Monday, October 11, 2010

Delivered the PVC Pipe this morning in Bellevile, MI.  Then drove over to Napoleon, MI for my next load.  On the way went right past the Michigan International Speedway.

This is a very light load. It is a bus shelter going to Charleston, SC.

The foliage in Michigan was better than in New York. The colors were a lot brighter.  Tried to get a few photos of them.  Again, the photos don't do it justice, but you get the idea.

While on the road I went through Canton, Ohio.  The home of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. This time I got a better photo of it.

Stopped for the night in Jonesville, North Carolina after driving 700 miles exactly. Oh, by the way, the new camera that looks at the load works great!!

Saturday, October 9, 2010

Drove over to Monroe, MI this morning.  Deliver just up the road from here Monday morning.  Will be here at the TA truck stop for the rest of the weekend.

This afternoon I finally had time to install the camera I bought at the truck show in Dallas.  It faces to the rear so I can keep an eye on the load.

Friday, October 8, 2010

Drove up to Kirkwood, NY for my next load.  A bunch of PVC Pipe going to Belleville, MI.

After getting loaded up I drove through the finger lakes region of New York state.  The fall leafs are gorgeous.  Tried to take some photos for you but they definitely don't do it justice.  But here are a few anyway.

Stopped for the night in Kingsville, Ohio at the TA truck stop.

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Delivered this afternoon in Olyphant, PA.  Got there a day early!  Wasn't supposed to be there till tomorrow morning.  I love it when I can do that.  At the Petro Truck Stop in DuPont, PA for the night.  That's just south of Scranton.  They have good food here.  Had the buffet for lunch.  Salad, roast pork & gravy, mashed potatos, corn, dinner roll, chicken pot pie, chocolate chip cookies, and jello.  Full tummy feels good!!

Wednesday, October 6, 2010

Delivered the plastic mats to a park right in the middle of down town Atlanta.  After that drove up to Marietta, GA for my next load.  Picked up 4 rolls of steel.  42,000 pounds.  They are going up to Olyphant, PA.  That's just a little bit north of Scranton.

While on the road went past a semi truck on fire.  It was cooking good.  No fire trucks there yet.  Unable to get any photos of it unfortunately. 

Drove to Roanoke, VA and spending the night at the TA Truck Stop.

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Drove down to Rockledge, FL for my next load.  Picked up 8 pallets of plastic portable deck flooring mats.  Light load this time.  Only 23,500 pounds.  They are going to Atlanta, GA.  Drove up to Jackson, GA for the night.  Deliver in the morning.

Monday, October 4, 2010

This morning they installed the 2 new storage boxes on the trailer.  One on each side.  Boy am I glad to have those!!  I really needed storage space.

Friday, October 1, 2010

Delivered in Ocala this morning then went to Seville and dropped off this trailer.  Glad to get rid of that one.  Didn't like it.  Then went to Orlando and picked up my trailer.  It is all fixed.  Then went back to Seville.  Had my truck DOT inspected in Seville and they did more work on the trailer.  Got 8 brand new tires on it.  Monday they are installing 2 storage boxes on it.  Spent the weekend with mom. 

Thursday, September 30, 2010

Drove from Clanton, AL down to Ocala, FL.  Nothing exciting.  Deliver this stuff tomorrow morning.

Wednesday, September 29, 2010 part 2

Picked up my load in Batesville, MS.  Got there at 6 pm.  They didn't start loading me till 8:30.  I didn't leave there till almost midnight.  It is some stuff that they put in old or broken underground pipes, expand them, then fill with resin.  It hardens and basically makes new pipe without having to dig.  Drove down to Clanton, AL and spent the night at the Love's Truck Stop.

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Got my next load. Picks up in Batesville, MS tonight at 6 pm.  Delivers in Ocala.  How about that ???

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Delivered the trees this afternoon in Madison, MS (just north of Jackson, MS) to a shopping center complex that is being built.  Too late in the afternoon to get another load so I went to the Love's Truck stop in Canton, MS for the night.

Monday, September 27, 2010

Drove up to Orlando to get the trailer fixed.  Thought it was going to be a quick welding job on the broken weld on the cross member.  NOPE!!  When the "trained eye" got under there and looked around he found a whole lot more broken welds and a lot wrong with the trailer.  Going to almost have to rebuild the underside of the trailer.  It will take several days of work to fix it.  Soooo   I dropped off the trailer and went to Seville and picked up another trailer.  I don't like this one as much.  Be glad to get the other back.  Then went to Crescent City and picked up 23 trees going to Jackson, MS. Took forever to get loaded. Finally got on the road and drove up to Marianna, FL to spend the night.

Friday, September 24, 2010

Drove down to Doral, FL and delivered the pipe.

While I was unloading my APU started acting up.  After I got empty I drove to Riviera Beach Thermo King and got it fixed.  The fuel pump went out so it was replaced.  Those things are expensive!!! Now it works great.

Monday morning I have an appointment in Orlando to have the trailer fixed.  There are very few truck stops in Orlando and the only one close to where I'm going charges to park there.  I am spending the weekend at the Flying J in Ft. Pierce.  I'll drive to Orlando Monday morning.

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Drove down to Vero Beach to the TA Truck stop for the night.  Found another broken weld on the trailer.  Also noticed that the trailer has a bend in it where it is supposed to be straight.  In the photo of the trailer below, look along the side of the trailer.  That edge is supposed to be straight.  Have an appointment Monday in Orlando to have it re-welded and the trailer aligned.

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Dropped off the fluid load this morning in Raceland, LA then went up to Port Allen, LA for my next load.

46,000 pounds of gas pipe going to Doral, FL.  That's in Miami. 

After I got loaded I drove to Robertsdale, AL and stopped at the Oasis Truck Stop for the night.  While there I got my oil changed.  While that was being done I found a chunk was out of one of my trailer tires.  The cords were visible.  Lucky that didn't blow on the road!!  Got that fixed too.

While that was being fixed there was a bit of excitement at the truck stop.

Don't know what happened except they took someone out of the sleeper of the black truck in front of the cop car and took him to the hospital.

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Delivered the coal to a water treatment plant that is being built.  Apparently they use that stuff in the water filtration system.  After that went into Houston for my next load. 

Picked up 18 containers with some sort of fluid in them that is used in oil well drilling. Each container holds 265 gallons for a total of 4770 gallons.  There is a huge difference in transporting solid stiff that is tied down vs. liquid stuff.  The containers are tied down but the liquid still moves around while going down the road.  Every turn makes the truck want to roll over if you do it too fast (of course I don't) and when stopping that 40,000 pounds of fluid wants to keep going.  It feels totally different to drive this load.  Its interesting to watch the truck when I stop & get out.  The truck is still rocking back & forth a little.  This stuff is going to Raceland, LA.  Only drove 445 miles today.  Stopped at the Petro Truck Stop in Egan, LA for the night.

Monday, September 20, 2010

Spent a great weekend in Kingsland.  The time just flew by.  Got back on the road again early this morning.  Stopped in Gulfport, Mississippi to have my APU repaired.  It started acting up at 3:30 in the morning Saturday.  Just a broken wire.  Had it serviced too while I was there. After that I continued on to Lafayette, Louisiana to spend the night at the TA Truck Stop. Drove 716 miles today.

Saturday, September 18, 2010

Drove the rest of the way down to Kingsland, GA to spend the weekend there.

Friday, September 17, 2010

Went to Wilkes-Barre, PA and picked up my next load.  It is 23 bags of anthracite.  If you want to know what that is, click on this link:                    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthracite 
Each bag is 2000 pounds  (1 ton).  Taking them to Crosby, Texas.  Going the long way so I can spend some time in Kingsland, GA this weekend.  After I got my load I got on the road and drove 656 miles down to Florence, SC and stopped at the Flying J Truck Stop for the night.

Thursday, September 16, 2010

Got my A/C fixed this morning. Fortunately nothing major. My next load is tomorrow morning in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.  Drove to the Petro in Scranton, PA to spend the night.

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Drove 511 miles from Ohio to Edison, New Jersey and delivered my load.  As I entered NJ on I-80 my air conditioner started to get warmer.  I stopped in a rest area and looked under the hood.  Looked like the A/C compressor blew a seal and dumped all the refrigerant.  Wonderful!!  I found a place in Edison that can fix it, but not until tomorrow.  The allowed me to park in their lot overnight.

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Not much exciting today.  Drove through Chicago and past Wrigley Field.  The Chicago skyline was gorgeous this morning in spite of all the bumper to bumper traffic. Stopped for the night after driving 710 miles at the rest area on the Ohio Turnpike (Interstate 80) in Vermilion Valley, Ohio.  Ohio Turnpike has the best rest areas in the country. Lots of well lite parking, large food court with lots of variety, large clean restrooms, free showers, truckers lounge, and there are hook ups for RVs in the RV parking area.  If only the rest of the country would do that!!  Web site:   http://www.ohioturnpike.org/travelers/service_plaza/

Monday, September 13, 2010

Drove over to Butterfield, MN and delivered the pipe.  Then drove to Fridley, MN for my next load.  Picked up 16 steel castings going to Edison, NJ for a rock crusher machine .  45,410 pounds.  These things go inside the rock crushing part.  The crusher pushes the rocks up against these things in order to crush the rocks.  Because of that these things wear out pretty quick and need to be changed out.  Didn't get very far after loading.  Stopped for the night at the TA truck stop in Hudson, Wisconsin.

Friday, September 10, 2010

Picked up my load of PVC Pipe in Calvert City, KY.

Then got on the road heading for Butterfield, MN.  On the way through St. Louis, MO I passed this goofy thing.

Drove 710 mles and stopped for the weekend in Albert Lea, MN.

Thursday, September 9, 2010

Went and got my trailer put back together this morning.  They did a very good job.  Then went up to Nashville, TN and delivered the trees.  Went and got fuel, food, and a shower.  Then drove up to Kuttawa, KY for the night.  I pick up my next load tomorrow morning in Calvert City, KY.  It is PVC pipe going to Butterfield, MN.

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Went to Crescent City, FL and picked up my next load.  42 trees going to Nashville, TN

I left and headed for Nashville.  When I got up to the Cartersville, GA area on I-75 I had another driver tell me that my tail lights were not working.  I stopped at a TA truck stop to get them fixed.  While looking under the trailer we both saw that the rear plug for the lights was unplugged.  Also noticed that the line was real tight.  Continued to look around to see why the line was so tight all of a sudden and found that one of the cross members of the trailer had broken off and was hanging by the electrical line and the air lines to the trailer breaks.  That's not a good thing. They couldn't re-weld it there but told me about a place just down the road that could do it in the morning. Pushed it back up & zip tied it in place then plugged in the lights. I parked for the night there.

right (passenger's) side facing the rear

left (driver's) side facing the rear

Tuesday, September 7, 2101

Delivered the truck bodies in Deland.  My next load is tomorrow in Crescent City.  Its a truck load of trees.

Friday, September 3, 2010

Drove down to Seville, FL to our yard and parked the truck for the weekend. Mom met me there and I'm spending the weekend with her.  I deliver this load Tuesday morning in Deland.

Thursday, September 2, 2010

Got my next load this morning.  Three truck old truck bodies that I'm taking to Deland, FL.

Then I drove 506 miles down to Kenly, NC for the night. Went over the Delaware Memorial Bridge on the way.

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Had a broken front shock so I went and had both front shocks replaced.  Then I drove down to Shrewsbury, NJ where I'm picking up my next load tomorrow morning.  On the way I detoured through Kinnelon.  I stopped at Lakeside Deli and got lunch then stopped in the parking lot of Kinnelon Fire Dept. Company 2 (my old fire dept.) and ate it.  While I was there one of the firefighters stopped by so I went in and talked with him for a while.  The place is a mess. All run down, no one is really taking care of it.  The trucks still look great though.  He showed me the plans for the new station they are fixin' to build.  It will be gorgeous.  Two stories high and three bays. It will be built in the empty lot next to the current location.  When its finished they will tear down the old building and make a parking lot out of it.  Our old house looks great.  Wasn't able to get a photo unfortunately, no place to stop.

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Got back on the road early.  Drove from Emporia, VA up to Norwich, CT (656 miles) and delivered the panels at a US Food Distributor warehouse. They are building an addition to the building.  I spent the night at the job site.

Monday, August 30, 2010

Delivered used insulated panels in the morning and reloaded right there with 4 brand new bundles going up to Norwich, CT. 

Had to get a DOT physical done before Sept. 3, when my current one expires, so I dropped the trailer after securing the load and tarping the load. Drove to Quick Care in Deland and got that done.  Then went and got my trailer and took off for Norwich.  It was about 2:30 in the afternoon when I left.  There were quite a few other trucks loading up for the same place when I loaded but they were all gone when I came back.

Drove up to Emporia, VA and stopped for the night after driving 655 miles.

Sunday, August 29, 2010

Drove to Deland, FL.  Parked the truck where I was delivering Monday.  Mom met me and we spent Sunday afternoon together while I did my laundry. I really enjoy our time together.  Then went back to the truck for the night.