Thursday, May 5, 2022

 Left real early this morning and drove to Davenport, Iowa.  Got there before they opened.  When they opened, loaded a John Deere 624 Wheel Loader that is going to Baltimore, Maryland.

Left there and headed toward Baltimore.  Started raising shortly after entering Illinois and it rained steadily for the rest of the day.  At least it held off while I was loading, for a change.  Had a bunch of bumper to bumper traffic going around Indianapolis.  Stopped for the night at the Petro truck stop in New Paris, Ohio.

Wednesday, May 4, 2022

 Left at sunrise this morning.  Nothing interesting on the road today.  Made it to Mokena, Illinois and delivered the wheel loader.  My next load is tomorrow morning in Davenport, Iowa.  I started off that direction.  Stopped for the night at the TA in Morris, Illinois.  563 miles today.

Tuesday, May 3, 2022

 Left early this morning and got to Clayton, NC a little before they opened.  When they opened, loaded a Caterpillar 938M Wheel Loader that is going to Mokena, Illinois.  

I was out of there by 8:30 !!!  Pretty good day on the road.  A few slowdowns from construction.  Stopped for the night at the Love's truck stop in Ripley, West Virginia.

Monday, May 2, 2022

Was at the Port of Savannah when they opened this morning.  Loaded two Caterpillar CB2.7 Rollers.  One goes to Rock Hill, South Carolina, and the other to Charlotte, North Carolina.  

Was out of there by 8:30.  Delivered both rollers. My next load is in Clayton, NC.  I drove to the Petro truck stop in Mebane, NC for the night.

 After a few nice days off it is time to get back at it again.  Started off slowly.  Drove up to the TA truck stop in Richmond Hill, Georgia.  Traffic was pretty heavy on I-95 today.  Will load tomorrow morning in Savannah. 

Wednesday, April 27, 2022

 As soon as my 10 hours were up I drove back to Jacksonville.  Will be here for a few days.

Tuesday, April 26, 2022

 Left Jacksonville at 2 AM and drove down to West Palm Beach.  Delivered the mini excavator.  Left there and went over to Fort Myers and delivered the wheel loader. After that headed back north toward Jacksonville.  Did another 627 miles today and had only 15 minutes left on my clock for today when I stopped at the Flying J truck stop in Dade City, Florida.

Saturday, April 23, 2022

 Didn't sleep at all.  Left Cartersville at midnight thirty.  Drove to the Daily yard in Jacksonville, FL. Now I'm going to sleep.  The phone is off!!!

 Left very early this morning.  Had a nice day on the road until Chattanooga, TN.  17 miles of bumper to bumper traffic from west of Chattanooga all the way to I-75.  Drove 638 miles today. Stopped for the night at the TA truck stop in Cartersville, Georgia.

Thursday, April 21, 2022

 Left in the rain real early again this morning.  Drove to a John Deere dealer in Williamsport, IN, and delivered one tractor.  Got there way before they opened.  After I got the tractor off I had to wait for them to come into work to accept it.  After that, I drove up to another John Deere dealer in Kings, Illinois, and delivered the remaining tractor.  My next load was in Davenport, IA.  Went over there.  Loaded a John Deere 544P Wheel Loader that is going to Ft. Myers, Florida, and a John Deere 35G Mini Excavator that is going to West Palm Beach, Florida.

Left there and drove to the Daily terminal in Morton, Illinois for the night.  Drove 610 miles today.  Set up my TV and good 'ole DishNetwork receiver took a dump!!  This is the second time this has happened.  

 Last time they had to send me a new receiver.  I called Dish and they wouldn't do anything until that screen is there for at least four hours.  I hung up on them.  I am too tired to deal with their idiocy tonight.

Wednesday, April 20, 2022

 Left the TA real early this morning.  Just west of Baltimore my trailer developed an air leak.  I stopped at the rest area and checked it out.  Determined that I could continue on.  Instead of continuing west I went north instead and drove to the Daily yard in Carlisle, PA.  Got to the shop just before everyone came in.  When they got there they fixed my trailer right away and I was back on the road.  The rest of the day was uneventful.  Drove 598 miles today.  Stopped at the Petro truck stop in New Paris, Ohio for the night.

Tuesday, April 19, 2022

 My new paperwork didn't come in until about 11:30, their lunchtime.  I got fuel then drove over to the Port, picked up my trailer, and waited for them to come back from lunch at 1.  I was first in line when they came back.  Got checked in then waited another hour for them to tell me where to unload it.  I finally got it off my trailer.  Then went to another place in the Port to pick up my next load.  Checked in then went looking for my tractors, I was getting two.  I found the first one and brought it over to my truck.  Then went looking for the other one.  Couldn't find it so I got in the first tractor and drove around the Port looking for it.  Found it.  Took it over to my truck then went back and got the first tractor again.  Loaded them on my trailer. One is going to Williamsport, Indiana, and the other to Kings, Illinois.

It was pretty late by now so I went back to the TA for the night.

Monday, April 18, 2022

 I went to leave this morning and found that the electric cable to my trailer came loose and it got pulled out of the plug.  So I had no trailer lights.  

I sent an email to our shop then went back to bed.  When they came in they sent someone from Carlisle down to fix it.  Two hours later he got there and fixed it.  I drove to the Port of Baltimore.  When I got there I still didn't have the paperwork that I had been asking for for four days.  I had to wait some more.  It finally came in and was incomplete.  SO I had to wait more.  When the correct paperwork came in it was ten minutes after the Port guys had gone to lunch.  Union shop, they lunch from 11:30 to 1 PM.  Now I had to wait until 1 PM for them to come back from lunch.  Once they got back from lunch, I was 9th in line to get checked in.  Half an hour later I got checked in.  Then they told me that the ship has left already.  I have to start over again with other paperwork.  I waited another 2 1/2 hours for the correct paperwork but it didn't come in.  I dropped my trailer there and bobtailed over to the TA truck stop for the night.  Will try again tomorrow.

Saturday, April 16, 2022

 This morning I drove to the truck stop in Hagerstown, Maryland.  Traffic was much lighter this morning which made for a much nicer drive.

Friday, April 15, 2022

 Left before sunrise this morning.  Very uneventful day even though the traffic on I-81 was heavy. I stopped a bit earlier than I had planned.  There was a wreck 17 miles ahead with all lanes blocked and a 10 mile (and growing) back up.  I decided to stop for the night at the Pilot truck stop in Harrisonburg, Virginia.  I'll go the rest of the way in the morning. 

Thursday, April 14, 2022

 Left this morning at sunrise.  Didn't get very far.  Still didn't have my Virginia permit so I had to stop at the TA truck stop in Baileyton, Tennessee to wait. Sat there all day.  At 4:30 PM EDT, my permit finally came in.  I'll leave here in the morning and drive through Virginia.  The Port of Baltimore is closed tomorrow for Good Friday so there is no hurry.  I'll go to the Flying J truck stop in Winchester, VA for the weekend.

Wednesday, April 13, 2022

 Left Little Rock at sunrise this morning.  Pretty uneventful day on the road.  That's the way I like it.  Stopped for the night at the Petro truck stop in Knoxville, Tennessee.  My Virginia permit was ordered five days ago and it still isn't here.  If it doesn't come in soon I'll have a very short day tomorrow.

Tuesday, April 12, 2022

 Left Prescott this morning to time it so that I arrived to deliver right when they opened at 7:30.  Delivered the excavator.

Next load is at Caterpillar in North Little Rock, AR.  Went there and loaded a Caterpillar 14 Motor Grader that is going to the Port of Baltimore.

From there I went to the Rush Truck Center in Little Rock to get my windshield replaced.  They finished it this afternoon and I went over to the Petro truck stop for the night to let the glue dry.

Monday, April 11, 2022

 When the gates opened at the Port I was the first one through.  Loaded a Caterpillar 317 GC Excavator that is going up to Little Rock, Arkansas.

Left there and headed toward Little ZZRock.  On the north side of Houston, a rock flew from another truck into my windshield. 

So, after I deliver in Little Rock tomorrow I have to get it replaced.  I stopped for the night at the TA in Prescott, Arkansas.

Sunday, April 10, 2022

 As soon as my reset was finished this morning I drove over to Galveston.  I load here in the morning.

Friday, April 8, 2022

 Left before sunrise this morning.  Had no problems with traffic getting to Georgetown, TX to deliver.  On the way, I was 3 miles from the Branch Davidian compound near Waco, TX.  For those of you that don't know what that is or can't remember, CLICK HERE for more information on it.  Delivered the wheel loader.  Next load was in Galveston, TX.  Started off that way.  Very quickly I got into heavy traffic.  Then bumper to bumper near Austin.  After I got out of that I continued toward Galveston. Traffic stayed very heavy.  Several areas of bumper-to-bumper traffic from construction.  It soon became evident that I was not going to make it to Galveston in time to load.  Then came the big backup.  8 miles of stop-and-go traffic caused by a wreck.  Took forever to get through that.  Instead of going to Galveston, I headed for the Daily yard in Houston.  Hit Houston in the middle of rush hour.  LOTS of bumper-to-bumper traffic all the way through Houston.  I thought I'd never get through there!!  But I made it to the yard and will be here until Monday morning.

Thursday, April 7, 2022

 Left a half-hour before sunrise this morning.  No problems through Alabama, Mississippi, or Louisiana.  The wind really picked up this afternoon in western Louisiana and east Texas.  The truck was really buffeted a lot.  Stopped for the night at the TA truck stop in Kilgore, Texas.

Wednesday, April 6, 2022

 Left real early this morning and drove to the Port of Savannah, Georgia.  Loaded a Caterpillar 950M Wheel Loader that is going to Georgetown, Texas.

I made really good time in there and was out and on the road before 9 AM.  Had about 10 miles of bumper-to-bumper traffic south of Atlanta.  After I got through that mess, I had no other problems today.  Stopped for the night at the TA truck stop in Lincoln, Alabama.  That is right next to the Talladega Superspeedway.

Tuesday, April 5, 2022

 Was at the Port of Savannah when they opened this morning.  Delivered the wheel loader.  After that drove to the Daily terminal in Jacksonville.  Had a little work done on my trailer.  Ran a bunch of personal errands.  My next load is back at the Port of Savannah tomorrow morning.  I'll leave here early in the morning to go up there.

Monday, April 4, 2022

 Left at sunrise this morning and drove to Hope Mills and delivered the dump truck.  My next load was back in Clayton, NC.  I drove there and loaded a Caterpillar 926M Wheel loader with bucket and forks.  It is going to the Port in Savannah, Georgia. From there it is going on an ocean cruise to Bremerhaven, Germany.

Left there and headed for Savannah.  On the way passed a really cool truck fire.  Got to see a couple tires explode.  That always looks cool. The fire dept. or cops had not got there yet.  

Couldn't make it to the Port before their quittin' time (union hours) so I stopped at the Pilot truck stop in Hardeeville, South Carolina for the night.

Sunday, April 3, 2022

 I thought I'd share with you my dining experience from last night.  I went across the parking lot to a restaurant called Sadler Milestone Restaurant. 

I ordered the ribeye steak dinner which normally comes with one side and salad bar. They didn't have the salad bar that night so I was given the choice of a second side. I ordered the $15.00 (approximately) ribeye steak cooked medium, baked potato, and corn. This is what I got. 

The steak (if you really want to call it that) was WAY overcooked. The potato had the consistency of rubber. Never did get the corn. Totally inedible!!! I sent it back. I decided to order something from the breakfast menu instead. I thought that it is pretty hard to screw up breakfast. I was wrong. So I ordered three pancakes, for $5.00. It took a very long time for my order to be brought to me. This is what I got. 

I ate those, but they were small and not good!!!! Then when I went to pay my bill the server charged me $21+ !!!!! When I refused, she removed the ribeye meal from my bill. 

Needless to say, I will NEVER EVER eat there again.

Saturday, April 2, 2022

 This morning while I was getting ready to go, a truck came into the truck stop.  It stopped in the drive just past me a few trucks down.  It was experiencing a runaway engine.  For a better explanation than I could give you of what a runaway diesel engine is, click here.  Here is a YouTube video of a semi-truck with a runaway engine.  

With the morning humidity, the smoke hung real low and was so thick you could hardly see anything. When his engine finally seized up, the air cleared and I left.  Don't know if the fire department was called but I wanted to get out of there before they got there and blocked me in.  

Had a good day on the road.  No traffic issues in Baltimore, or Washington DC.  Drove down to the Pilot truck stop in Dunn, North Carolina for the rest of the weekend. I'll deliver Monday morning a little over 30 minutes from here.

Friday, April 1, 2022

 Left the truck stop in Ohio a half hour before sunrise this morning.  Most of the way through Ohio, West Virginia, Pennsylvania and the first half of Maryland was in snow.  It was more like slush falling from the sky.  Roads were just wet.  No accumulation.  Made it all the way to Baltimore and delivered the wheel loader in the mud.  The weather had improved but got real windy. Next load was at the Port of Baltimore.  Went over there and loaded a Caterpillar 730 Articulating Dump Truck that is going to Hope Mills, North Carolina.

Didn't have a spotter today so it took a little longer to load.  When that was done I went over to the TA truck stop in Baltimore for the night.  Hope the wind dies down.  This thing is like a huge sail on the trailer.  Could really feel it just going over to the truck stop.

Thursday, March 31, 2022

 Left 45 minutes before sunrise this morning.  Good day on the road today in spite of heavy traffic most of the day.  Stopped for the night after driving 588 miles, at a truck stop in Lore City, Ohio.

Wednesday, March 30, 2022

 Left real early this morning and drove to Breese, Illinois. It rained all day, hard at times. I got there before they opened.  When they got there it only took a few minutes to unload the yellow thing.  Then I drove up to Monmouth, IL.  I got stuck in their mud and had to be pulled out with one of their tractors.  Then I unloaded the tractor.  After that drove up to Davenport, Iowa and loaded a John Deere 644 Wheel Loader that is going to a dealer in Baltimore, Maryland.

Left there and drove over to the Flying J truck stop in Davenport for the night.  I was soaked to the skin, covered in greese and mud, hungry, and tired.  Would really like to find a way to keep my back from hurting so much.  Oh well, it's been that way for years.  I'll survive.  

Tuesday, March 29, 2022

 At about midnight last night, my APU shut down again.  

When my 10 hours were up, that was about 2 AM EDT, I left and drove to Springfield, Ohio. When Thermo King opened I was there to get my APU fixed.  Fortunately, they took me right in and fixed it.  The alternator went bad and had to be replaced.  After that was done I got back on the road.  Drove to the TA truck stop in Effingham, Illinois for the night.

Monday, March 28, 2022

 Left Hagerstown at 3 AM EDT and drove to the Port of Baltimore.  When they opened I unloaded the tractor.  My next load was right there and I loaded a smaller John Deere 6145M Tractor and a forklift put on a John Deere KM649PC Wind Row Pick Up.  The 649 is going to Breese, Illinois and the 6145 Tractor is going to Monmouth, Illinois.

Left there as it started to snow.  It snowed off and on the rest of the day.  No accumulation, except in Garrett County, Maryland.  Stopped for the night at the TA truck stop in Wheeling, West Virginia.

Saturday, March 26, 2022

 Left a half-hour before sunrise this morning.  Snow off and on most of the day.  No accumulation.  Roads were fine.  By the time I stopped for the rest of the weekend in Hagerstown, Maryland the sky cleared up.

Friday, March 25, 2022

 Left a half-hour before sunrise this morning.  Here is the only interesting thing today.

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

Thursday, March 24, 2022

 Snowing a bit this morning.  Light dusting on my trailer.  As soon as my 10 hours were up, I left.  Drove down to John Deere in Waterloo, Iowa. Loadded a John Deere 8RT 370 Tractor that is going to the Port of Baltimore. It is going on a cruise to Melbourne, Austrailia.

Wasn't able to leave right away.  Had to wait for permits to come in.  After about 2 hours I finally left.  Drove to the Daily terminal in Bettendorf, Iowa and had a trailer light fixed.  Then drove to the Daily terminal in Mrton, Illinois for the night.  Went to Walmart while I was there and restocked a few things.

Wednesday, March 23, 2022

 Left in the rain at 8 AM CDT to time it so that I didn't enter Kansas City before 9 AM.  Just south of Kansas City the rain changed over to snow.  The thick heavy wet snow that melts as soon as it touches anything. After a while it changed back to rain.  The rain changed back to snow again in Minnesota.  Same as before.  It was right on the verge of being rain.  Drove non-stop all the way to Minneapolis and delivered the dozer.  In the process of unloading the dozed ran over the tip of one of my trailer air lines.

I was very lucky that the mechanic there was able to replace the part quickly and that I didn't have to call someone to come out and fix it.  Left there and drove back to the Petro truck stop in Albert Lea, Minnesota.  601 miles today.  As soon as my 10 hours are up, I'm outa here.

Tuesday, March 22, 2022

 Left about an hour and a half before sunrise this morning.  I could drive at night in Texas but only on the Interstates.  Had to time it so that I exited the Interstate in Dallas at a half-hour before sunrise. I was three minutes late.  Not too shabby.  The rest of the day was pretty uneventful on up through Oklahoma and into Missouri.  Stopped for the night at the pilot truck stop in Nevada, Missouri.  I'll have a late start tomorrow.  Can't go into Kansas City until 9 AM CDT.

Monday, March 21, 2022

 Sunday morning at about midnight I drove the two hour drive to the Daily terminal in Houston, Texas. 

This morning I drove over and delivered the telehandler.  My next load was over at the Port of Galveston.  Went there and loaded a Caterpillar D5 Dozer that is going to Minneapolis, Minnesota. Of course, it was raining.

Left there and drove to the Love's truck stop in Alma, Texas for the night.  Still raining, hard at times.

Saturday, March 19, 2022

 Left at midnight.  Very uneventful day on the road.  Drove 694 miles to the Love's truck stop in Iowa, Louisianna.  That is about 10 miles east of Lake Charles.  Had only 14 minutes left on my clock for today when I stopped.

Friday, March 18, 2022

 Left Carlisle at about 1 AM EDT.  Pretty foggy this morning.  Didn't clear up until about halfway through Virginia.  Once I got to Tennessee it started raining.  Drove 595 miles to the Love's truck stop in Charleston, Tennessee.  When my 10 hours are up, I'll be back at it again.

Thursday, March 17, 2022

 They got everything done on the truck this afternoon.  Then I loaded a JLG Telehandler that was in the Daily yard here.  It is going to Houston, Texas.

Can't leave for a few hours so that the glue holding the new windshield in can dry.  Going back to sleep until then.

Wednesday, March 16, 2022

 They took my truck in the shop first thing this morning.  They worked on it all day.  Still not finished.  Tomorrow they have to put in a new windshield, get an alignment done on the truck, and do a few other things.  While they worked on the truck, I got a car and did laundry, and went to Walmart.  Very productive day.  I'll be glad to get moving again.

Tuesday, March 15, 2022

 They weren't able to get to my truck today.  I got some much needed sleep today instead. That felt great!!!  Hopefully, they will get started on it tomorrow.

Monday, March 14, 2022

 Delivered the stuff in Warfordsburg, PA first thing this morning.  Then drove up to Carlisle, PA.  Stopped and got the truck washed on the way.  There was quite a line.  It took two hours to get that done.  Will be in Carlisle for a few days.  The truck and trailer are due for routine maintenance.  The truck needs a lot done to it.

Sunday, March 13, 2022

 Only got a light dusting of snow last night.  This morning the sun was out, bright blue cloudless sky, and dry roads.  I left Ruther Glen, VA this morning at about 7 AM EDT.  Traffic was light, even though Washington DC, all the way to Hagerstown, Maryland where I stopped for the rest of the day. I'll deliver about half an hour from here first thing Monday morning.

Saturday, March 12, 2022

 At 3 AM EST, when my 10 hours were up, I left.  Rain all day.  Heavy rain and thunderstorms in North Carolina.  Very Strong crosswind from the west in North Carolina and Virginia.  Felt like I was back in North Dakota!!  Stopped at the Flying J truck stop in Ruther Glen, Virginia.  It was raining when I went in to shower.  When I came back out it had changed to snow.  

Friday, March 11, 2022

 Drove up to the Port of Savannah, GA this morning and loaded 4 pallets of parts for a very large crusher.  They are going to Warfordsburg, Pennsylvania.

It took a long time for the Port guys to get around to loading me.  When I finally got out of there I didn't go far.  Stopped at a small Pilot truck stop in Savannah, GA for my 10 hours.

Wednesday, March 9, 2022

 Took the truck over to Thermo King this morning and got the APU fixed - again.  Nexdt load is Friday in Savannah, Georgia.  I'll be here until then.

Monday, March 7, 2022

 Drove to Ocala this morning and delivered the telehandler right when they opened.  Then went back to Jacksonville.  Will be here for a couple days.

Saturday, March 5, 2022

 The battery in my pick-up truck was almost dead and the truck wouldn't start.  AAA came out and jump-started it.  Then I went and got a new battery.  Did a bunch of errands too.  Got my trailer lights fixed, again.   For comparison, here is the photo from yesterday when they didn't work...

And here is today after they got fixed...

Friday, March 4, 2022

 As soon as my 10 hours were up, I hit the road.  That was about midnight.  Great day on the road.  No traffic issues in Washington DC, or Richmond, VA.  I was following a car that was behind an oversized load transporting what looked like an older Caterpillar D6 dozer with the blade attached.  When he entered a construction zone the blade of the dozer struck the "Jersey Wall".  The outside edge of the blade was knocked off and it slid along the Interstate and went under my truck.  No damage to anything of mine, just interesting to see.

This is difficult to see.  Expand to full screen to see it better.

That was the only thing interesting today.  Stopped, because I ran out of hours, at the TA truck stop in Richmond Hill, Georgia.  As soon as my 10 are up, I'll be back out on the road.

My 10 hours were up at 9:30 PM.  I left and drove to the Jacksonville, FL Daily terminal.  Wouldn't you know it, half my trailer lights are out again!!

At least I'm here and can get them fixed tomorrow,  GOOD GRIEF!!  777 miles today.

Thursday, March 3, 2022

 As soon as my ten hours were up I left.  That was at 3 AM EST.  Drove to the Port of Baltimore and got there before they opened.  Was first in line to check in.  When the opened, I delivered the tractor.  My next load was at the Daily yard in Carlisle, Pennsylvania.  Drove up there and loaded a Caterpillar TL 1055 HRC Telehandler that is going to Ocala, Florida.  

While I was there I also loaded some supplies for the Jacksonville terminal.

After that was done, I got a few more supplies for me. Then the truck shop wanted to look at my APU.  They hooked it to the computer and found out what is wrong with it.  Just a sensor.  I already have an appointment with Thermo King in Jacksonville next week.  They said it's no big deal, and to have them fix it when I get there.  Once all that was done, I left and drove down to the TA truck stop in Greencastle, PA until my 10 hours are up.

Wednesday, March 2, 2022

 My new Ohio permit didn't come in until after 9 AM.  That put me way behind.  I left when I got it.  Met my West Virginia escort car at the state line.  When we crossed into Maryland she dropped off. Didn't need one in Maryland.  Stopped for my 10 hours at the Sunoco in Grantsville, Maryland.

Tuesday, March 1, 2022

 Much to everyone's surprise, the part came in today!  I made arrangements to have my West Virginia escort meet me tomorrow morning.  The truck was finished at 4:30 PM.  Went over and got my truck then went back to the hotel for the night.  My Ohio permit expired so I have to wait until a new one comes in before I can go.  

Monday, February 28, 2022

 This morning I sent a detailed email to the Daily shop explaining, with photos, what the truck was doing.  They made arrangements with an International shop in Richmond, Indiana to get it fixed.  Daily sent a wrecker over and towed me to that shop.  I left my trailer at the Flying J.  After the wrecker dropped the truck, the shop took it in right away.  They spent all morning working on it. At about 2 PM EST they said that they have to order a sensor and have no idea when it will get here.  Here we go again!!!  So now I'm checked into a hotel indefinitely. 

Sunday, February 27, 2022

 When I started the truck this morning to leave, this is what I was met with...

Needless to say, I didn't go anywhere.  I had an escort scheduled to meet me this morning at the West Virginia line.  Had to cancel him.  Sent an email to the head of maintenance at Daily and then talked to him on the phone.  Tomorrow morning I'll talk to Daily again and get things set up to be towed to a repair shop.