first tike solo load experience

My first was a load of copper chips or something out of Helena Mt.

 

My first load was a 10' wide load of walls into a residential neighborhood. When I made my right hand turn the guy in the left turn lane actually leaned out of his window to see how close I was. Second load was a volvo A350 haul truck. Got nervous on the gravel road when I wanted to turn and the truck wanted to go straight. Then I remembered, "Pick up the drop axle dummy!"

 

My first load was concrete boxes for underground utilities. It was also a military load.

 

I never had first time jitters. Flatbeds don't scare me. If it needs more securement then use more securement. Then use more if you are at all nervous about it.

Vans scare me, half the time you can't see if anything is secured in them, don't know if things are moving, can't always tell where the weight is... Heck with that, the flatbed is much more secure feeling.

 

Two cat fork lifts, repower so used same contact points and securement the other guy had used. Almost broke my hand undoing snap binders used on the forks.
Learned 2 leasons, one use straps on the forks. Two, use breaker bar to loosen snap binders.

 

First? WAL... Im sitting on something that has to start with the preface "You wont believe this ####..." I was young my first year cherry out of school a few months and soaking up everything I was told. Ugh. ANY way, my first was a 5 minute chain/binder lesson in front of the shop using the two concrete and metal posts at the door in load securement. Then I was told to go away and get a chassis 40 footer with three more on it in total. Oh by the way, throw these chains and binders on them before I get em back to the yard.

Another account had me in a curtain side trailer which is essentially a flatbed deck, low boy wheels in the back, maybe 18 inches high and curtains on two sides of a box in the top and front/rear. We hauled auto glass from Kentucky to GM in Baltimore with it in the dead of mountain winter. Close but not quite flatbedding.

It's not exactly pure flatbedding but very close to terror that day. By the time I made it back the whole thing teetered and jingled loosely while swaying a bit in traffic. My first REAL flatbed load was a load of shingles with a canvas tarp under strap and wood. THAT was a much better experience than the chassis tower of terror.

To this day I never hauled a load in flatbedding without throwing everything on it, 20 chains and straps, rubber buffers, wood angles angle protectors and so on. Tarp straps times three on every hook all the way around. (Useful when you are in Lubbock fighting 60 mph storm winds able to take that big tarp across the highway...

First load in flatbedding is all well and good. I should rephrase that and ask you about the SCARY flatbed loading. Mine was a steel coil out Gary Indiana. It was something like 22 feet long, loaded eye long ways and just at the width of your trailer. 8 feet something yea wide and high. That thing was right at 52000 pounds on a aluminum ravens 48 footer which I think Tare put everything just around 80-81K gross. Tippy. Had a flyover ramp rated for 15 mph cars and I crept around it at 4 mph in terror feeling the outside wheels and tires come off the pavement towards the inside slope 100 feet above everyone seems like.

I almost quit that day for good. except for one big lesson. You can be scared ####less and very close to being catatonic but you must reach down deep and pull out the moxie and keep functioning. You will do it even if it kills you.

 

The rest of the time the doors are flapping in the wind?

 

Was I forgetting to close doors or something?

No, what I meant was that sometimes you can climb in and see what things look like and sometimes you can't do that.

 

Think he ment 100 percent of the time you cant see the load..... pesky walls and such

 

Yeah I just meant that sometimes you can check the load before leaving.