Cross winds

you pretty much are in a bad spot.

If you get laid over, you are wrong for having driven in unsafe conditions.

If you park, you get harped on for not getting the load there.

You'll even get flack from other drivers.

http://www.thetruckersreport.com/tr...vice/190005-high-winds-and-shutting-down.html

 

I take it Matt is a new driver just entering the trking world so I for one would never give flack to any new drivers That was an excellent question he asked.

 

The winds this week were not much worse than what I dealt with 4 weeks ago. You pretty well beat the hell out of me for stating I was shutting down. And I only had 16,000 in the box when I did it.

It's a no win situation.

 

Pulling empty triples sucks a lot when fighting the wind. I have a heck of a hard time with them around Livingston Mt, on I-90. Almost looks like a snake moving its way forward with its tail flopping around in the back.

 

I put high winds in the same category as heavy snow, if I can't keep the trailer in the same lane as the tractor it's time to stop. the load be dam**d. it's my CDL and life, not the dispatchers.

I've had the whole road taken up by tractor and ,(lite),trailer in separate lanes due to wind and rain. I parked it before I hit some 4 wheeler.

 

Young drivers are on a roll with good questions. There are many factors to take into consideration, what type of load, if you have a dry van hauling 45,000 lbs of spent car batteries, then your center of gravity is lower your trailer will have a harder time tipping over. If you have a load that is high in the trailer and reasonably equal in weight top to bottom you will have a trailer more likely to tip in a high wind. Route is key, is there any alternate route you can take that will reduce the wind on the side of your trailer. If not and you do not feel safe driving pull over at a safe parking spot point your nose or tail to the wind, call dispatch tell them you are parked up due to unsafe wind conditions, climb into your bunk and sleep for your 10, then resume when the winds die down.

 

Anytime I do not feel safe I stop the truck till I'am convinced that it is safe to proceed I live in Mojave area and wind is a everyday event here. I have seen several 53' go over with little advanced warning. One driver was telling me he was not shutting down because everyone else pulled over he could handle it, 1/4 of a mile later we were pulling the windshield out so he could exit the cab sitting on the drivers door. A 45 mph cross wind can flip a tractor trailer.

It is a judgement call, if you hit anything, it was your fault and it was preventable. Your call your dispatcher is not there, so it is up to you to keep yourself and everyone else safe.

 

If you're sitting still and get blown over, you won't be at fault...You may not of even been in the truck at the time...

 

It was suggested I make a comment about my trip planning and what I did last week on account of this first major wind.

Had it a little bit of snow and freezing temps, we would have had a hummdinger of an Alberta Clipper shutting down the upper midwest plains for about a week.

http://www.thetruckersreport.com/tr...me-trip-planning-roll-dino-2.html#post2881460

 

It's good to CYA with a QC message as well, if available, so something is in writing, per se....