Post flatbed load photos here V2.0

Well, this happened the other day…….

 

If they try to get me back under a box trailer I'm quitting. Every loading dock looks like all the other ones. The variety with a deck is so much better. You meet the nicest people with a flatbed!

 

Door 19?

 

Looking at their csa history looks like they need to hire a mechanic.

 

Close. 18

 

Yeah, but most of the violations are issues that drivers should have caught and red tagged them for repair, then they need mechanics.

 

Loading up sunday’s money

 

Wednesday= new machines

Thursday=accessories for the Tuesday machine

 

It's kind of a combination of things. The current crop of drivers may leave a bit to be desired, but I'm not one to throw stones.

On the other hand, the alcohol pickled raging malignant sociopath masquerading as the mechanic that has been controlling everything there for decades is a major issue. If I could play a violin like he has been playing the owner for the past 20+ years, I would be sitting in the first chair of the symphony orchestra of my choice, in any city on the planet. He has got it down to the point where if you go talk to the owner (or daughter) about pretty much anything related to any of the equipment, they will reply with the same wording, verbiage, phrases and opinions as pickle brain. It's classic sociopathic behavior - DARVO- Deny/Accuse/Reverse Victim and Offender, and If you call them on it they will try to change the subject to something totally unrelated or just walk away as if you've hurt THEIR feelings.

When I started back there I was happy to get the truck I have. I've never driven it before, but I was there when it was new and thought that it always had good drivers in it. First time I got in it, I was appalled at how filthy the interior was and all the issues with the pre-trip. I made a list, took it inside and told them I wouldn't red-tag it, but If I got pulled in at a scale, it was a candidate. Nothing got touched for a couple of months, then I pulled in for a Level 1 @ Cordelia and they worked me over for an hour. The inspector, the cop in the scale house and I had a conference. We decided that I wouldn't get put OOS and I called the daughter, with my phone on speaker and she readily agreed that I had reported pretty much everything I was getting written up for. So, they made the inspection report out as owner's responsibility, and emphasized that everything had to be fixed before the next dispatch.

One of the write ups was for a leaky hub seal on the trailer. First words out of the bosses mouth when I got back to the yard; "You know, those are grease hubs". So ####ing what, its leaking, I don't give a #### if it uses strawberry jelly for lube, it's leaking!

I kept driving it for another month or so, with nothing getting fixed. Then I got pulled in to the little jump scale at Alton. I pulled up holding the inspection report out the window. The commercial CHP looked at it & asked me if I wanted to get it signed off. I told him nothing had been fixed and I was throwing myself at his mercy. We had a nice little talk. I mentioned that I wouldn't be mad if he shut me down, but the customer might be upset if I didn't make the delivery. He gave me a citation, again owner's responsibility, for everything on the original inspection, which cost them some money and got pickle brain motivated to to do the repairs. Except, he did his usual great work and didn't totally fix the oil leak at the front of the engine. He fixed the front cover, but didn't do the pan gasket. When I went back to Cordelia to get the inspection signed off, the inspector noticed it and told me to get it fixed. Pickle brain insists that it's not leaking, even though the right front spring now has oil all over it and it's blowing all the way back on the quarter fender on that side.

The whole situation is really a death spiral, but they refuse to admit it. Last week, they burned up one of the reefer trailers & of course it was the good one, maybe the most valuable piece of equipment they own. The fire started at the back of the trailer on a long descent on CA20. The trailer is totaled, the load was worth $100K and the tow bill was $30K. They had to completely collapse the trailer to get it on a lowboy to haul it away. Of course nobody thought to run out and get them to save the unit, which was nearly new & CARB compliant. The excuses, cope and rationalizations over this doesn't really amaze me because I've been listening to this #### off and on for decades. The driver is a good hand, but he had just taken the trailer over from the very best driver who just retired. They are hypothesizing that maybe he forgot to inflate the airbags, or the suspension somehow deflated going down the road, causing the tires to rub which started the fire. I did my best to explain that's just not possible, that the only things that could create enough heat to start a fire are a brake cam turning over, or a wheel bearing overheating and seizing due to lack of oil. My question (Unanswered of course) is when was the last time the trailer was lubed, and when was the last 90 day inspection?

I know the answers here - in all the years I've been working or dropping by to visit, I've never seen pickle brain grease a trailer, I've never seen him with a clipboard actually doing an inspection on anything.

Thanks for letting me vent.

 

Maybe time to beat feet down the road for this outfit? Ain’t like they care one iota about the drivers or the equipment.