So, I had a Roll Away accident...

I thought all these new gee whiz trucks had sensors and alarms for things like this??
This new Mack I drive goes ape #### if you open the door and the parking brake is not set.

 

Hell, that was standard operating procedure for us old chicken haulers and bull haulers.

 

Back when I was young, dumb and full of, well you get the point. I was 21. I had my truck roll away one fine day while I was having breakfast. Me and another guy went to Connecticut to repo some equipment for John Deere Credit. It was two truckloads of farm equipment. We ran up, got everything loaded and intended to return home that night. But we got into a nasty snowstorm, and parked somewhere in NY.

Next morning we head out, we get to exit 20 on 84 in PA. There's a small fuel station with a good diner there on the hill. We stopped for a bite to eat. I parked on the hill, facing 84. Parking lot was icy, so I set the trailer and tractor brakes, hopped out and ordered breakfast.

I was sitting with my back to the truck, Gary was facing it. As he's eating his eggs, he looks out, the eggs fall out of his mouth as he's asking "is that your truck in that ditch?"

I turned around and yep, it was mine. I ran down to it, it's still running, looking as if I parked it there on purpose. Miraculously, there was no damage, didn't hit anything or anyone. I jumped in, spun it out, leaving muddy tracks in the grass.

Went and finished breakfast after parking the truck again. The waitress told me they usually end up in the ditch between the store and the highway, and that I was lucky. Still, I felt like an idiot. She informed me that that happens a few times a year there, so I don't feel as bad now about it.

When we got home, we pulled the truck in the shop to see why it rolled when the brakes were set. Again, I was parked on a hill, which was snow covered.

We found the brakes to be out of adjustment, and the automatic slack adjusters were bad on the truck. The trailer brakes were fine, but with it sitting on ice, we figured it was just enough to let everything slide down the hill.

 

When I was young and I crawled in the bunk for nap I wouldn't wake and nobody could wake me up so I would take a nap over the wheel. Like you said, tried pushing break pedal through floor more times than I care to count. But the best one was when I rolled into a construction zone into a a cattle shoot and came to a stop, truck was broke down or accident or something. 2 days without sleep, 4-5 stops in Mass and CT home next day to load and do it again. So while waiting I laid my head on the wheel and woke up by a cop yanking my door open yelling to wake up and get moving.

Glad I don't do that anymore.

 

You have to keep your doors locked. I learned that after a cop in Md ambushed me behind the scalehouse. He actually climbed over me to get my logbook in the sleeper(Freightshaker cabo) .He stopped me on the scale at 1am. I had just driven 300mi in pounding rain and was in no mood for that BS, so I threw it in the sleeper and told him I didn't have one. After turning about 3 shades of red he told me to park out back. When I got there, he yanked the door open, climbed over me and grabbed it. Man, I was peed, when I found out there was no place to park(3 spots, 2 big trucks and a little 6 wheeler I almost hit cause I tried to back in that spot) I pulled my truck straight and blocked all the cop cars.
Took the keys,looked the doors and walked to the diner up the road. He tore my log apart(I always kept it in a clipboard, no staples)and funny thing he couldn't find anything wrong with it. He was training cadets, and when I came back they asked me where I went and told me that I almost gave him a heart attack. Another funny thing, my reg was expired, the cadet found it, He handed it back to me told me to have a good day and sorry for the cop, he's an A-hole and nobody likes him, lol.

 

I use to work for a man that took an offramp to pee. He jumped out and got between the tractor and trailer, the it started rolling. Knocked him over and the drives crushed both of his legs. He still drives, and has a handicap placard now.

 

I vividly recall the day when mine took off down Vail Pass without me. Stopped at the summit to drain a kidney, road was icy, set tractor brakes, all 18 tires were hot, melted through snow, hit the ice, away she went. Ran as fast as I could, truck slid about 100 yds before the right steer hooked a hunk of ice and nosed into the snow bank (had that hunk of ice not been there, next stop would have been somewhere mid way down Vail when it hit the median). State Trooper laughed, said it was the 5th one he'd seen that winter, CDOT plow driver laughed, said it was the 10 th he'd seen in the same spot that winter (he tried to help me get out), tow truck driver laughed, said it was the 10th he'd seen...……..then charged me $300 to move me 22 inches. Hooked a twin line to my tow hooks, lifted the front of the tractor out of the snow, let it swing 22 inches to the left, set it back down, unhooked his lines. CSP actually called my boss to explain what happened, and that it was not preventable, they see it all the time.

 

If I open the door on my Mack and the Parking brake isn't set, it beeps like crazy.

 

Do you have a drive cam in your truck that got video of it happing? I mean if no one saw it and theres no damages did it ever happen?

 

Everybody makes mistakes. You took the initiative to reach out to us and things like this will help other people from making the same mistake.

I would be thankful noone got hurt.
That event you experienced teaches you something. Remember, if and I hope this never happens to you again but if your tractor and trailer starts to roll. You can unhook the red air line. That is also called emergency air line. Remove this red emergency io we found the parts