered) ... spending the night at home We wake up, take our walk then call the local dispatch and then one of the long haul dispatchers. 'Long haul' today is a 200 mile trip to Des Moines. I'm guessing the local company doesn't get it because it is a right hand drive. I am also told it is a CNG. After taking time to eat breakfast we finally get going closer to 9 AM. 1st stop - Kwik Trip in Dodge Center for fuel and the rest room. WARNING: Unknown fault. The first few times I saw the message on the dash it was ready to pull over, but it always seemed to go away quickly. Then one time it lasted quite a bit longer and I was thinking I was going to have to stop. Then at some point I realized that this only happened after the radar showed there was something passing me. Once I knew that, I tried to see why. The radar will show for about four seconds, then it will show the warning. Cars will not trip the warning, but slow semi's will as will cars that are too close together. So it's not going to stop the truck, whew. 2nd stop - the driveaway office. We have an address but there is a 1st Ave, 1st St S, 1st St N ... we tried all three. Third one was correct. They have an office in the old school. Not sure how the rest of the school looks but for this office they just knocked a hole in the class room wall for the door. This was a elementary school likely built in the 60's or 70's. When I had called in, I had not talked to the dispatcher I wanted, I had talked to his 'other' who does South Texas from the same office. She had said the paperwork would be in the mail box, but come in and say 'hi.' Paperwork was not in the mail box so I went in, two person office. The gal is out in the open and after a couple of minutes did say hi. So I said hi and that I was here for my paperwork. 'In the mail box' she told me. 'No, it's not' was my reply. About that time the dispatch for this account walks out of his office for some reason, hears us, and says it is still on his desk. He goes and grabs it and hands it to me as he walks past. I don't remember him ever looking at me and I know there wasn't a greeting. My only other question was how much fuel to leave in the truck. 'Fill in Des Moines.' OK. Not sure why I was to walk in and 'meet them?' And being my first time I would have thought there would have been some suggested hints. On my original phone call I had confused the other dispatcher because she would ask/tell me some things and I would say 'I know.' And then other questions I would have no idea. I've driving trash trucks, I have driven CNG, I have driven right hand drive, I have driven from this location. I just have not driven for this company from this location. 3rd stop is finally the pick up. 1st time for this company but I know the basic routine. But didn't realize which copy of the paperwork had the truck make on it and I was looking for a 'Mack.' Walked the whole lot. Then realized it was an 'Autocar' and was the second truck from our car. ... and it is a dual drive. I can drive from either side so I choose to drive from the left side. Almost all the controls can be reached from both sides. OK, this may be my last trash truck for a while. At least until tomorrow. This thing rides rough. Autocar and CCC are the two worst cab overs for rides. Before I called on this truck I was thinking I would not have to stop for fuel at all. But in my paperwork it lists a stop in Austin plus the final fuel in Des Moines. Truck looks 'full' but I have no way of knowing how much fuel these trucks hold or what the mileage is so I will stop at both. 4th stop is the Kwik Trip in Austin. I had looked at the fuel stops before we left home but the exit numbers on the maps are so small that I can not read them. But I was hoping I would see a sign or the lot before the exit. I did, but by then someone was in the exit ramp next to me. But 'me big truck' so people get out of my way when I turn my blinker on. It only took 12 gallons but that could be the difference between making it and not making it. BB does a stop in Dows for food. I do the next 150 miles non-stop. At 60 mph. Governed. 5th stop is a Gain CNG station in north Des Moines. Easy to find, I can see it from the freeway. South on the cross street to the first right, third business on the left. Stand alone pumps. I was down to about a half a tank so the trip could have been done without filling if they wanted us to bring them in on 'E.' I had planned on getting back on the freeway to get closer to the drop but when I look at the map when I am at the CNG station I see it is only four miles on a US Hwy to the drop. City street but a truck route. Easy to remember, that is what I go for. Cross a 2nd freeway, then 3rd street to the left to the dead end and go right. But … most of the way down the 3rd street it said 'no trucks.' I turned at the last minute. I don't need a fine five blocks from the drop. The last obstacle was the railroad tracks. Five tracks in a row and I couldn't go slow enough to not get bounced around. Even the cars were doing them at about 5 mph. 6th stop - Once in the customer lot I decide to call instead of walk around looking for someone to sign. But someone walks up to me and asks me a question, so I reply that I am wondering if I am in the right place. They ask me if I am looking for that customer (The name is all over my truck.) and then they say the address. No, I know I am at the right address, where is the correct building. Oh … They go to find someone, I thought. Then they come back and tell me where to park. So I move and wait for the inspector. I am there a few minutes when the same person comes up to me again … 'did you need someone to sign …?' 'Yes' That is who I thought he went to find. A few minutes later someone comes out to inspect. And they did. They even checked the air in the tires and the date on the fire extinguisher. Never saw that before. But it was still less than a half hour from when I got there to when it was signed off. At some point the inspector saw the radar sensor and said the drivers hate it. Then we talked about it a little before he went back to inspecting. 90+ degrees standing on the tar in the sun. But the fun still wasn't over. When BB went to do my paperwork, she found I had never been dispatched. Opps, was I supposed to call from the lot when I left. So I called now, no, the dispatcher had just forgotten. There had been a 100 mile trip out of IA that we were looking at but it was gone now. So I called my local dispatcher and she was gone too. So home we head. 7th stop - Culvers in Ankeny. For my second food of the day. I hadn't had much to drink today either so I got some lemonaid ice. Turns out it is ice to be eaten with a spoon. No what I wanted when I was driving. Also my reuben had not been cut completely so BB had to pull it apart and re-stack it while I was driving. Somewhere along the highway there was a new cement mixer, transporter, on the side of the road. Front tire is blown, it was now sitting on the rim. 8th stop was at the welcome center in MN near Glenville to switch drivers. 9th stop is at the Flying J near Northfield to fuel and switch drivers again. (BB drives when I want to make phone calls) 10th stop - to get drug stuff for our grand daughter who came home from her trip sick. 11th and final stop is home. 13 hour day. We aren't as young as we were five years ago when we started doing this line of work. Load board US - 160 IA - 22 / 19 MN - 6 WI - 6 There is one short MN trip on the load board. But we'll see how tomorrow goes. |
