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

My reset was up at 3am this morning. I got my load at 4am and was headed to Hebron Ky by 5am. I was done in Hebron at 3:30 this afternoon and drove down to the J at Walton Ky to go to bed. I woke up at 8pm, had dinner, then checked my Qualcomm. I have to dead head 315 miles to our customer in Murray Ky for a drop and hook with a 2 stop load going to Tulsa and finals in OKC on Wednesday. In order to make this work, I'm leaving at 3am to go to Murray, then drive half of the 500 miles to Tulsa then get up after my 10 hour break at 3am Wednesday to be in Tulsa at 8am and OKC at noon on Wednesday.

 

I left the J in Walton KY at 4am yesterday morning and drove the 310 miles down to Pella in Murray. I got there at 9am, dropped my empty then went in to see if my load was ready. It was so I was drop and hooked and sitting in the Walmart across the street from the plant at 10am to do some restocking. I had 6.5 hours left to drive and made it to Mt Vernon Mo to take my 10. I was up and rolling at 5am and got to my first drop in Tulsa at 7:30. I was done and rolling to my second drop in OKC at 9am. Just as I was getting back onto 44 a message came over the Qualcomm, low and behold it was a preplan for tomorrow.

I have hometime scheduled for Monday and Tuesday and with me being 1300 miles from Richmond this was going to be a test to see how the system for hometime works. I pulled into the first service plaza to read my message. What a surprise, It was a load that picks up in Opelousas La that delivers Monday in Miami. It's a 570 mile deadhead and a 985 mile load for a total trip of 1555 miles. I made it as far as Greenwood La where my clock ran out. I'll get up at 4am and drive the last 200 miles down there to load. This ought to be challenging, I am loading a piece of medical equipment at a city hospital in downtown and taking it back to a medical supply joint. All I know is that I'll be home about 6pm Friday.

This is the second year in a row that my wife is going to the NBA Finals without me. Last year I was in a rest area in Iowa on my way to California watching it on tv, this year I'll be in a Flying J in Tallahassee watching it. Oh well, at least the resident Heat fan will have a good time.

 

The piece of medical equipment I have to load? How about 50 used hospital beds going to Miami to be put on a container to be shipped to South America. Just in case anyone won't believe me, I had to pull into the hospital parking lot, back in to a small dock alongside the main entrance and explain to the cop that yes, I am in the right place. What a fiasco, now they are calling around to find some day labor to load these things. Doesn't every Volvo pulling a 53' trailer belong in a hospital parking lot?

 

Oh I've already met him, he's too busy on the phone trying to locate day labor. I guess I was the only one that had any idea I was to be here this morning. I mean really, I knew about this 25 hours ago, 575 miles away.

 

I'm home. Finally. Got here last night at 9pm. I was finished loading in Opelousas La at 7:30 Thursday night. I stopped and scaled out the truck and got fuel in Baton Rogue then made it to the Pilot in Theodore Al at midnight. I was up, showered and rolling to the house right at 10 yesterday morning. 675 miles in 10.5 hours, not bad. It's amazing what you can accomplish when you keep the left door closed. I unload in Miami Monday morning then will leave out on Wednesday.

In the meantime I have a boat load of things to do while I'm home, the first thing is my wife and I are riding the bike down to Islamorada in the Keys later today with some friends to have dinner in one of the most beautiful beach settings ever made. If it's too late to come back we'll get a room there then head home in the am.