Left at sunrise this morning and drove to Charlotte, NC, and delivered the excavator. Next load was up in Kernersville, NC. Drove up there and loaded a John Deere 130 Excavator a day ahead of schedule. It is going up to Rochester, New York.
Left there and drove to the Flying J truck stop in Mt. Airy, NC. It is also known as Mayberry from the Andy Griffith Show.
I was awake at midnight but didn't leave until 3 am. Drove to the Port of Baltimore. Glad I got there early, by the time I got checked in there were at least 20 trucks lined up to check in. Got unloaded pretty quick. Then reloaded with a Caterpillar 320 Excavator that is going to Charlotte, North Carolina.
Thought you might like a better photo of how this tractor sits on the trailer. Has to be perfect loading and unloading.
Left before sunrise this morning. Had to time it so that I didn't get to West Virginia before sunrise. I arrived at WV at sunrise and my pilot escort car was there waiting for me. He fell in behind me and we continued on. Once we got to Maryland on I-68 he dropped off and I continued on. Stopped for the rest of the weekend at a truck stop in Hagerstown, Maryland.
My escort car was right on time this morning and we left a half-hour before sunrise. Nice easy drive today. East of Indianapolis we got snow flurries. After a while, it intensified and snowed hard. Enough to start to accumulate. As soon as we got to Ohio the snow stopped. Weird!!! My escort car dropped off and I continued on through Ohio. Stopped for the night at the Pilot truck stop in Belmont, Ohio. Have to have another escort car in West Virginia. I'll meet him at the state line on I-470 in Wheeling tomorrow at sunrise.
Loaded a John Deere 9520RX Tractor that is going on an ocean cruise from the Port of Baltimore.
Left Morton, Illinois at midnight. Drove to Omaha, Nebraska, and got there a few minutes before they opened. Gave me just enough time to get all but 2 chains off. Went in and delivered the thing. Next load is in Waterloo, Iowa at the John Deere plant. Drove back there. Arrived with only 3 minutes left on my clock. 700 miles on the button today. I'm a bit tired sooooo good night.
Slept some more today. Also went to Wal-Mart and did a couple loads of laundry. I'll be back on the road again at about midnight CDT.
As soon as my 10 hours were up, I left. That was about 1 AM. I didn't realize that my 70 hour clock was running out. That meant that I only had about 6 hours available today. So I drove to the Daily terminal in Morton, Illinois. Going to get some sleep and figure out when I can go again when I wake up.
I left Binghamton, NY at about 1 AM. Drove to Carlisle, PA, and got the truck washed. Then continued on to McConnellsburg, PA to the JLG plane and loaded a JLG Telehandler that is going to Omaha, Nebraska.
Left about 12:30 AM and drove the rest of the way to Clifton Park, New York, and delivered the wheel loader. My next load is tomorrow in Mc Connellsburg, Pennsylvania. I headed that way. Stopped at the TA truck stop in Binghamton, NY for my 10 hours and to get a bad air leak fixed on the truck. The repair shop here was great! Got me in right away and fixed the problem fast. Another 625 miles today. No food here so Grub Hub is delivering a pizza to me. Then it is to bed so I can start as soon as my 10 are up. Good night.
Left around 3 am, when my 10 hours were up. Nothing exciting. No traffic problems today. Drove 616 miles to the TA truck stop in Barkeyville, Pennsylvania. As soon as my 10 hours are up, I'll be out of here!! that should be around midnight. Trying to deliver tomorrow.
Left early this morning and drove to my first stop in Clinton, Illinois. Delivered the smaller tractor. Then drove to Pleasant Hill, Illinois, and delivered the rest of the stuff. Next load is waiting for me at the Daily Express terminal in Bettendorf, Iowa. Went up there and loaded a John Deere 624 Wheel Loader and its bucket and forks. They are going to Clifton Park, Ney York.
I stayed there for the night. Will leave in the morning.
Left before sunrise this morning. Very uneventful day today. Drove to the Love's truck stop in Pittsboro, Indiana for the night.
Went over to the Port first thing this morning. Was first in line. Unloaded the tractor then loaded two tractors and a set of tires that are going to Illinois. The smaller of the two tractors is going to Clinton, Illinois. The other tractor and its tires are going to Pleasant, Hill, Illinois.
Nothing today. Just sitting here waiting for the Port to open Monday. BUT I meant to put this in here the other day and forgot to do it. Here is my scale for this tractor. I could not have been more perfect on it.
Nothing exciting today. Left at 3 am and drove the 305 miles to the TA truck stop in Baltimore, Maryland for the rest of the weekend.
This morning I left at about 2:30 am. Stopped at the Love's truck stop for fuel and had to replace a pigtail on my trailer tail light. Also replaced a side marker light that was out. Then it was back on the road to Mason City, Iowa where I delivered the crane parts. The damaged part was not a problem. The next load was over in Waterloo, Iowa at the John Deere plant. On the way over I got a message that my trailer was due for service. So we made arrangements for that to be done at the Daily Express terminal in Bettendorf, Iowa after I got loaded. In Waterloo, Loaded a John Deere 8RX 340 tractor that is going on an ocean cruise from the Port of Baltimore.
They are my favorite tractor to drive. Left there and drove to the terminal in Bettendorf and got the trailer serviced. Stayed there for the night. I Will get started around midnight or whenever I wake up after my 10 hours are up. Good night!!!
Last night I got an email that said my truck was due for an oil change, etc. I got up at midnight and went to the shop at the TA to get it done. Once they got into it and drained all the oil they realized that they didn't have the filters for it. They called a few places that were open at that hour but no one had them. The only option was to wait until tomorrow morning so they could try to find them and get them to the TA. That was not a good option. I had them put the old filter back on and fill it with oil so I could go. They did. I left there and continued my trek north. Had no problems with traffic in Oklahoma City or Kansas City. It was really windy though. When I stopped for the night at a small truck stop in Winston, Missouri I found that the wind had blown over the hose reel at the back of the trailer. Fortunately, it didn't damage the reel, just the mounting bracket it was in. I took a bunch of photos, tied it down with more straps, and sent all the information to Risk Management at Daily.
We will see what they say at delivery tomorrow. I'm only a little over three hours away. Good night.
Went into Houston first thing this morning and loaded six parts of a crane. 3 counterweights, a jib, a hook block, and a hose reel. They are going up to Mason City, Iowa.
Left a half-hour before sunrise this morning in heavy fog. Drove the rest of the way to Sinton to a job site and delivered the thing. My next load is tomorrow up in Houston, but I have to swap trailers first. Went to the Daily yard in Houston and swapped into my next trailer. That's a lot of work!!! Doesn't seem like it, but it is!!!! After that was done I went to Wal-Mart and refilled my prescriptions. Then over to the TA truck stop in Baytown for fuel and a shower. On the way back to the Daily yard I stopped for dinner. Just after I ordered, I got a phone call from Daily. They assigned me the wrong trailer. I had to swap into a different one. After I finished dinner I went and swapped into the next trailer. Now I'm totally wiped out!!!! Going to bed, good night.
Left a half-hour before sunrise this morning. Went past a bad wreck in Lufkin, TX. A semi that was pulling doubles had crashed and burned. It was quite a mess. Fortunately, it was on the northbound side and I was going south. Continued on down into Houston where they were doing road repairs and had traffic backed up pretty bad. They had 6 lanes merge into 2. What a mess!!!! After that, it was smooth sailing down to Refugio, TX where I'll be until Monday morning.
Left at sunrise this morning. Very uneventful day on the road. Drove to the TA Truck Stop in Nacogdoches, Texas for the night.
This morning when I went to leave I had been blocked in by three trucks. It took a half-hour of backing up and "wiggling" between them to get out. Believe me, it wasn't easy!!! By 2:30 am I was pulling out of the parking lot and on my way, damage-free of course. Made good time until I got to Nashville. Just west of Nashville my permit routed me on a wicked set of back roads. It was slow going. That added an extra hour to my travel times today.
About an hour after I got back on I-40 traffic came to a standstill. Road construction. It took an hour to go 7 miles!!!! Once I got past that mess I continued on into Arkansas. Stopped for the night at the TA truck stop in Earle, AR. While doing my post-trip inspection found that a mud flap had fallen off my truck sometime today. Have no idea where. It was there this morning. Checked in at the repair shop to have it replaced. They were backed up so it took a long time before they were able to do the work.
Left a half-hour before sunrise this morning. Drove to Broadview Heights, Ohio and delivered the Excavator. Next load was down in New Philidelphia, Ohio. Drove down there and loaded a Gradall XL5210 that is going down to Sinton, Texas.
Left there in real good time. Was just able to beat the Cincinnati curfew when I stopped for the night at the Flying J truck stop in Walton, Kentucky. I'll leave here as soon as my 10 hours are up.
Left Baltimore this morning. Had to time it so that I didn't get to York, PA before 9 am. I did good. I entered York at 9:01 am. Had a nice day on the road going through the Pennsylvania mountains. Stopped for the night at the Petro truck stop in Girard, Ohio. Will deliver tomorrow morning.
Left this morning and drove to Upper Marlboro, Maryland and delivered the dump truck. Next load was up at the Port of Baltimore. Drove up there and loaded a Caterpillar 325 Excavator that is going over to Broadview Heights, Ohio.
Left there but didn't go far. Stopped at the TA truck stop in Baltimore for the night.
Easy day. Drove to the Flying J truck stop in Ruther Glen, Virginia. Will be here until Monday morning.
Left at 3 am this morning and drove to Savannah, Georgia and loaded a Terex TA300 Dump Truck that is going up to Upper Marlboro, Maryland.
Got out of there a little after 9 am. Drove to the Petro truck stop in Kenly, North Carolina for the night. Went inside to get my dinner, picked it up and when I got to the truck found that of the 2 items I ordered they got them both wrong. Had to go back in and try again. After dinner, I did three loads of laundry. Then replaced a couple flags. While replacing the flags, found two lights on my trailer were out. My tag light was an easy fix. The other had a corroded plug so that had to be replaced as well. Once all that was done I hit the sack. I'll start at sunrise tomorrow morning. Good night.
Was up and at it again at 1 am. Just west of Knoxville I got a flat on one of my trailer tires. I was able to get it to the Petro truck stop in Knoxville. Got the tire fixed and was back on the road again. Drove the rest of the way to Charlotte, NC and delivered the excavator. Then hightailed it out of there and down to the Flying J truck stop in Rock Hill, SC for the night. Got there with only 10 minutes left on my "electronic baby sitter". I load tomorrow morning in Savannah, GA. Good night.
As soon as my 10 hours were up I left and drove the rest of the way to Jonesboro, Arkansas. Loaded a Caterpillar 330FL Excavator that is going to Charlotte, North Carolina.
As soon as my 10 hours were up I left. Drove to Cushing, Oklahoma. Went to a tank farm that they were expanding. This place was a very difficult place to get into and out of. On the map, it looked like it was no problem, but in reality, it was a nightmare!! I have no idea how they got all the materials in there to build everything. Anyway, I got there right at 6:30 am. Had to wait for the crane to get there. It arrived at about 9:30. Then we had to go do their COVID stuff. After that over to get a safety briefing and vehicle pass. Once all that stuff was done the crane went in and got set up. The area was all the way around back. Very tight getting in. Every turn I had to back up a couple times to make it around the corner. It was like that on all the roads getting in and out too. Once I got to the crane, they attached the rigging to the genset. Then waited. The "safety" guys at the job site didn't like the rigging. Honestly, I didn't either. So they disassembled everything and started over. To make a very long story short, they finally got the correct rigging attached and lifted the genset off and placed it where it will live for the rest of it's life. All that took over 7 hours. Then I had to back out. I did and got myself turned around and made my way to the entrance that I went in. It was the only one. I tried to get out multiple times but couldn't make it around the corner. They had to remove a pole so I could get out. To make another very long story short, it took an hour to get to a main road. At one point I had to back up 3/4 mile because the road was closed and nowhere to turn around. By the time I got down to I-40, I had run out of hours. Had to go on "Personal Conveyance" to get to the closest truck stop. I stopped at the Love's truck stop in Seminole, Oklahoma. This place was so small. It only had about 6 truck parking places. I was lucky to get one. Wiggled my way into it and settled in for my 10 hours. As soon as they are up, I'm outa here!! Heading to Jonesboro, Arkansas to load in the morning.
Went the rest of the way into Corpus Christi this morning and delivered the machine. Next load was over in Seguin, TX. Went over there and loaded a Caterpillar Genset that is going up to Cushing, Oklahoma.
Left there and hit the road. Saw a 3 car crash happen right in front of me in Austin. Then passed another crash south of Waco. Then in Waco passed a rollover that was blocking 2 of the 3 lanes. Stopped for the night at the TA truck stop in Hillsboro, Texas. Will get started again as soon as my 10 hours are up. Good night.
I left Hammond, LA last night at 10:30 pm. Had a couple places of bumper-to-bumper traffic from road construction in Louisianna. Other than that, smooth sailing all night. Stopped in Baytown. TX and got the truck washed. There was no line at all. Yesterday, in Hammond, the truck wash had a line of 20 trucks. They were lined up from the wash bays out of their driveway, through the truck stop parking lot, and out to the road. I try to get my truck washed in the middle of the night to avoid those long lines. I continued on down to a truck stop in Refugio, Texas where I'll sit until Monday morning.
Left Knoxville, TN at 10:30 last night. I love being able to drive at night!! I was able to beat most of the rain the was moving through. Drove to the Petro truck stop in Hammond, Louisiana for the day. Going to sleep now. Phone is off again. Good night.
Left at 3 am this morning. Very nice uneventful day on the road. Drove to the Petro in Knoxville, Tennessee. Got there a little after noon. Going to sleep now. The phone is off. Good night.
My truck was FINALLY finished this morning. Went up to Harrisburg and picked it up. Then back to the hotel to check out and then to Daily to get my trailer. My next load was in Bedford, Pennsylvania. I drove up there. I was the last truck they loaded today. I was their 22nd. They were busy today!! Loaded a JLG Boom Lift that is going down to Corpus Christi, Texas.
Left there but didn't go very far. Stopped for the night at the TA truck stop in Breezewood, PA.
We got another 4 inches of snow today.
Other than that, I'm still sitting here in this hotel bored out of my mind!!!! Have no idea when my truck will be done.
Yesterday morning we got about 3 inches of snow. My truck is finished at the Daily truck shop but it had to go to International in Harrisburg for the rest of what needs to be done. Because of the bad weather, Pennsylvania had put in place travel restrictions for big trucks. That meant it couldn't go.
Last night we got more snow. Travel restrictions were still in place. Just before noon, the restrictions were lifted and my truck went to International. It will be there all weekend. That means I'll be in the hotel at least until Monday. Yuck!!! I'm so bored!!!!
The weather cooperated. It rained overnight but it did not freeze. The temperature actually went up. I went over to the Port of Baltimore very early this morning. Was first in line to check in to unload. Once they opened, I was able to unload. Got out of there in really good time. Drove up to the "home office" in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Have several things that need to be repaired on the truck. The shop manager said I should get a hotel, so I did. So I'll be here until the truck is ready.
Because My load was only overweight and not wide, long, or tall I could run at night in all states. As soon as my 10 hours were up I left. That was about 2:30 am. Pushed it real hard to try to deliver today. No problems with the weather or traffic. Made it all the way to the Port of Baltimore in Dundalk, Maryland. 587 miles. They were closed today. UNIONS!!!! It is amazing that anything gets done at that Port. 4 day weekend for President's Day. Absolutely ridiculous!!! So I turned around and went to the TA truck stop in Baltimore. Will be here until Tuesday when they decide to go back to work.
Went over to John Deere in Davenport this morning and loaded a John Deere 772G Motor Grader that is going to the Port of Baltimore.
Left there in fairly good time. Drove to the Flying J truck stop in Spiceland, Indiana for the night.
As soon as my 10 hours were up I was back on the road. Left the Flying J at about 1:45 am. The weather held off all the way through Kentucky except for a little snow in the Louisville area. I got real lucky!!! I beat all that nasty weather. Drove straight up to Elmhurst, Illinois and delivered the wheel loader. My next load is tomorrow in Davenport, Iowa. I drove to the Iowa 80 truck stop in Walcott, Iowa for the night. 670 miles today!! Not too shabby!!!! My APU quit working!! Looks like the alternator went out. Great!! Have to idle the truck until I can get it fixed. It's always something.
Went over to Clayton this morning. Loaded a Caterpillar 938M Wheel Loader that is going to Elmhurst, Illinois.
Got out of there in real good time. Spent the rest of the day in the mountains of North Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia. Stopped for the night at the Flying J truck stop in Catlettsburg, Kentucky. Going to sleep REAL early. Good night.
This is what is in store for me tomorrow. Goodie!!!!
This morning went to the Port of Savannah and loaded a Caterpillar 326 Excavator. It did not have the boom on it but had the counterweight on the back. No weight on the front of it, all in the back. This made it extremely tipsy!! It constantly wanted to roll over backward. Getting it up on the trailer was fun too!! Since half of the tracks were hanging off the side, it had to go up perfectly so that it didn't fall off the trailer. Oh, did I mention that I had to do it backward? Yup, had to back it up there. As you can see, I made it.
Left there and drove up to West Columbia, South Carolina, and delivered it. Much easier coming off the trailer. Saw LOTS of NASCAR trucks heading to Daytona Beach for Speed Weeks. Next load is tomorrow morning in Clayton, North Carolina. Drove to the Petro truck stop in Kenly, NC for the night.
This morning drove up to the TA truck stop in Richmond Hill, GA. Load in the morning at the Port of Savannah.
Sorry, I was a bit late posting, but I was a little "under the weather" for a few days. My next load is Monday morning in Savannah, GA. I'll head that way on Sunday.
Drove to Port Wentworth, GA first thing in the morning and delivered the boxes. Then drove home to Jacksonville, FL. Have to get my tax stuff sent off.
About mid-morning I drove a couple hours down to the Love's truck stop in Richmond Hill, Georgia. Unload not too far from here tomorrow morning. Unloading appointment at 9 am.
Got up at midnight. Was on the road by 1. I-64 in Kentucky was closed at exit 35. I got off before there and routed myself around the closure. Only lost about 5 minutes instead of the potential hours. Other than that, nice day on the road. Traffic was minimal. Drove 629 miles to the Flying J truck stop in St. George, South Carolina. Got some breakfast and now off to bed. Good night.
My loading appointment wasn't until 1:30 this afternoon. But I went up to Lafayette, IN early. I was lucky and got loaded early. Loaded a Caterpillar C175 Engine and a couple parts boxes that are going to Port Wentworth, Georgia. I was out of there at 12:30.
Left there and drove to the TA truck stop in Seymour, Indiana for the night. This is a legal load (doesn't require permits) so I can drive at night. I'm going to bed now so I can start as soon as my ten hours is up. That is right around midnight. Phone is off.
Didn't get much snow last night. Left a half-hour before sunrise this morning. Drove the rest of the way to Indianapolis. The City of Indianapolis required two escort cars. So they met me on the exit ramp and we traveled the 3 miles to my destination. I delivered the chiller. My next load is tomorrow morning in Lafayette, Indiana. I drove to the TA truck stop in Whitestown, IN for the night. I was able to get my laundry done this afternoon. Worked out real well. But boy am I tired!!! Going to sleep early tonight.
Left at sunrise this morning. Light rain all day. When I got to Missouri it changed to wet snow. Didn't stick, it was too wet. As I got farther north the snow wasn't as wet. Was sticking to the grass but not the roads. In Illinois, it snowed a lot more. Still didn't stick to the roads. The road department was out in force with the salt trucks. Stopped for the night at the TA truck stop in Mt. Vernon, Illinois. Yup, still snowing. Should be stopping soon.
Left a half-hour before sunrise this morning. Nothing interesting today. Several areas of bumper to bumper traffic from construction. Other than that, an uneventful day. Stopped for the night at the TA truck stop in Prescott, Arkansas.
Went to the Port of Galveston this morning. It took over an hour to get checked in. What a pain in the butt!! But after I finally got checked in I delivered the skidder. Next load is in San Antonio, TX. I drove over there and loaded a Johnson Controls Chiller that is going to Indianapolis, Indiana.
Left there and drove to the TA truck stop in New Braunfels, TX for the night.
