Good Night From II

I deadheaded to a load that got cancelled three days ago this morning lol. CSR said that she and the broker we're going to have a little chat. I still got paid, but lost a sweet load. Ugh. Now I sit. DM is on the lookout for me too.

 

My after hometime load is about 180 miles west of you. I grab a talc load and take it to Laredo. I can't believe they don't have any booked for you. That and the Shelby drop yard almost always has something headed south out of Canada. Freight must be down a whole lot. Hopefully you at least get a can load or something.

 

Back in Goodyear, AZ. Truck in KW until morning. Then will head east out of here. Will not go north where no freight and not going back to Cali where no freight. For the matter, as far as I am concerned, will not be seeing Cali anytime in the near future or the far future. Yesterday coming out saw that I-10 was backed up from Palm Springs all the way to the CA-60 split and the scales where still open.

 

Yesterday I ran from just west of Columbus, OH to deliver a heavy load for Church & Dwight in York, PA; starting at midnight to make a drop and hook in the late morning. I stopped to do much needed laundry at the Petro near Harrisburg just before cutting south to York.

While doing laundry I kept sending Mac-30's with messages that said I was nowhere near my 18 hour window for a PTA!!?? I checked my PTA with Mac-30 and found it was set for 4/19. I reset my PTA and resent a Mac-30. Same message. Rechecked my PTA and it was moved to 4/17!!??? Called my DM and had HIM set my PTA and sent another Mac-30. Again it was changed to 4/17!! Seems like Jonestown is where PA is planned and they were tricking around with my PTA.

Finally made my drop, but no hook. Sent ANOTHER Mac-30 and again it said my PTA was more than 18 hours out. Called my DM while still in the customer's yard to reset my PTA and for them to message the planners that I was ready for a load and needed an empty. Waited for 20 minutes and then went ahead and bobtailed out the gate. Just as I got out the gate I got a preplan...

... to pick up another C&D load at this particular location headed to Scottsville, KY!! I wasted over an hour dicking around with the PTA issue, trying to get a load and the loaded trailer was sitting here all this time. Bobtailed back in the gate (which they don't normally let Swift drivers do, but seeings as I just bobtailed out...) and picked up the heavy load.

From York I headed west around noon on US-30. 7% grades, small towns, traffic lights, SLOW drivers, took me almost two hours to reach the TA in Greencastle, PA with an average of 5.1 mpg!

Started again at midnight today with only 8 hours on my 70. Made it to Grayson, KY at the hole in the wall Love's before noon. Mpg is now a whopping 5.6 after running the Gap and south through Charleston. Rain the whole way, but it looks like it is clearing.

I'm in position to deliver this load early tomorrow morning, but the customer only accepts inbound loads after 18:00. I'm going to start at 1:30 am (to use up 38 minutes on my 70 from Pacific time) and get into position near the customer to take a daytime 10 and then have a full 11/14 after making a live unload.

Home time is set for Lathrop for this coming weekend. I'm not worried about making it on time, just make it asap. Been a couple of months since I saw my wife and I'll take a few days off to let Lathrop try and replace the Bambi damage to the left front fender and battery cover.

My last trainee called me yesterday to confirm he passed his tests and is being assigned a truck. He'll be a good driver. He certainly knows how to properly dispatch a deer!!

 

Follow up note regarding my start times. Especially running in the east I'm tending to get earlier and earlier starts, preferably before midnight. I can run the speed limit instead of constantly fighting traffic. Around dawn, as rush hour kicks in I can take my 30 and perhaps extend it out a bit to let traffic clear. When my day is finished I have the pick of the litter in any truck stop I want, and Walmarts that have no overnight truck parking signs don't bother me if I park all day during the day and evening.

 

Coachella was this weekend ... should have seen it Sunday after Thanksgiving ... traffic was thick starting at Quartzite ... I shut it down at Cabazon after taking 3 hours to get from Chiriaco.

It's not the planners ... it's plus 1 ... preplans you with the quickest viable ETA ... then sets your PTA out to the end of the real window ... and if you are on recap, it will set your PTA out far enough to get you 11 hours back.

Plus 1 has made mac 30 an absolute joke, compared to what it used to be ... formally it was essentially a mini load board ... you always got 3 loads - good loads and they would be from your loaded call PTA to 24 hours out. So if you saw good load, you could adjust your delivery in the window and maximize your hours ... I ran more miles pre plus 1 and got them back by running Command and staying out of the Swift loop as much as possible.

 

Near Bristol, IN with a blown power steering something.
I just pulled in to the Marathon for a bite to eat and as I was backing in it blew.
I was barely able to get it backed in before I couldn't turn the wheel anymore. There is a nice squiggly line of fluid in front of the truck and a puddle under.

Well, that blows an on-time delivery of this load. The repair truck won't be here for nearly 2 hours, and who knows if they can fix it here.
I sent a Mac-22 pushing out my delivery until tomorrow at 1200, from tonight at 2200. I just got the PTA update; that usually means they are good with the time.
I was afraid they would want to repower the load, but I don't think I could unhook from the trailer. I can't even straighten the wheel, so I'll be driving in a circle if I try to pull out. LOL

 

Wow.
The repair guy got here much earlier than promised.
He found a line with a hole, caused by rubbing against an opening in the frame that it routes through.
He pulled off the line and is headed back to the shop to see what they can do with it.

 

As usual Charlotte, I couldn't take it anymore and did macro 55 on my POS 2015 Volvo. The ac doesn't work and the harness that holds the air hoses and electrical has a very strong spring which can and does pull your air hoses up and out of the gladhands. Every driver I've talked to in the Charlotte Swift intermodel that got these junk trucks has the same problem. Bungees help but they wear out fast and when I have to get out at a stoplight when the breaks go really spongy to re-attach an air line in really aggravates me. Add in no air conditioning with high humidity. So tomorrow will be pretty much screwed taking it to the Volvo dealer. #### I hate Volvos.

 

You're running containers? It's not just the Volvos ... it's the way the lines are set up on Swift trucks with the coiled plastic lines ... for dry van. I have the same issue when pulling a container, left hand turn, emergency line discos.

The terminals have the 15" rubber lines, that should help.