Yuppers my virtual truckers, we did get out of Cheyenne yesterday morning at 10 AM. The mad dash for everyone (300 plus trucks) to hit the fuel lanes and the freeway before the storm hit was worse than Chicago rush hour traffic!
We arrived near our drop location and parked, ready to call it a night as I never received an appointment number (I know how Walmart works). I was instructed to head to the distribution center none the less 30 minutes later to only be refused as I was past my scheduled appointment. We parked again for the night......and I only slept 4 hours, augh!
I contacted Walmart this morning about dropping the load and they only accept reefer loads at.......3:45! I requested shop time while I waited to get these bugs off my truck. So here we are, multi tasking between the truck, my blog, waiting on hold with the bank for some account updates (gads.......they are just as bad as getting a live person in dispatch)!
It is near noon so I will be making us lunch and hopefully, ALL repair work done by 2 so we can deliver this load on time. This sweet money maker is slowly becoming a NO money maker. My dispatcher has been out sick so I will have to touch base with him as soon as he returns regarding 1.5 days of lost wages.
On that note, time to go!
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Good morning from the Cheyenne......Chicago knows nothing about wind!
Per the instructions of a seasoned driver, I lowered my trailer's landing gear to reduce the rocking of the heavy winds and dang nab it, it worked! On another note, my bunk heater was producing heat of an excess of 90+ degrees (no wonder I was sweating bullets the other night) and the APU fan was producing a current of around 50 degrees. So between the two, the truck stayed a nice warm environment around 75 degrees.
I did call break down as I was concerned with the temperature of the bunk heater and he told me at least I was lucky to have one as there were drivers out there that didn't have heat. I was informed that there was a temperature cutoff......dang, wonder if that heater has to hit 110 first! None the less, my bunk never caught fire and I slept half way decent.
My only concern now is the reefer and the fuel to run it. I am to run the reefer at 34 degrees continuous. We might be here another 2 days and I don't have a clue on how much fuel is needed to run the reefer. In my current location, I would have to ask 3 to 4 trucks to move so I can either pull forward or backwards in order to obtain fuel and very likely lose my spot. But you know, after some caffeine induced thinking, since the tank holds only 50 pounds of fuel, it would only take me 10 trips to fill that tank up with a 2 gallon jug. Problem solved! Load is secure and I get to burn some needed calories!
I am going to sign off for now, take a walk as the temps are mild, it is just dang nab it windy! I80 and I25 is down for the count.......let's make the best of it!
I did call break down as I was concerned with the temperature of the bunk heater and he told me at least I was lucky to have one as there were drivers out there that didn't have heat. I was informed that there was a temperature cutoff......dang, wonder if that heater has to hit 110 first! None the less, my bunk never caught fire and I slept half way decent.
My only concern now is the reefer and the fuel to run it. I am to run the reefer at 34 degrees continuous. We might be here another 2 days and I don't have a clue on how much fuel is needed to run the reefer. In my current location, I would have to ask 3 to 4 trucks to move so I can either pull forward or backwards in order to obtain fuel and very likely lose my spot. But you know, after some caffeine induced thinking, since the tank holds only 50 pounds of fuel, it would only take me 10 trips to fill that tank up with a 2 gallon jug. Problem solved! Load is secure and I get to burn some needed calories!
I am going to sign off for now, take a walk as the temps are mild, it is just dang nab it windy! I80 and I25 is down for the count.......let's make the best of it!
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Pictures.......wind is rumored to hit up to 70 MPH either west or south!
Read the sign...........
That is the rest stop!
What looks like a train in the background is trucks parked on the highway...
Gonja and I have jogged this road......not now!
My first storm road closure layover!
I am parked along a driveway into a McDonald's parking lot and lucky to have found it! Cheyenne - I-80 between Exit 342, Harriman and Cheyenne is closed and has been since yesterday afternoon. The freeway is lined with trucks that are slowly being told to turn around which will make the two trucks stops, the hotel and this McD's very busy and very crowded. It is a good thing I just filled the reefer with fuel as it could be Thursday before I am moving. If you read this post soon, click here to see the mess!
trucker's nightmare
Gonja sure was happy to be here though......he ran circles in the snow as well as making "snow dogs"!
I am having new issues with the truck as the fuel mileage keeps dropping no matter how slow I go and the heater and APU need to be serviced. I will stay plenty warm though as the bunk heater's thermostat is broken and it just blows HOT air. I will have to run a mixture of AC to compensate for the excessive heat to try and get a better night sleep than I have gotten in the past two days. No matter what, under the circumstances, a working APU is better than nothing!
Time to make lunch and check in with you all later!
trucker's nightmare
Gonja sure was happy to be here though......he ran circles in the snow as well as making "snow dogs"!
I am having new issues with the truck as the fuel mileage keeps dropping no matter how slow I go and the heater and APU need to be serviced. I will stay plenty warm though as the bunk heater's thermostat is broken and it just blows HOT air. I will have to run a mixture of AC to compensate for the excessive heat to try and get a better night sleep than I have gotten in the past two days. No matter what, under the circumstances, a working APU is better than nothing!
Time to make lunch and check in with you all later!
Sunday, February 19, 2012
We have our first load!
It was only 3 miles from the terminal too ;) I stopped in at the drivers desk to pick up my new permit book and asked if there was a load for me in the morning. He stated there wasn't but something on the computer caught his attention, a load was ready for pickup here in Springfield. He asked if I wanted it and I told him I couldn't drive all night. He told me that I could pick it up tonight, bring it back to the terminal, and leave in the morning. Deal!
I was writing down the trip information and totally at a loss at what I should do so I asked a fellow driver for assistance. He is a trainer! He gave me his cell number and told me to call him as needed and I did! He walked me through the steps to accepting the load to what to do after I hooked up the load. This isn't even close to what I did with Werner. It took me longer than usual to get the trailer back to the yard but we did it correctly. Now I am waiting an hour before I go to sleeper, a line I never used with Werner. I just took a ten hour break on line 1, now I either do a 2 hour break on line 1 and 8 hours on line 2 (sleeper) or do a 10 hour sleeper. It is going to be an interesting month or two!
Any way, our first load is 1200 miles.....we are on our way to Utah and we needed a good run, those snow chains cost me nearly $400!
I was writing down the trip information and totally at a loss at what I should do so I asked a fellow driver for assistance. He is a trainer! He gave me his cell number and told me to call him as needed and I did! He walked me through the steps to accepting the load to what to do after I hooked up the load. This isn't even close to what I did with Werner. It took me longer than usual to get the trailer back to the yard but we did it correctly. Now I am waiting an hour before I go to sleeper, a line I never used with Werner. I just took a ten hour break on line 1, now I either do a 2 hour break on line 1 and 8 hours on line 2 (sleeper) or do a 10 hour sleeper. It is going to be an interesting month or two!
Any way, our first load is 1200 miles.....we are on our way to Utah and we needed a good run, those snow chains cost me nearly $400!
Good evening from the terminal........yes, we are still in Springfield
We are out of the hotel and officially back to work, just waiting for our 5 PM service for the snow chain rack. I dropped another $120 on anti theft locks for the truck and trailer today. On a good note, our little vacation here is paid for. I should have enough on the first check to cover part of the damage for the pet deposit. Not looking forward to the cost of chains as we have those super tires and I know those aren't cheap.
And I look forward to sleeping on this extremely soft bed (still have that memory foam topper) tonight once I get everything off of it. I informed drivers services and dispatch that I would be ready for my load at 5 AM so let's hope they will have us back on the road quickly. I need to head home so I can make room in this tea cup!
And I look forward to sleeping on this extremely soft bed (still have that memory foam topper) tonight once I get everything off of it. I informed drivers services and dispatch that I would be ready for my load at 5 AM so let's hope they will have us back on the road quickly. I need to head home so I can make room in this tea cup!
Gonja is not happy about losing his passenger seat!
The view from my bunk.......this is going to be challenging!
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