Big Loads - Post Photos Number 2

That's the Mazda version

 

TripleSix,

You talking about a 6 line Goldhofer? Those alone are about 60k, with the power unit on them they are close to 90k.

Been on some of their moves that had close to 80 loads of just counterweights.

 

I guess so. Picked it up at Mamoet's yard in Rosharon and took it to SLC. Back in the early 90s, I had to go to PreCoatMetals in Jackson,MS. Had 10 trucks ahead of me at 10am, but didn't get loaded until 0800 the next morning (and they loaded 24 hours!). But you can go to some big jobsite, meet up with an excellent crew, and watch them load or unload big loads all day.
There were times on a wind farm where you pull into a staging yard, filled to the brim with superloads, and they'd lead us out in groups, 3 towers, 1 nacell, 3blades, 1 hub, take us down the feeder roads and have us park. If the farm was fairly flat, you'd see them all over, and you would think that it would take days to get to you. But no... It may take all day for them to get to you, but they would get you out of there.

It was always the same group of guys. You may not see each other but every couple years, but you'd pull in to a job, and the site rep knows you, the rigging crew know you, other drivers from other companies know you. We all went to the same watering holes. It's funny when 3/4of the guys in the bar are still wearing their hi vis vests. For that reason, I always recommend that an owner operator learn patience BEFORE getting into that kind of work. Your truck is different. You will stand out, they will recognize you. Some times, you will run into an a hole of a site rep or an a hole truck push. The cool head will prevail. Hot heads will get ran off. Even if you have a disagreement with someon, keep your cool. Or like they said on Demolition Man, " Enhance your calm."

I had a site rep jump clean down my neck once. We ran 40 miles in to a site, got to our pad, but still on the feeder road, site rep comes up to chat with me.i get out of the truck, hard hat, vest, jeans and steel toes (THE UNIFORM), and we are chatting. My front car gets out and walks up wearing shorts and flip flops and no hard hat. Site rep screamed at him and called down evil upon him. Then the site rep started in on me. What do I do? Well, I apologize. I'm in the wrong. I should have made sure that fool had his gear on. That's the driver's responsibility. You can bet your bottom dollar that pilot car got an earful. He never did it again.

The first time I went to a wind farm, I was a company driver. I can't remember the name of the place, it on the south side of Cedar Rapids. I used to pick up containers and take them to the farms. They would have just cut the roads in. Armies of dump trucks and cement truck. The containers carried the hardware. Lots of containers. Took it to some wind farm somewhere south of Moriarty,NM. The farm was 100 miles up a dirt farm road. Man, I thought only the Canadians did stuff like that (build in places so far out that has no name, but a map coordinate.)

I guess that's why I didn't being away from the house 3 or 4 months at a time. The money was stupid, made a lot of good friends, and cute waitresses, even went fishing a few days a week. Good living.

 

Have pulled out of about all their yards but Rosharon is what I'll call my home yard for them. My yard is 20 miles from there. You are correct that for the most part they are good people.

 

@passingthru69

Any one hear from him?

 

I texted him this morning and haven't heard back. Maybe he said screw it and hopped on a plane. Lol

 

He's just been busy and hasn't been on the board lately. I have been texting with him all day.

 

Let's hope he has been making money and not just keeping busy.

 

I finally moved some pics from my phone so I'll post a couple. I have a lot more on my PC maybe
I'll throw a few of those up later.

Deere 750 from a couple weeks ago.