EPES TRANSPORT-Greensboro, NC

What he said. I've done Monday morning LA rush hour to get to Carson / Long Beach 3 weeks in a row before. After that I would still rather run CA than the north east.

 

oh jersey isn't so bad with a little planning lol........who the hell am I kidding it sucks on a good day. still it's closer to home than Ca so i'll run there than out 2 weeks any week

took the wife out this week......was a good week and ran hard......turned in 3090 for last week and pushed 2900 this week with 4 on the 70 when we got in this morning.

started out on a #### schedule with a 2300 live unload in Atlanta and of course it didn't start pouring rain until it was my turn to get to the door. at least I had a preplan out conley to Sutherland so that got us out of there and back up the road unlike the other 2 there who didn't have preplans and were stuck trying to park in Atlanta after midnight. but also put us on a park between midnight and 0200 schedule to start the week which really sucked. ended up squeezing into a rest area first night. 2nd night had to squeeze into the road heading up to the scales in DC on a run up to Raymond at 0300. got to Raymond 2330 but at least had the good sense to reserve a spot in Greenland. that 1200 pennies was worth every one of them to get parked that time of night up there. then Leominster over to woodland, pa and then Bloomsbury to Norfolk and by this point had things worked around to where I had her back on a daytime schedule lol but I have to give her credit she hung with me on my schedule except 2 hrs the first night when she fell asleep in the seat. Sturbridge was the usual cluster 5 deep at every pump and then more than that as they got backed up out into the road. took 1:30 to get fueled and out of there

got redlighted every scale I came to this week not sure what's up with that. south of dc they were bringing everyone in until the lane was full and then letting the rest go by but soon as the last one got on the scale they brought everyone over the scale again. and checking a bunch of them. every time there was room for a truck out back someone else got pulled in. luckily they got the daycab in front of me and that filled the spots but I sat there on the scale for what seemed forever with a red light until they finally let us go and ended up parking at the parking area there for the night. what a ##### that was to get into. half the trucks weren't pulled up far enough to leave a lane through the middle ended up having to go through a parking spot and around the outside to get to a spot. dummies. you'd think they'd at least know how long their truck is and pull up far enough into the spot to let everyone else get through. lazy inconsiderate ######## all of them. we took our nightly walk and walked up that way and watched them keep the parking area behind the scale full checking everything that came through. soon as a spot emptied they put another truck in there.

AB in Williamsburg was ridiculous yesterday. they had environmental out there doing something with a vacuum truck at the scales and had one inbound lane closed. took 1:40 to get from the road to the scale and then got in and they were backed up all the way past the drop lot trying to get out over the sclaes. took another 1:10 to get back out. by this time we were short on time to get home Friday night. by 10 minutes. I was going to just run it on in and not lose a minute's sleep over 10 minutes but the wife decided I wasn't going to run the babysitter over just to get home last night since she was with me. not even 10 minutes. ugh. so we ended up staying at haw river last night and then came on in this morning. I would have just come on in but she likes being in the truck with me.

a bunch of morons on the road this week. one in a Mercedes coming out of dc at about the 158 where you lose the right lane. she's more important than everyone else in her Mercedes you know and ran the lane out to the end just to try and get in front of whoever she could......she tried to stick her nose in between me and the car in front of me when there just wasn't room...... just took it for granted I was going to back out and let her in. not happening. she knew that lane runs out and tried to punch it and cut me off. she bout had her Mercedes crumpled into a ball and ended up having to stop on the shoulder. nobody else would let her in either. serves her right. 2 more that I had trucks coming down the ramps and more than enough space between me and the ones in the center so as I started over to center to let the truck merging come on in, they floored it and cut me off even as I was already coming over. twice in 2 days. ########. I ended up both times having to jump back over in the right and stand on the brakes because as I was going center the trucks merging were already committed. wife couldn't believe how stupid these people are when clearly I had more than enough room to get over and they just floored it as soon as they saw my signal just to not have to be behind me.

but we had a good week. she got to go all the way up to Raymond and she'd never been north of Pa so it was a bunch of scenery that she hadn't seen. she saw the moose crossing sign west of Raymond and then wanted to see a moose lol I told her i'll buy her a picture or a stuffed animal or a moose souvenir while we were up there but I had no desire to see a moose in the truck. especially after dark. she also got to see the stress of having to park after midnight, not just in the NE but really anywhere....

pretty uneventful week though just long running and #### hours and time of day until Thursday when I got it back on days.....not that I minded running late night just not that time of night and was hard on her to start the week but she did good lol....i'd rather run all night or all day nut not half the day and night and have to park at 0200-0300 or so. that just sucks.

I talked to some of those TSE guys on those runs I made out to texas. they SURE don't like being on our side of the river lol....I wouldn't mind running out that way but not too far. between the new changes in HOS, finally incorporating both companies together and the already poor planning I see us running out there and running 2 weeks as being more the norm than the exception. hell they can't plan us in weekly half the time now as it is....at least consistently about the same time each week like it used to be.....and sure not for 2 days.....I've been lucky to JUST get a 34 from the time I roll on the yard till the time I leave now for so long I can hardly remember the last time I got more than 34 in....or was in for a weekend as opposed to part of the weekend and into the next week... combine the 2 companies fully, throw in the new rules and already poor and getting poorer planning and things are only going to get worse not better. I really hope they prove me wrong but I doubt it. but I really hope they prove me wrong. i'll admit it if I blow this prediction and I hope I have to....but I see it going to multiple weeks out and running all over as opposed to what it is now.

and always remember......there's trip planning and then there's wife planning......which is trip plan + 1hr on average trips.......adjust accordingly for distance lol.....

 

yeah it fairly well sucks and certainly isn't what I signed on for. the first year was in Friday out Monday like clockwork then not so much and now rarely ever. but then again, i'm not one of the golden children who run where they want when they want. I actually do my job and don't complain and don't suck someone's ### to get what I want. but the weekends where I go off and only get 34-36 at the most before I go back on are the norm now and the weekends I actually get 2 days are the exception. come to think of it, the only time I do get in for more than just the reset is when I come in empty and have the choice when to go back out.

one thing I've noticed over the last year as well and going to what I said earlier is that I've noticed the older trailers always said 'home weekends'........newer ones coming online over last year had been saying 'home weekly'.....now the new trailers coming online this year have nothing at all on the back of them except the number for recruiting. I don't miss much and that doesn't bode well for the changes in operating policy going forward......and that the older trailers have been losing the "home weekends / weekly" off of them as well. not advertising it anymore as a selling point means it won't be happening going forward i'm sure......or at least not nearly as much.

I need those full weekends....just too much to do when I am home with 4 dogs, the houses and everything the wife needs done lol......we'll see going forward but I may have to execute my long range plans sooner than planned. I can't be staying out 2+ weeks consistently. I don't mind doing it every now and then as needed but it won't be anything i'm on board for as a matter of policy long term.

and DM is out this week coming and I've got the same guy as last time. he hung me out for 2 weeks last time DM was out even after I told him no. he and I will be having a chat on Monday this time for sure.

 

I like being in the truck with you...not only do I have you all to myself you have nowhere to run to giggle....

The lady in the Mercedes was nuts...and it was another truck in front of us not a car. That woman never looked at the truck either, just like she had decided she wanted to play chicken with a truch....and the other two cars...well at least we didn't have a whole bunch cutting us off this time as heavy as we were most of the week....

I promised I would stay up with you just like you did and kept my promise for the most part...I had to be exhausted to fall asleep sitting up in the seat....

And if I had really wanted to I could have added a few more hours to your "wife planning schedule"

AND WHERE IS MY MOOSE!?!

 

Still in New Hampshire !

 

ok...so I get all pi$$ed off and this becomes the porn thread?!?!?! I'm all for that MOOSE! YEAH! lol

 

who's been paying attention to my "crush" on my DM? lol

 

I'm with you. Epes keeps me out 10 days, and on the 11th day I'm home by anywhere from 1500-1900. Then I get the rest of that day, plus the next 3 FULL days off. I love it. A month or so ago, I stayed out 20, and got almost 5 days at home.