CDL in hand... Now What ? Decision time, that's what...

At a TA off I-75 south of Detroit, within ~30 miles of Monday's delivery. Was going to take it easy today and tomorrow but realized early this morning that I could reach the destination, take a 34 hour reset, and claim layover pay. So here I am for two nights with a chance to relax, do some cleaning, a little laundry, etc. This time I don't mind at all since as of now I have 2833 miles for the last 6 days.

 

By the way, steel plate is my favorite load so far. 40,000 pounds; weight distributed across and along nearly the entire trailer; low center of gravity; negligible windage. Very comfortable ride. Photo later.

I also sort of enjoyed (is that the right word?) the securement for this load. I used a systematic approach and felt confident with my method and process. Decided on the number of chains (needed a minimum of 5 but used 7) as the load went on the trailer. Laid out all the edge protectors evenly spaced at the chosen chain locations, then from up on the trailer put all the chains hanging equidistant over the sides and then laid all the ratchet binders out. Got down off the trailer and hooked all the chains around the perimeter, then back up on top to attach and tighten the binders. Also set up a temporary bulkhead at the same time.

After feeling fairly clueless for the first month, I am now learning to minimize repetitive motions and numbers of steps in the process to save time and be more efficient.

 

Today I experienced for the first time (while driving a truck) a speed limit directly related to steep hills. It was near Happy Valley (Penn State area) and the signs said "Truck Speed 20." The car speed limit is 45 there. Used 7th gear and 3rd stage engine braking the whole way down and barely needed to touch the brake pedal during the decent. Pretty cool.

 

Loaded at Conshohockin. Shipper guy was awesome. Very friendly and helpful. They had me loaded within about 30 minutes of arrival.

 

The delivery of steel plate to Belleville, MI went smoothly yesterday morning. Afterward picked up a 14k pound load of short steel rod and discs in 8 container bins in Oak Park (Detroit) bound for East Peoria, IL. Took a while to get loaded since the shipper had not finished assembling the order at the appointment time and then a new forklift operator kept whacking the trailer. Looked just the little bumber cars at the amusement park.

Stayed in Battle Creek, MI last night. Comfortable sleeping with low temp in high 40's.