Running with JCT

Lol someone has THIN skin!! Lol I don't read this everyday I have a life so I wouldn't no about all that..

 

Well I guess it got so cold here that all the trailer and truck washes froze up. We could not find a trailer wash last night to save our life. Drove up to the one in Greeley, it was supposed to be open until 10 PM and it was shut down and dark. There's one about 10 minutes up the road so we called it and they said that it was broken. I have a truck in travel app on my iPad so I got on that looking for another one. Found one about 50 minutes drive away. Tim called them and they said that they were closing at 7 PM and they would not wait for him. So we had no choice but to wait for morning. Woke up this morning it is -2degrees, not bad considering it was -13 yesterday morning. Tim is sick. I think he caught what Sharpp has. He can hardly talk. I wish I could drive this truck, but unfortunately I can't. We are going to call the Greeley truck wash in a few minutes and see if they're open yet. And so begins another day of trucking.

I forgot to tell you all about that wonderful train that goes through this truck stop. Here goes one now as a matter of fact! We are at the sun mart in Evans Colorado, a little town right next door to Greeley. It's a sketchy little place, to say the least. We got one of the last two parking spots last night right next to the railroad tracks. The train blows through here about every 15 minutes blasting it's horn as it passes.

The restaurant is called the double clutch, we ate dinner there last night. Table full of truckers next to us was not very happy, they ordered chicken noodle soup and it came with no chicken. When they told the waitress there was no chicken in the chicken soup, she made a big joke about it and said well that's what you get, that was the last of the soup! Remember that Seinfeld show about the soup Nazi? Well the double clutch café in Evans, CO is the same. lol

You can't say we don't have any entertainment on this trip!

 

I've been flipped off and honked at more than a few times for this. I putts through any lot, even if its wide open. There's just no excuse for hauling donkey through an area where you could hit someone. Theres 3 places I always go slow through: school zones, construction zones, and any kind of lot or dock area.

 

Well happy birthday to you. Sounds like you feeling a tat better since you are talking about gut grenades again. I will have to make my way down to Salem, OR in the morning and then off to Chandler AZ. I have been watching the weather channel and it looks like it is a mess out there in most places.

Should have known better than having the truck washed on Thursday. It usually will fix any drought that has happened in the vicinity.

 

Well I finally read this whole thread and I found it interesting in a bunch of different ways. Sharpp I would like to talk to you about a couple of things with JCT if would not mind talking with me and let me pick your brain for a few or if you do not feel like talking since you are sick that is fine. I will send you a pm. Thanks have a great day.


Terry Smith

 

The best kind of backing is the put-it-in-this-postage-stamp-size-spot. That I can do. I also like the way Target's DC's do it, which is what you described. Then you wait in the bobtail lot and they bring the trailer and bills to you!

 

No doubt with Kelly blaring on the box and feelin' NO pain!

 

Well, that's just trucking beautiful.

Got a load from a company that sounds a lot like Tyson in a place that looks like Rogers, AR. Drop my empty and check in to find that "Trucker, You're Staying Over Night" won't happen to me because they "only" need two more boxes to load. Yeah!

Two hours later I amble back in to see if they caught the rascally chickens....darn, I gave it away.....and they tell me it just needs to be billed out so go ahead and park in front. One and a half hours later, "Go ahead and get your bills, sucker....oops, I mean trucker, its done". Oh joy.

I've seen this movie before and it doesn't end well. Don't ever open the basement door; or look in the back of the trailer. Its stacked to the roof and full back so I don't go to the office, I go straight to the scale. Well not straight there. Got to slide the tandems from full back to the Calihole. I should have known right then this was too easy.

There is a nice ice storm moving through and everything is coated with ice, including the slider pins and slide bars. After dicking around for 30 minutes busting the pins loose this is not looking so good anymore.

The ground is iced over so I can't get any traction to move the trailer slides. Well I'm no dummy so I figure I'll just roll back into a bump-stop and slide those suckers right up. At the time it was shear genius, not later, but at that time it was.

Knock one, knock two, "they will give any second now. Wait, what's that laying on the ground? Oh krap, that's both mud flaps." Seems the trailer was a little too low and the bump-stop just a tad bit too high. Ripped them both off along with one bracket.

Now where to put these nasty things? Hum....well I'm no dummy.... Ever see that aero dongle thingy-ma-jig under the trailer? The one that has the stickers that say, "Hey, dummy (obviously not talking to me) don't stuff illegal aliens or other cargo in here". Well they fit right nice in there with a couple of bungie cords holding them in.
Well done, genius, well done.

Now back to the task at hand. They did break loose (I'm talking about the sliders here, not those mud flaps that were obviously about to fall off anyway). One more knock and slicker than snot they slide right up....a little too far up. Arrge. Now how to move them the other way? Bump-stop on the other side? No! I got a better idea. Just roll forward and pop the trailer brake. Shear genius. Once, almost. Twice, close enough! Pull out my keep-the-release-pin-pulled-out special tool and release the pins and do the ol roll and lock trick. Presto! Right in the Calihole.


Roll up the scale and find its 4,000lbs overweight in the back so to the office I go. "No problem, sucker....I mean trucker, just back into basement door 11". Oh krap, not the basement.

Well blow me drown, only two hours later its done. "Go ahead and get your bills, sucker." Or not - think I'll hit the scale first.

Now its only 1860lbs over on the back. I knew it was too good to be true. Back to the office. "Hey, sucker (this time they didn't even pretend to say trucker) back again? Over weight you say? Well sorry, its shift change so come back in an hour and somebody else will pretend to help you." Lovely.

Back at the window after an hour and half. "You weighed this two hours ago, what took you so long to come back?" There is so much I could say but I just keep my mouth shut. "Back into basement door 11.....sucker."

Five hours later. Now this is more like it! "OK, sucker, you're ready to rock and roll!" Or not. Back to the scale. "Can't let you leave, sucker, you're 580lbs over on the back end and now you're also over gross by 800lbs." "But its just the ice build up, please let me go so I can get out of this storm", I pleaded. Back to the office. "Hey, sucker....", yeah, I know, basement door 11.

After about an hour they decide it must be ice buildup because the gross rises the longer I'm there.....now why didn't I think of that?!

"OK, sucker, you're free to go." Paroled at last! Now I have 45 minutes left, guess I'll stay over night. Sigh......

Up at 4am my time, 6 local, I head out now 1200lbs over gross. It'll melt along the way; I know because I'm no dummy. Snowing like a SOB and the roads are nasty. Perfect! Hardly any idiots to deal with so I'll make great time getting to the terminal to get those loose mud flaps fixed. Humm, could stop at that Loves but I figure I'll do my part and save the company some money and go to the terminal as its right on the way. After all, how long could it take to replace mud flaps.....and one ittt-bitty bracket?

I've now been sitting here for 8 1/2 hours. This isn't fun any more. Now to call and say I can't make delivery. 1750 miles to go and 2 days to get there.....I'm not that good. There is so much more to this story, like the 4.4mpg while plowing snow in a head wind but my thumbs are twitching and my neck has a cramp in it.

This is just trucking beautiful.