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...My Life as 'Drive away' driver
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.. the trip continues from HERE 2024 12 07 CA-CO 1 Bus to Avon CO (delivered) spending the night at Kearney NE Up plenty early, breakfast is not until 6:30. Lots of choices, real scrambled eggs, cased sausage plus a few other hot items. We didn't get rolling until almost 7:30. I'm not even up to highway speed on the freeway and ... slap ... the left mirror came back further than ever before. So for the next two hours I drove blind on one side. Not an issue, it was still usable when I pulled on the freeway and I never had to, had to use it again (almost) The chain law here has been in effect since Sep. I had looked at the map and there is a US highway that runs parallel to the freeway from where the restriction starts until the drop. Then this AM we read about the fines and found that the fines posted are having no chains when chains are required or when blocking a travel lane because of no chains. The fine for not carrying them the rest of the season is $50. The only down side of the US highway is it is posted for 50 instead of the 65-70 for the interstate and it is a two lane road. But it is flat, dry and more level than the interstate. When I get to the drop I can see 'Do Not Enter' signs to get past the building where I needed to go. So I 'assumed' there was another driveway (I had not looked at that online,) there was not. There also was not a place to turn around a 40 foot bus. I should have just gone to the next round-a-bout and came back. But this was a narrow hilly road and I wanted off of it. So at the round-a-bout I got back on the freeway ... HERE is where I had to merge blindly. BB had missed turning in also because of the Do Not Enter signs but she was able to turn the car around in a parking area so she beat me to the drop. So back to the one entrance and go around the other side of the building that we could not see from the road. Fuel level is still good, no damage. I walk into the shop and the first person I see and talk to is the person I am looking for. He signs right there and says I can turn the bus off. Then we kept talking and he followed me out to the bus so he did see it was actually there before I left. 9:30 - we are a half hour ahead of plan. 2nd stop is Georgetown rest area. We have to get off the freeway and it is in an old school or depot block building. Ski area's were making snow and the freeway was backed up with people trying to get off at the ski area's. Beautiful day. Sunny and <> 20 degrees. 3rd stop is the Loves in Hudson, Colorado. Gas was $2.54 with the discount. And it is meal time so given then the choices of Hardee's, Subway and shelf food ... I got a roller dog to go. 4th stop is the Walmart in Ogallala for BB's food. 5th and final stop is the Comfort Inn in Kearney. Not sure why there are now so many hotels here. There is a new Crowne Plaza that is full, plus they are adding new hotels every year. High end ones. Not sure of the attraction. BB had ordered me a burger and malt from a place across from the hotel. Good food, in the past this place has been packed. Tonight I counted the tables. They were 1/2 full at 6 PM on a Saturday night. Tonight we decided to push it right up to dark, by getting to Kearney we should be able to get this car returned to the airport by tomorrow night. Then BB has things to do Monday AM but we could head out again by Monday PM ... if there is somewhere to go. We need to be back in less than two weeks and we are not home yet. Load board US - 91 IA - 18 MN - 1 WI - 1 2024 12 08 CA-CO 1 Bus to Avon CO (delivered) spending the night at home We were up and ready for breakfast by 6:30, out of the hotel by 8:15. Breakfast didn't look good so I took a yogurt and then finally ate the yogurt that we had brought from home. Plus I ate the bacon from BB's free breakfast from a few days ago. When I went to get my receipt, I asked what the attraction to Kearney is and all the hotels ... I got the long answer including visual aids. The guy who owns the hotel we stayed in, owns all the hotels on about 80 acres in this corner of town. Including Crowne Plaza, Candlewood Suites, Hampton, Holiday Inn, La Quinta, Fairfield ... and there are four event centers, three attached to hotels plus restaurants and arena's. Main attraction is Kearney is halfway across the state and a college town. Bird watching is a ways down on the list. 1st stop was the Loves in Omaha, gas is under $2.50. I got some chips to help keep me awake driving. 2nd stop is De Soto. We wanted a Kwik Trip/Star and it was either this one or another hour down the road and BB was hungry now. Today they had none of the good food. I ended up with a ham and cheese on flatbread. And BB got to use there microwave. They don't even carry the juice I wanted (other locations do) 3rd stop was the shipper in Forest City. Wow ... they have 100+ RV's in the hold lot. Not sure why they are there or when they will ship. We had thought about taking a trip to OH on Monday because that was the best trip on the load board. Now we might want to wait and see when and where these are going. Wo don't have time to get to the west coast but still have enough time to get just about anywhere else. It clouded over after we picked up our car so it got dark earlier. We got to the airport to return the car before dark, but it was dark by the time we got home. 2024 12 09 MN spending the night at home We opted not to call first thing this AM for work and by mid-morning BB was not up for calling for anything. Just dragging a little. By afternoon RV dispatch started putting the good trips out. CA and others but we don't have time to get there and back. I'm guessing there were a few dozen put out. Then after 5 PM we noticed there were a few trips to TX. That might work, we'll have to decide by 8 AM tomorrow. I did get paid for the bus. About what we expected so a good paying trip. Settlements did not get my permit figured out, but close enough. At one point today there were 10 trucks coming out of WY, would have been nice if they had been there Friday ... Nothing out of TX or points closer that work. MO, but that is kind of out of the way and they are going to SD so it would be a rental on both ends. Load board US - 99 IA - 13/11 MN - 2 WI - 0 |
