The journey begins - purchased a truck.

SLIGHT PANIC

Ran to town yesterday to pick up a heavy jacket, hard hat, safety glasses, steel toe boots, safety vest and some cash for the trip. Mid shopping, Starqual calls (as if they had just read my post yesterday). "We need that truck inspection and your drug screen or we won't be able to qualify you". I love how all their paragraphs end in "We won't qualify you" - just what I need to hear.

So - finish up quick, run home. Run the truck to TA in Mt.Vernon - inspect $49 (this time they looked pretty hard at it), pass. Fax inspection and drug screen control form off. Fill up truck with diesel $225.00 , return home, gather up a tool box, start packing some clothes, tend to gimpy footed wife, cook dinner, do laundry, dishes, stack some more wood, load the fire.

Wish me luck - maiden voyage of the red beast . . . off to Fort Worth.

 

Maybe that's why the paper tigers hve been pushing my buttons . . .

 

MADE IT !!

Escaping several inches of snow at home this evening, and just below a line of freezing precipitation. Checked in at the motel - down for 2 nights, not the full four - but glad I asked, I can sort that out tomorrow.

Shuttle leaves at 7am, Breakfast at 6am. There's 2 Inway trucks here, 1 Ranger, and 1 with his own numbers.

Truck ran well on the way, 444.4 miles, averaging between Swift and Prime speeds, watching the scan guage and learning a little bit about the relationship between HP, boost and RPM - as DY alluded to previously. VERY handy guage - learned that the oil temp is off on the dash, by about 5%, the speedometer is out about 1-2%, RPM the same. Need to find an app that will display speed and check it against that before changing parameters in the SG.

10 MPG, bobtail, tail and side wind. Is 220 degrees Oil Temp normal? Water temp solid at 177 degrees. You see - ODFL had very stripped down trucks - idiot lights only, no fancy arse guages.

Looks like Denny's for a snack, and off to bed. Glad I brought my earplugs, pretty close to DFW !