Abilene Motor Express....A New Place To Call Home

600 miles per day? Since leaving Richmond Friday morning I’ve done a tad over that. Must be because of all the new technology I have at my disposal.

 

I read this reply as I was sitting at the truck parking area just west of the Flying J in Rawlins. I got a good chuckle out of it. It brought me back to February of 1979. I was in the truckstop that people think was always a Flying J. Long before it was a J, it was Gay Johnson’s truckstop. I got my first schooling about weather and roads from an old hand that was about my age today in ‘79. Back then, if you were chained up, they let you past the exit to continue. I think it was so the CF’s could go. We were watching the TV about the road conditions and weather. I mentioned that I was going to chain up and continue west. The old man standing next to me asked me how long I’ve been driving. I told him this was my first winter in Wyoming. He told me something very poetic, that you chain to get out of a situation, not to go into one, and that if you are hunkered down, there’s no safer or better place to be. Schooling I carry to this day.

 

The only technology used by me today was the weather app and state road condition site.

 

I think there’s a total of 5 people in the office that have a CDL, the rest can’t spell CDL. I’ve been saying for years that every single planner, DM, and safety person needs to get on the truck with an experienced driver and take a trip out west, in the middle winter. Not on 40, but up across 90/94. I love when I’m questioned why I shut down. I have let 3 DM’s know, very politely, but to the point, that the reason I have 4 million accident free miles in all type of conditions, is because I listen to myself, and no one else. I also explained to one that if he didn’t approve of that decision, he was more than welcome to get on my truck and show me how it’s done.

 

I actually like the ELD’s. I’ve been on them for 13 years now and enjoy the fact that I have a Secretary in the truck doing my logs. Drivers complain about money constraints with them, I’m here to tell you that’s bull.

What I don’t like, is the industry is turning into a group of mega carriers that is able to get rules and regulations passed because of their size.

My second dislike are these convenience stores we fuel up at that happens to have a big parking lot.