What was your 1st mountain pass you drove on. Or the 1st that scared you!everybody

One thing I've noticed and surprises me is that many runaway truck ramps are located odd places, like around sharp turns(i.e. on right side of road around a sharp right turn)...It would almost seem if you can make it around that turn at 70 or 80mph you could make it down the hill...

 

Making it to the bottom without taking out other traffic is one thing being able to stop when you get there is a whole other animal.

 

My very first driving job, right out of school was with a small Mom and Pop, flatbed operation out of Colorado Springs. Drove an old '89 Freightliner with a 350 squeezer (dragonfly).lol Would literally drag up those passes at 15 to 25 mph and fly down the other side (if I had wanted it to), although that wouldn't have been good.

My runs were dedicated to Grand Junction and back. Talk about a full time high, what a rush it was. That is where I learned to drive, 6% grades and curves where I would be jacked to where my trailer tandems would be beside me. Not to mention the way those tall loads of lumber and bags of soil would lean on that trailer!
First time I took my wife with me, we got stranded atop one of those bigger passes over there( can't remember which now), but it was about 1am, snowing like crazy with frigide temps, and the truck over heats. We eventually made it up the road to a rest stop and hauled water from the restrooms in a 1 gallon jug. I had so many problems with that old clunker. The wife was pretty amazed at how some of those roads had no guard rails, she would look over the edge and tell me about old cars she'd see that had apparently went over.

I wouldn't drive for that company again, but I sure did get some good driving lessons and memories to go along with it.

 

My first mountain pass was cajon(15s into LA). I was pretty nurvous being as that was the first time, because I learned to drive local around coastal GA. I rode with my dad for about a year and a half before i finally bought my own rig, and he was with me for this adventure. Before we got to it, i talked to him about how I was sopposed to prepare and handle the situation. Talking about every "what-if" or "for-instance" that came to mind. I started down at about 40mph in 8th under(15th gear) and ran the jake and fan like he told me to. I only had to touch my breaks for about 3 seconds all the way down but I was still a bit nervous. I remember half way down he told me to turn off the fan and feel the difference it made in the engine brakeing. He had me experiment with a few things and shift down to 14th, being as cajon isn't really a bad hill. The worst hill ive been on would be cabbage in the snow, which isn't saying much. Ive always wanted to take on the wolf creek pass, just haven't had the right opportunity yet.

 

I guess the moral of the story is when you see a sign at the top of the mountain that says trucks must use low gear there is a very good reason why the safest practice of going down a step decline is in a gear that you don't have to use your brakes which usually means 2nd or 3rd gear alot of drivers refuse this option and pay the price the 1's that got away with just alot of smoke should be very thankful .

 

A couple years ago, ran from NC into TN heading back toward IL and ran through the Gap. (I-40 Ashville to Knoxville) Beautiful scenery altho it took forever since its 50-55 for trucks. Despite that made it through with no issues.

 

out of all the mountains i have run the worst would have to be the feather river pass as 1 no semis allowed found that out to late max length 38 foot made it the whole way and would never do it again.

 

The first one I went down with a loaded trailer was on I-15 north of Butte heading south. The truck did not have engine brakes and I thought I knew what I was doing, but I did not. Get to the top and start down the other side in a gear too high. Didn't completely smoke the brakes but I am sure there was some smoke coming off of them. My passenger said to me as we were half way down, "think we are going a little fast." My response was yup. Made it down as fine as I could have in that situation. That was my first act of stupidity.

My second act of stupidity was going up Loveland Pass when it was snowing, when I didn't have to go that route. There was 6 inches of snow on the ground. No chains required. Couldn't find the shoulder as the snow was pilled up there. That one made me very nervous. I swore I would not do that again unless I had to.

 

1st mountain pass I drove was Cabbage. Was my 1st few days out with my Swift trainer. I didn't think it was really that bad. Towards the end of my time out with the same trainer, we were running as a team, and he was asleep while I hit Vale in the middle of a storm. Think I pee'd a little there. ;P

 

One thing I don't see mentioned here is the air gauge for pressure on brakes we used to use 5 psi on a long grade without a Jake.