Heading For Little Rock! Maverick

I left the house Monday morning and headed up to Battle Creek Michigan to make my delivery. They had just had an ice storm that morning so everything but the roads were still icey. Got to untarp inside so that I did not have to slip on the ice in the parking lot. After unloading, in the time it took to make a cup of coffee, I had a load picking up at Arlington Metals in Sawyer Mi, going to State Steel in Sioux City Iowa. This was definitely out of my normal routes....which I like.
I spen the night at a rest area, but can not remember exactly where it was...other than when I awoke it was only 6 degrees......got to love the bunk heater.
The directions said that when I got off at the exit, to follow it around and then go over the overpass. When I got off the exit, you had to turn either left or right...so much for following it around.
I chose right and then I could see the overpass in the distance. When I got to where the directions said the customer was, they were on both sides of the street and no signs for shipping or receiving.
I saw another flatbed pull behind the building on the left so I followed him, we were both wrong...lol
What you have to do, is scale in on the right side (scale is hard to see) and then walk your paperwork into the office. Then spil weigh in and go down to the gold building and turn left. After unloading, you have to go back to the sacle, spilt weigh in again, then go in and get your paper work....This is at State Steel.
Got a load very quickly to go to Gerdau Ameristeel in Wilton Ia, to pick up flat steel and angles going to Benjamine Steel in Springfield ohio. This had a 320 mile dead head. I made it to the demoins Ia, Pilot and shut down., 620 miles driven for the day.
Got to Gerdau the next morning around 0730 and did not have to wait and did not have to use any tarping station, and I was actually allowed on top of my trailer....my kind of place.
I made it to the rest area just inside Ohio and shut down.
Got up this morning and realized my alarm did not go off for some reason, and had 5 minutes to get coffee made, pretrip and get going.
Got there about 30 min before my appointment and was unloaded in less than 30 minutes.
I got my next load in springfield...at Coil Plus. It was less that 500 yards from where I delivered.
Picking up a coil that had to be in Springfiled Tn asap.
Got in right away and got the coil on the deck. Was finishing up with the last chain and the guy comes over to tell me that they put the wrong coil on my truck.
I told him I would give them so slack since they provide free coffee and a nice bathroom...he just laughed.
Made it down to Springfield Tn by 1630 and got in right away to get unloaded.
As soon as I sent in my mt, I got a load to pick up at Sumiden Wire going to Winchester Ky.
Had a learning experience....my gps and Mav directions said to go the same way and that is the way I was going to go. As I was leaving, I saw the I 24 sign and I thought it was a shorter way....wrong....30 miles oor.....but I still made it to the shipper before my time ran out.
So I am parked in their lot and have to deliver tomorrow no sooner than 1530...for some reason...and then Hopefully I will go to SDI in Jeffersonville In and head for the house...To be continued!

 

I have a rand mcnally (spelling) I had a pc miler and this is hands down better in my opinion. It really made things much easier for me because I could easily see where all the truck stops were on my route and rest areas and it just took away the stress of finding a place to spend the night and making it on time.

 

2950 miles....no restart, one night at home...running on recap next week....sweet!

 

I spent the night at Sunmiden wire and got pulled into the building just before 8. Every time I had loaded there I got the eyes to the sky stranded wire. I read the wo and it said straps only, but I was thinking that it was for the slinkies sitting out there. So I pull in and he tells me to set up 4 coil racks. I got 7 coils of strand and they were as hard and solid as any coil I had ever haulled so I asked him if I could use chains. He said sure. So I secured it with two chains through each set of coils.
After I headed out I was talking to Sewerman on the phone and as always we discuss the loads.
He told me that even though they seem solid, that they can lean if you get in some bumpy roads ect.
So I stopped at the flying J and pulled in the back. I pulled the tarp off, left the chains on, and put the straps on it like slinkies with the exception that on the last one went through, up, over and back through as well as being attached to the one in front of it like normal slinkies. So now this load of 47,400 lbs has 8 chains and 4 straps on it....it is not going anywhere. Retarped and got on my way.
So I can assure you that I will make sure that I make a call to someone if I am not 100% sure and make sure I read the wo directions in very close detail.
On the way to winchester Ky I got a preplan to dead head to Worthington Steel in Monroe going to Roanoke VA for a 0700 delivery on Monday Morning.
When I got to Jennmar, there was a sign at the first entrance saying rebar trucks only, all others go to next entrance. So I see two other flatbeds with regular rebar on. I know that they use this as rear in the concrete castings, but it is technically stranded wire. So I call them and they tell me to go to the next entrance, which I do. There are two empty flats in there waiting to load. So I go check in and they tell me I am in the wrong place and as soon as they load the one truck, they will let me drive through. They told me I could try to back up, but it was a very tight blind side into their car parking lot, so I told them I would wait. So I untarped and took the chains off and did not have to wait too long after I had all my stuff put away.
So I pull around the maze of rebar in their yard and stop in front of the other stranded wire as directed. I go in and check in there and they tell me I am supposed to get unloaded at the other door.
I explain that I just came from over there and they told me to come here and that there was a lot of the same material just outside the door. He goes and checks and tells me to wait for the fork lift driver to come over. So after 45 minutes, they finally come over and unload me.
This place was tight and there was not really any place to turn around. The one guy told me that a truck once unloaded and tried to go out the way I came in, and had to sit for 3 hrs as he got blocked in and could not get out.
Got my load to go to Monroe. I took my time getting there as I wanted to let the traffic clear out going down the hill into Cincinnati. I am originally from Cincy and it was a beautiful sight seeing the Queen City all lit up coming down off the hill.
Pulled into the lot and there was only one other truck there at Worthing Steel so I did not have to wait at all. Got 4 coils put together as one large Shotgun coil. Got loaded, secured and tarped and came down to the truck stop. Walked up to Gold Star Chile and had a nice three way and a cheese coney with onions. That is some fast acting food....lol.
I will be heading for home in about 30 minutes and will head out tomorrow morning. I plan on stoping in Wytheville at the flying J so I can watch the play off games.
I will be running on recap next week and hopefully it will be another high mileage week.
I have been loving my sirus radio. It is so nice not to have to keep chasing channels. I was so impressed with the company, I decided to become a shareholder....lol
Hope everyone has a great week!:smt067