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...My Life as 'Drive away' driver
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2024 12 26 MN-ND 1 roll-off to Blaine MN (failed) 1 Pickup to Watford ND (staged) spending the night at home There had still been two trucks in St Paul and a 3rd going to IA this AM for my long haul company but it's my week two work for my local carrier. IF I had called the local carrier on Monday to find out if they would have work or not, I might have been able to take those three. But I had said I would be availble and hadn't changed that so I stuck to my word. At 8 AM I called the local carrier and they did have one local truck to move from the office to the drop. I said I would need a shuttle driver so they needed to locate one and call back. BB seemed surprised, maybe disappointed that I hadn't asked her about driving. But she has said in the past she is not interested in shuttling others and this way makes sure of that. Within a few minutes I get a call back, the shuttle driver who went to Dodge Center will be back at 9:15. So I planned on having the truck inspected and being on the road by 9 AM. But when I got to the office, paperwork wasn't out, and they wanted to talk about an up coming trip. So I called BB right away and we agreed to take the trip, but leave over the weekend. It is 600 miles to the drop, it would be mid-day by the time we got going and the drop closes at 4 PM. I don't like running against the weekend when we have options. I said we could work out the details later, but 'just a second' a few times and we had it all figured out before I walked out of the office. By the time I am lifting my hood to do my inspection, the shuttle driver is back. Fluids check good. But when I turn the key, nothing. Not the dead battery kind of nothing. The power shut off kind of nothing. So I look all over in the cab before remembering a roll off IS a garbage truck and the shut off is at the battery. Now I have power. As I turn the key, I can hear a load constant 'hoowish' and a strong CNG smell. 2nd nature I guess but I shut the key back off. (I had not tried to start it) I always let any non-car vehicle go through all it's computer checks before starting it. This time I was not even watching or listening for the checks, never looked at the gauges. I tried it a few more times, just turning the key to the run position without starting it. Opened the hood. Left it on a little longer to see if it was just a short squirt. Then called dispatch. The dispatcher who came out had just been at his grandma's the day before ... could smell gas before he got in her house. Grandma had apparently bumped the gas on her stove to the on position while starting her oven. Big ham, earlier in the AM, so grandma hadn't been in the kitchen for over two hours ... with the gas on. Dispatcher was not interested in me trying to start the truck. And I wouldn't have. So I hop in with the shuttle driver and we go and get my weekend truck. This driver could and did talk. Shipper had just started my truck when I got there and was walking into the office to get the keys to the truck blocking mine. Today the shuttle driver did not get out of the van. Often they are the ones to get the keys, the paperwork, also do an inspection. They only thing I should have had them do was the break and backup lights that BB usually does for me with the RV's. Truck is full. It is a Ford 550 with a boom. Taking it back to the lot adds close to 50 miles but with this carrier it always seems to be OK. Back at the lot, I parked it away from the CNG truck. Good thing, By the time I left, a tow truck was there spinning the CNG around so they could tow from the rear. Dragging it, not starting it. As long as I was in the office, I was able to get all of my new legals for next year. The local trips from the other carrier are now gone. But there is a truck from ND to MN, didn't call on it yet. Load board - Friday US - 285 IA - 16/14 MN - 7 WI - 6 Load board - Weekend US - 301 IA - 16/13 MN - 6 WI - 4 Load board - Monday US - 238 IA - 3/1 MN - 7 WI - 2 Christmas Eve / Christmas Day Load board - Thursday US - 225 IA - 1/0 MN - 0 WI - 3 2024 12 27 MN-ND 1 Pickup to Watford ND (staged) 1 Pickup to Monticello MN (canceled) spending the night at home Shortly after 7 AM local I contact the rental dispatcher and get the trip coming back from ND to MN. It's about an hour before I get the paperwork and luckily I looked at it right away. ... CLOSED 12/21 THRU 1/6 That doesn't work for me. So we had to cancel that part of the trip. Would have been easy money, we will be coming within a couple of miles of the shipper on our way home. At some point today BB says we likely should have done the two local rentals yesterday AM instead of me doing what I did for the local carrier (or besides.) the two locals for my long haul carrier would have paid about 10x what I'll get paid for what I did move. BUT BB was not wanting to work yesterday or today. Not sleeping well for some reason. That was it. All the excitement was in the AM. The only thing in the PM was dispatch calling me to tell me my paperwork was ready and that I did not need to call the drop, they know I am coming. Load board US - 168 IA - 0 MN - 0 WI - 2 We still have lots of food from the holidays so we will likely wait until after we have eaten tomorrow to leave. That may, may not, give us enough time to get to Fargo Saturday night. Even if we only get to Alex we will have less that 500 miles for Sunday. |
