Just some questions came up after the I70 crash in CO.

Drums may have (probably were) heat cracked before the kid even hooked to the trailer. And no reasonable person expects a driver to check drums for heat cracks in a pre-trip. Furthermore, I would argue that pouring water on a hot drum like the fire fighters did might make it crack even if it wasn;t cracked prior.

The heat of the fire might reduce lining thickness somewhat. Pouring water on a hot drum might also change the diameter of the drum which would affect brake stroke. We're only talking fractions of an inch between legal and not legal brake stroke measurements.

 

I know how I do it, I am asking those thatthink you have to use the clutch.
I drive on grades much steeper than anything ever seen on the big roads.
Shifting both up and down, is not really an option, and neither is using the clutch for a couple of reasons.
Where I drive, some hills you not only slow down at the top, you ease over the top and then stop for a bit to make sure no one else is coming up before you bail off.

There is a good chance, his defense will be a court appointed shmuck, that is not even sure what a truck is.

 

Me and you will have to agree to disagree. I believ depends on the steepness of the grade, and the speed. But if a driver is in trouble he better check his RPM's before sliding it into eutral, if he's say up around or over 1500 he would be we advised not try and shift . But to leave it in gear.

 

Idk why people keep calling him a "kid".
23 isn't a "kid". It's jusy a media tactic to instill compassion on the perpetrators. Like when "teenagers" (18+) do violent crimes/robberies.

 

in the trucking world, he's a kid.

Look around, most of us are in our 40's and 50's. There are not a whole lot of 20 year olds coming up.

 

I firmly believe the reason he didn't take the truck ramp, TWICE, is because he didn't speak enough English to comprehend the signs. The English proficiency test administered to truck drivers is a JOKE.

"What's your favorite food?" Seriously?

The English proficiency test should consist of a hundred questions, mostly involving road signs, and if you don't know "WEIGH STATION AHEAD" or "RUNAWAY TRUCK RAMP," it's an automatic fail.

 

A really good chance. Hopefully the go fund me page helps to hire an expert on brakes because this is where the case will be won or lost

 

He’s got less than 2 yrs experience and only an interstate trucker for about a week fresh out of the flatlands likely his first time downa mountain geez. I doubt if you would’ve done better under those ridiculous circumstances. There is plenty of blame to go around here and he’s shouldering more than his share. Look at the company and the people that licensed him to drive in all 48. I wonder if the insurance company even knew he was hired

 

there's only 1 runaway truck ramp on that downhill.

 

i don't see where there will be enough money to defend him, let alone hire some expert(s).

i also feel that if he makes bail, he will leave the country.