Friday, April 6, 2012

Yesterday I drove up to my brother's house to spend the weekend with him and his family. Having a very good time!!

Thursday, April 5, 2012

Got on the road at sun up. Drove in to the Port of Baltimore in Dundalk, MD to deliver. When I got there they said that they didn't have a crane operator today and that they could not unload me until Monday at 8 am. They are closed tomorrow for Good Friday. I dropped my trailer there and bobtailed over to the TA truck stop.

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Another great day on the road!!  Left Oakwood, Illinois this morning at sun up.  Met my escort at the Indiana state line.  Nice drive through Indiana.  The escort dropped off at the Ohio state line.  Don't need one in Ohio.  Picked up my next escort at the West Virginia state line.  He stayed with me around Wheeling, into Pennsylvania, and back into and through West Virginia again.  He dropped off at the Maryland state line.  Don't need one in Maryland until I get to Baltimore.  Need one in Baltimore city limits.  I am in the mountains of West Virginia and west Maryland.  It is very s-l-o-w going up with this weight.  Pulling 20 mph uphill.   I stopped at a truck stop in Grantsville, Maryland for the night.

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Left Sullivan, MO early this morning and drove to Decatur, Illinois to the Caterpillar plant.  It was packed full of trucks.  Some waiting to be loaded and others loaded and waiting on Illinois permits. There were so many trucks there that they were sending everyone to the truck stop a few miles away,  They would call them on the cell phone when they were ready for them.  At first I didn't have to go, but then I did.  I waited at the truck stop and had lunch.  As soon as I finished lunch they called and I went back in.   They loaded a chassis for a Caterpillar 785 dump truck.  The thing is huge!  It weighs 70,364 pounds.  Just to add a little perspective to it, a fully loaded semi truck weighs 80,000 pounds. This is the biggest load I have had so far. Got on the scale at the yard and my gross weight is 107,560 pounds without full fuel tanks.  I am 12 feet, 7 inches wide.

Here is a photo I got from the Internet of the truck when it has all it's parts attached.

I am taking it to the port of Baltimore in Dundalk, MD.  From there it is going on a big boat to the Ukraine.  After I got it all tied down I got on the road and drove to Oakwood, Illinois to a truck stop there for the night.  My Indiana escort will meet me first thing in the morning at the state line a few miles away from here.

Monday, April 2, 2012

Went over and delivered first thing this morning.  I was number 5 in line.  Fortunately the line went pretty quick.  The place I delivered was huge!  There were several hundred blades, towers, and hubs already there.  I shot some video of the hub being unloaded from my trailer by the crane.  As you watch the video, notice how long it takes the hub to come up off the trailer deck after he starts to lift it.  The arch returns to the trailer and it comes up 5 inches.  You can hear the air filling the airbags as it is going up.

After I got empty headed toward Little Rock, Arkansas for my next load.  Got just outside Joplin, Missouri when I found out that the load fell through.  Have another one for me in Decatur, Illinois.   Stopped at the Petro truck stop in Joplin, MO and ate and showered.  Then got back on the road.  drove up to Sullivan, MO to the Flying J truck stop for the night.