Heavy Haul Miscellaneous Thoughts, Ideas and Questions

Discussion in 'Heavy Haul Trucking Forum' started by Oscar the KW, Feb 8, 2015.

  1. passingthru69

    passingthru69 Road Train Member

    Not sure, it's a factory original not sure the size. Rode it some last Sunday until my phone was blowing up where are what are you doing
    Next time I get in, will do more research
    Has good get up and go
    Does have S S carb on it. That I know
     
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  3. passingthru69

    passingthru69 Road Train Member

    Yea his work bike.. that was when life and the economy was better
    The black officer used to be a trip
    He was hung over one morning and we were all busting his chops on that
    Yes their radios were great for open face units
     
  4. TripleSix

    TripleSix God of Roads

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    He sent me a pic of his dual sport that he rides for recreation. He roams the hill country to the west of Austin for recreation. I called it the land of 5 billion deer and he got a good laugh out of that.

    It's been almost 4 years since I ran with the Harris County gang. I really miss that. I should have had my go pro going for educational purposes.
     
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  5. TripleSix

    TripleSix God of Roads

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    Just some random thoughts from a random driver about random conversations, but added plots and twists and conspiracy theories:

    In another thread, JD mentioned that he was good in math at school. I was too. I'd wager that the vast majority of us were good at math, "mechanically inclined" old fashioned, 'good ol boys'. Caught on to the mechanics of trucking and excelled.

    But what I want to know is, do "birds of a feather flock together" or are birds of a feather flocked together?

    When I went to kindergarten, I met a kid named Marvin. Marvin was my best friend. In the whole world (small world, I know). Well, we went to first grade, and Marvin struggled a bit. Next thing you know, they pulled Marvin out of class and put him in one f the little portable buildings out back...the Box Class. Even put him on the short bus. When I tried to speak to Marvin, we had trouble communicating because now, he wanted to lick the windows on the short bus. What happened to my friend? He was fine until the school convinced his parents that his place was on the short bus. But now, we can't even talk? The rest of us went on, and Marvin was happy and content on the short bus, licking windows.

    How do they determine in first grade whose a window licker and whose not? Did they have a piece of plexiglass, a bottle of windex and some paper towels on a table and tell the kid, "Marvin, do what comes naturally." Or do they convince mommy and daddy, that you need "special" education and when all the other kids get pencil and paper, you get to count Fruit Loops?

    When you go to second grade, they pull you away from the friend you made in first and match you in another group. When you hit middle school, Stupid becomes lethal. Kids start I got from doing stupid stuff. Girls get pregnant and Darwinism takes over on the boys. How do they do it? TV? Music? All of the above?

    See, I wonder...if Marvin's parents had refused to allow him to be taken out of regular school and put in special Ed, would Marvn had been a window licker? I mean, Chewy got fired from CREngland, and turned out to be a pretty good hand after he was taken in by the Cool Kids. So, by the same theory, if they would have kept Marvin wth the rest of us, he would have been okay.

    Speaking of math, if I said to Big Ronnie, "16'11 tall, 17'8wide, 89000lbs, from 1439 N Elk Grove, ChicagoIL to the MGM Grand in Las Vegas", instantly, the wheels would start turning.

    'What's it pay?'

    Before you could answer, Ronnie would already know what he would need. How's that for math? Could you imagine some geek trying to program in the parameters in an automated truck to make a Big Ronnie obsolete?
    What they would try to do is get Skoot on a simulator and based their programming on him. 1 size fits all, right? Not in heavy haul. I would bet money that the best programmer in the world could not program a truck to match Skoot load for load. The guy's a machine. Ever notice that's in an urban area, if you go off the route that your GPS selects, that by the time the GPS recalculated under the parameters it's been given, it will give you the next turn too late for you to make the next turn? Now put a superloads on the back of the wagon and enter in those parameters. The first time you have to do a Wrong Way, the GPS is lost.

    How on earth, would you program a Wrong Way? If you've ever pulled a superload, you've had to do a Wrong WayIf you've ever been over 100 ft long, wth no overhang, you've done Wrong Ways. It's part of the game.
     
  6. soloflyr

    soloflyr Medium Load Member

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    Can you imagine an autonomous truck trying to do what OS/OW drivers do while dealing with the morons in the 4-wheelers, the ever present unknowns of construction zones & the ever popular dope smoking route planner at the permit office trying to push a 17' tall, 20' wide load under a 15' bridge on a 18' wide road?

    There may come a day that tankers, reefers, door swingers & regular deck draggers become just passengers, but I don't see it happening with the OS/OW crowd.

    As far as the window lickers goes, I have seen some brilliant kids fail due to boredom because the school system couldn't keep them interested at a slower pace than they needed. Also seen some fail that were just not good at test taking but could verbally explain the theory behind the subject matter like nobody else, if given the chance.
     
  7. TripleSix

    TripleSix God of Roads

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    What puzzles me is, Marvin was fine, NORMAL KID, until the school convinced his parents to short bus him. Then he starts acting weird.

    I have a nice, 7 years old. When she was 4, she went through a period where she wouldn't speak to anyone other than me or my brother...and I was OTR. Not to her mom, not to her sisters, not to my mom, not to the teachers, not to anyone in school, just my brother and I. So I didn't know. Cute little girl. Unusually deep voice. My brother came to puck me up from a truckstop and she was riding in the back of his pickup. We get on the interstate and she says to me, in a deep almost exorcist voice, "Uncle Six, do you know the password to this iPad?" My brother hits the brakes, slides on the shoulder of the interstate, reaches around and snatches the iPad from her in alarm. And she's sitting there smiling. My brother said to me, "Never let her touch your phone. She will erase all of your stuff, download her favorite games, change all the pass codes and forget the new passcode."

    Wow...

    But the very same day, my mom and her mom both tell me that the school says that she's slow because she can't talk, and the school wants to special ed her. Are we talking about the same kid? Well, my brother disagreed and said that there was nothing wrong with her, refused to allow them to shortbus her. He said that she was just obstinate. "Hmmm, so the not speaking is either her way of banging heads with her teacher, her mom and grandma or she feels that they are unworthy...". Still haven't figured that part out yet.

    Took her to the flea market. She kept walking around, didn't want to leave. There was this toy she kept eyeballing. She'd look at this toy, make a round around the building, go back to this toy and look at it. Never touched it. The lady selling it, gets up and says, "Hello, little girl!" My niece says, deep voice and all, "Hello. You are not going to make me buy this toy. Uncle Six, I am ready to go." The lady gives me this bewildered look. I was in amazement. And they want to shortbus this kid?
    The way the little supervillain baffles and stumps adults makes me wonder if her plan is to forge an empire of shortbus kids, and create havoc in the world...

    Is the shortbus thing the teacher's way of not having to deal with problem kids, or is it for the kids having problems? That's why I asked if "birds of a feather flock together" or are they flocked together?

    In the rookie forum, there are always people that come in ask about trucking. They describe themselves as antisocial, no friends, single,, questionable work history (always have a drug problem), and they ask if they would make a good truck driver. They were living in Grandma's basement, and she just passed, and they're looking at being outdoors. Basically a complete Loser. They're not interested in trucking because of money, or travel....they just need somewhere to stay. It almost seems as if ever moron in America is being herded to this industry.
    Thing is, not one of our guys is like that. Are they on the shortbus or are we? It's more of them than us.
     
    Last edited: Jul 21, 2016
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  8. macavoy

    macavoy Road Train Member

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    I was good in math, in grade 2 or 3, I was taken out of class like six's friend except I got to go for extra work in enrichment class. I changed schools 15 times and stopped going.

    Grade 9, when I was old enough to choose, I joined the math club. Did pretty good on the math nerd test but nothing special, pretty average among the smart kids. Next year, I wanted to live on the edge, so I transferred to the school downtown that was the stoner / drop out / wannabe gang school. I rocked my cowboy boots with spurs down the hall wearing my longhorn gear. They had no math club but I still took the test and aced it, got in the top 1% for the whole test. Transferred back to my more academic school and was always mediocre at it.

    When I got to university though, school bored me, it was too easy. I could not go to any classes, speed read the text book the night before and get an 80% no problem. Half way through the next year, I decided I was wasting my time and not getting anything out of it and dropped out. I wrote all the first semesters final exams so I didn't waste that time if I ever wanted to go back.

    Trucking is the first job I've had since I taught high school where I don't get bored and move on to something new and exciting. I finally found something that can continually keep me challenged and keep me on my feet.

    Even with a family to support, if I wasn't challenged everyday, I would probably find something else. This week's challenge, adjusting to having your wife work 12 hours a day and having to help maintain the household, ask to be the driver that gets off the earliest so I can pick the kids up from the babysitters since she is working late.
     
    Last edited: Jul 21, 2016
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  9. TripleSix

    TripleSix God of Roads

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    Interesting. Thanks Mac. The picture is getting clearer.

    For scientific purposes, can someone else tell me, if while in school, if you worked, your favorite subject. MJ, JD and Mac hit on common points. Coincidence? Doubtful, but too early to tell.
     
  10. macavoy

    macavoy Road Train Member

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    I was not however mechanically inclined. When I went to my grandparents farm as a kid, I was always the city kid that my cousins had to show me around. I was athletic so fitting in wasn't a problem. Didn't like science in school, only took auto shop and woodworking because they were easy courses where you didn't have to get super involved to pass.

    I think that is part of what keeps me interested now, learning the mechanical aspect. From learning how to change hydraulic fittings at my first job because we couldn't afford to pay a shop to do it and because I was willing to learn. To now, whenever my truck is in the shop, I usually try and watch what they are doing so I can learn.

    But I also like the independence aspect, having to figure out a way how to get a job done one way or another. But also being smart enough to realize I have a network of people that I can call for advice.

    That's probably been one of the biggest factors in my growth and success. Building and harnessing a support network.
     
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  11. sawmill

    sawmill Road Train Member

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    If they don't get a chance to short bus a kid in grade school they have their ways to do it later. When I was in high school I was bored. I was not challenged and wanted to move ahead or switch to harder classes. They wouldn't let me. Made it hard for me to want to keep showing up.

    Basically they said "As long as you go along to get along you can stay here and be anything you want. The world is yours, kid". But if you resist they say "Here's a school for you. You can learn welding, autobody, etc..."
    It's the later version of the short bus.

    Education may have become like trucking. These days we get people like Six described...otherwise homeless, looking for an easy meal ticket. Could it be that some educators only took the job for the pension and the summers off?
     
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