Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Left the casino early this morning and went in to Denton, TX and delivered the AC sections.  Then went back up to the Daily yard in Oklahoma City and got rid of that lovely trailer and got my trailer back.  From there I drove up to Tulsa, Oklahoma and loaded a case of flight simulator parts that are going to the Port of Baltimore.



After that drove to a very small convenience store with some truck parking in Vinita, Oklahoma for the night.

Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Got up at 5 am local time.  The TA truck stop was PACKED tight.  Difficult to get around in the parking lot with all the trucks and ice.  There were also trucks lined up down the road too.  One truck got stuck in the ice trying to get out and had the road blocked.  The cops and a wrecker were there trying to get him out.  Tried to get fuel while I was there but they were out of fuel.  I managed to get out by going out the "in" and driving the wrong way down the divided road to the stop light.  

The roads were still horrible in Denton.  I got to the place at the University of North Texas where I'm delivering, and backed in off the main road.  This is what it looks like.  That ice layer is several inches thick. And yes, that is solid ice.  You could ice skate on it if you had skates.


Once I got empty I drove back to Oklahoma City to load three more sections.  Got there right at noon local time and was fifth in line.  Finally got loaded.  Was the last one they loaded today.



Left there and drove to the WinStar Casino at the Oklahoma / Texas state line on I-35.  Didn't want to go back to that TA again.  That place was a mess!!  This place is HUGE!!   Had a great dinner at the Grand Buffet.  

Monday, December 9, 2013

Monday, December 9, 2013

Went back to get loaded in OKC this morning.  Loaded three sections of an air conditioning system that are going to Denton, Texas.  After everything was secured and I had pulled out of the lot, they called and said to go back, they screwed up.  So I backed in again and they took off one of them and put another on.



Finally got out of there and drove down to Denton, Texas to the place I was to unload.  In Texas, the Interstate was in fairly good shape but once you get off the interstate the roads were a mess!!  Hadn't been plowed and no salt/sand.  Just solid ice ruts.  Anyway, there was no one there.  The job site was still shut down due to weather.  They said that they will be there tomorrow morning.  I then went over to the TA truck stop in Denton, TX for the night.  

Sunday, December 8, 2013

Sunday, December 8, 2013

Light dusting of snow this morning.  Felt an aftershock this afternoon.  I'll be glad to get moving again.

Saturday, December 7, 2013

Saturday, December 7, 2013

Pretty boring day except we had an earthquake!!!   It felt very weird.  My first experience with an earthquake that I could actually feel.  

Click here for details


Friday, December 6, 2013

Friday, December 6, 2013

The snow stopped this morning before 9 am local time.  Hard to tell from the drifting snow, but I guess we got about 4 inches.   Here is my view today.



The drain in my sink froze up so I have a sink full of water.  Other than that, very boring day. 

Thursday, December 5, 2013

Thursday, December 5, 2013

First thing this morning, so far, the weather was fine.  No precipitation yet, but still cold and windy.   Went over to the place I was to load.  Picking up three sections of an air conditioner that are going to a job site in Denton, Texas.  That is just north of Dallas. There was a truck ahead of me loading up for a trip to St. Louis.  Once he finished and got out of the way, I backed in.  The contractor at the job site called and said not to load.  They were shutting down the job site until Monday because of the storm. Fortunately, they had not started to load me yet.  They were going to pay for me to wait.  There are two other Daily trucks transporting these things down there too.  Drove back to the Daily yard in OKC and dropped my trailer.  Went to Wally World (Wal-Mart) and picked up a bit more food for the weekend.  Made it back to the Daily yard, parked and plugged in to electricity before the weather started.  Then took a nap.  Woke up to the sound of the sleet bouncing off the truck.

Apparently this is a significant weather event for this area.  The local TV stations are doing what our TV stations do when a hurricane approaches.  Wall-to-wall weather coverage with reporters all over the place showing roads and airports and saying stupid things.  By 4:30 pm local time roads were a mess.  About 1/4 inch of sleet has fallen so far covering everything in ice and temperature in the 20's.  Glad I'm parked.  Here is my view.  Lovely, isn't it?



The weather weasels are saying that we will get 4 to 5 inches of snow overnight.  By noon tomorrow it should be sunny again.  

Wednesday, December 4, 2013

Wednesday, December 4, 2013

Drove the rest of the way into Oklahoma City this morning and delivered.  Then went over to the Daily yard in Oklahoma City and changed to a flat bed trailer for my next load.  




SUPPOSED to load tomorrow morning BUT the weather is going to get very bad starting tonight with sleet and freezing rain and then snow.  Winter Storm Watch or Warning is in effect for most of the state.


I found video of the truck hitting my mirror yesterday.  Here it is.


Honestly, I don't think he even knows that he hit it.

I'll spent the night at the daily yard so I can plug in to electricity and not run the generator.

Tuesday, December 3, 2013

Tuesday, December 3, 2013

Left real early this morning.  Dreary day all day.  Slight rain, overcast, and foggy.  Stopped in Little Rock at the Petro truck stop for fuel and then parked to walk in to take a shower inside the Petro.  While I was in there someone took out the wide load mirror on the passenger side.  Fortunately that's all he got.  Of course he was nowhere to be seen.


This is not starting off to be a good month.  Stopped for the night at a truck stop in Ozark, Arkansas.  Weather Channel is saying that I'm going to be in an ice storm this weekend!!  Oh Goodie!!

Monday, December 2, 2013

Monday, December 2, 2013

After a very nice Thanksgiving holiday spent with family and friends I am back at it again.  Went to the Port in Brunswick, GA this morning and loaded an itsy-bitsy Volvo Roller.



After that went to the Port in Savannah, GA and loaded a tiny Volvo Excavator.



They are both going to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.  Left Savannah and drove to the Flying J truck stop in Temple, GA for the night.

Saturday, November 30, 2013

Saturday, November 30, 2013

The end of a horrible season!!

Final
#2 Florida State

(12-0, 8-0 ACC)
Florida

(4-8, 3-5 SEC)
@
1234T
FSU314101037
FLA00077

Saturday, November 23, 2013

Saturday, November 23, 2013

The "Muskrat" has got to go!!  No excuse for this!!!!!

Final
G Southern

(7-4, 4-4 Southern)
Florida

(4-7, 3-5 SEC)
@
1234T
GASO0713626
FLA3701020

Friday, November 22, 2013

Friday, November 22, 2013

This morning loaded a Terex RT230 crane.  Didn't go very far with it.  Took it form a job site in North Charleston, SC over to another job site at the Air Force base in North Charleston.  A whopping 10 miles!!



Delivered the crane.  Didn't have another load so I drove home.  Will be home through the Thanksgiving holiday.

Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Very easy day today.  Drive in to Columbia, SC and delivered the dozer.  Next Load is not until Friday in Charleston, SC.  Drove down to the Kangaroo Express truck stop in Summerville, SC.  I'll be here until Friday morning.

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Got a late start this morning.  Could not enter Louisville, KY this morning until after 9 am.  Timed it perfectly.  Crossed the river into Louisville exactly at 9 am.  The rest of the day was very nice.  Stopped for the night at a truck stop in Inman, South Carolina.

Monday, November 18, 2013

Monday, November 19, 2013

This morning went to Davenport and delivered the excavator.  My next load was at the Daily yard in Morton, Illinois.  Went down there and loaded a Caterpillar D6 Dozer that is going to Columbia, South Carolina.  



Aint it purdy!!!


Nice pleasant day on the road.  Stopped for the night at the TA truck stop in Seymour, Indiana.

Saturday, November 16, 2013

Saturday, November 16, 2013

Left the rest area just before sunrise this morning.  Great day on the road.  Traffic was not bad, most of the scales were closed, and I saw only two cops all day.  I like Saturdays!!  Had a little rain, nothing heavy, in Illinois.  Stopped for the weekend at the Bettendorf, Iowa Daily terminal.  Deliver a few miles from here Monday in Davenport.  It is very windy here.  Truck is rockin' real good!!!

It wasn't as bad as I expected.

Final
Florida

(4-6, 3-5 SEC)
#10 South Carolina

(8-2, 6-2 SEC)
@
1234T
FLA770014
SCAR337619

Friday, November 15, 2013

Friday, November 15, 2013

This morning left the TA very early and went to the Port of Baltimore and was one of the first in line.  Loaded a Caterpillar 329LE Excavator that is going to Davenport, Iowa.  I really enjoy driving these things!!




After securing it I had to wait for the Baltimore curfew to get over.  9 am arrived and off I went.  Great day battling the mountains along I-70, I-68, I-79, and I-70 again through Maryland, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania.  The truck worked hard but performed wonderfully.  Stopped for the night at the west bound rest area on I-70 in Zanesville, Ohio.

Thursday, November 14, 2013

Thursday, November 14, 2013

Got started right at sunrise this morning and drove to Bensalem, PA to deliver.  The stupid state of Pennsylvania routed me all over the place.  Went down and around the south side of Philadelphia only to go back up through Philly to Bensalem which is north of Philly.  Through a lot of small towns and a zillion traffic lights!! Went right past the entrance to Longwood Gardens.   Just dumb!!  Added an hour to the trip.  But I finally made it and delivered the thing.  Next load is down at the Port of Baltimore in Dundalk tomorrow morning.  Stopped for the night at the TA truck stop in Elkton, MD.

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Got a bit of a late start today because I had to wait for my Ohio permit.  Once it arrived I got started.  Very uneventful day.  Stopped for the night at the TA truck stop in Brooksville, PA.

Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Tuesday, November 12, 2013

The weather cooperated last night.  The snow stayed to the east of where I was.  Didn't get anything!!  

First thing this morning went over to load a Sandvik crusher.  Backed in off the road into a small sandy area and detached the trailer.  There were two guys there and neither one knew how to run the machine. I didn't either, and wasn't going to.  The one guy figured it out and, to make a long story short, he loaded the thing on my trailer.  But the way it was on there the machine hung over and I could not reattach.  He called someone that knew something about the machine and was told that the machine was on the trailer backwards.  He took it back off.  By now it had warmed up a bit and the once frozen ground had thawed.  Decided not to try to load again there because it was too soft.  The front of the trailer had sunk in the sand and I was unable to reattach.  Fortunately there was a wheel loader there and they lifted the trailer up enough for me to reattach.  Then I needed a push from the wheel loader to get out.  I decided that trying to load in there was not a good idea.  By now it is noon.  There was a place in there that was gravel and not sand.  Moved the trailer over there and tried it again.  (there is a lot more to this, but I won't go in to all the details)  Finally it worked!!  Got the thing up on the trailer.  Notice that there is no cab or place for a driver?  It is operated by remote control, there is no cab.



This is why I was concerned with loading in the sand.


Stopped for the night, when I ran out of daylight, at the Pilot truck stop in Ft. Wayne, Indiana.

Monday, November 11, 2013

Monday, November 11, 2013

Drove up to Milwaukee and delivered the wheel loader in the rain.  After that drove down to Sturtevant and loaded a Case 315 tractor and wheels.  Just as I finished securing it the rain changed to snow.



Since I was soaked and filthy I went back to the Petro in Racine (only one exit north) scaled and showered.  After scaling found out that I was too heavy.  Permits were only for width, not weight.  So I took the tractor up to the Daily yard in Lannon and dropped it off there.  Someone else will have to take it to Texas. My next load is tomorrow morning back down in Gary, Indiana.  I headed down to Gary.  Of course I hit Chicago right at rush hour.  Not a fun thing to do in the heavy snow.  Took two hours just to get through Chicago.

Here is Chicago on Friday.

Here is Chicago today

Finally made it down to the Petro truck stop in Gary, IN.  Weather report for Gary is up to 5 inches of lake effect snow tonight.  Not supposed to stop until noon tomorrow.

Saturday, November 9, 2013

Saturday, November 9, 2013

Left Mineral Wells, West Virginia before sunrise this morning and drove another 574 miles, stopping only twice. Finished the day at the Petro truck stop in Racine, Wisconsin.  Took a while getting through Chicago. Even on a Saturday had a lot of bumper to bumper traffic.  

Listened to the Gator game on the radio. The Gators are getting worse every week!!  Next week will be even worse when they play South Carolina in Columbia.  I really think that after this disaster of a season is over the "Muskrat" has to go!!  First loosing season in 25 years!!


Final
Vanderbilt

(5-4, 2-4 SEC)
Florida

(4-5, 3-4 SEC)
@
1234T
VAN10771034
FLA037717

Friday, November 8, 2013

Friday, November 8, 2013

Went to the John Deere plant in Kernersville, NC and delivered the excavator this morning.  Next load was down in Clayton, NC.  Went down there to the Caterpillar plant and loaded a Caterpillar 924K wheel loader and bucket.  They are going to Milwaukee, WI.



After that drove up to Mineral Wells, West Virginia to a truck stop for the night.  Drove 610 miles today.  Not too shabby!

Thursday, November 7, 2013

Thursday, November 7, 2013

This morning loaded a John Deere 245G excavator.  It is going to Kernersville, NC.



Left there and drove down to one of my favorite Petro truck stops in Mebane, North Carolina for the night.  They had a delicious prime rib buffet tonight in the restaurant.  Will deliver tomorrow morning.

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Trying something new.  As you may have seen already in the "Where Am I?" section there is a new item.  Click on "Live Tracking" and you can see where I am and where I've been.  So far it is seems to be VERY accurate.

First thing this morning went in to Linville, VA and delivered the dumpsters.  After that went up to the "home office" in Carlisle, PA and got rid of the step deck trailer and got my low boy trailer back.  While it was there they put a GPS trailer tracker on it.  It is totally separate from the new thing I am trying.


After finishing in Carlisle I drove down to the Daily yard in Baltimore, MD where I am loading an excavator in the morning.

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Went in to Odum, GA this morning and loaded a couple of dumpsters that are going up to Linville, Virginia.  Was able to get loaded real fast and out there.  



Drove, only stopping once, up to the Pilot truck stop in Harrisonburg, Virginia for the night.  Deliver a few miles from here in the morning.  

Monday, November 4, 2013

Monday, November 4, 2013

After some really great home time, I'm back at it again.  My next load is tomorrow morning in Odum, Georgia.  Swapped out of my 48 foot step deck trailer to a 53 foot step deck for this load.  Drove to a small gas station that has some truck parking in Jesup, GA.  Load about 15 minutes from here tomorrow.

Sunday, November 3, 2013

Saturday, November 2, 2013

All I can say is they did better than I expected.

AT JACKSONVILLE FL
Georgia

(5-3, 4-2 SEC)
Florida

(4-4, 3-3 SEC)
vs
1234T
UGA1760023
FLA039820