Life in North Dakota "Man Camps"?

I definitely felt like the weight of the trailer was pushing me into the slide and causing the turning tractor to fold up underneath me! It was not a pleasant feeling! And yes, I probably compounded the situation by panicking and letting off the accelerator (hence, the need to downshift)!

I keep trying to tell myself to power across the ice, not creep and slide. I mean, it makes sense that if the tires are losing traction on patches of ice, keep the truck momentum going and get across it at a constant rate. Basically, get to the point where I have traction again! But, this is the book worm part of my brain talking... before my fear takes over! My fear of dieing (or ending my career with an accident) overrides all rational thought, I panic, and I try to slow or stop the vehicle. This usually results in a slide, which scares me more, and then I'm just a mess riding the rumble strip at 10 MPH until another driver rescues me on the CB!

I always try to watch the trucks around me... and check whether or not they have chains on... I try to drive at (close) to the same speed they are driving. I mean, if an empty flat bed is cruising across the ice without issue, there's no reason I shouldn't be able to do the same with a loaded trailer, right???

BTW, this deserves a huge shout out to all the drivers who have talked me through the areas where I'm clearly scared! My company has a dedicated CB channel, but when driving in ice and snow, I always switch to channel 19. Thank you to all the truckers who have seen my panic, and taken the time to slow down and talk me through the difficult spots! You guys are truly awesome, and my gratitude is endless!!! People like you make the world a better place for everybody!

Back to the empty flatbeds on the ice...

I figure that if an empty flatbed can make it across the ice, I should be able to with a loaded trailer. I mean, I usually have 30 tons of fly ash behind me, and so I should have greater traction than the flat beds do... until I hit that canyon between Grassy Butte and Watford City.

I know not to use the jack brake through this area when the roads are slick, but coming down this canyon (towards Watford City), I feel like the trailer is pushing me so hard, I can't stop the vehicle. Sometimes I feel like this when the roads are dry AND I have the jake brake on!! When it's slick or icy, I completely panic because I have so much weigh pushing me down the hill. I'm afraid to hit the brakes because I think I'll slide, and there's no guard rail to keep me from flying over the edge (my Dad did recently mention that a guard rail would be useless against that much weight, anyways... but still...). This is an area where "when in Rome, do as the Romans do.." doesn't help because the flat beds I'm watching don't have 30 tons of fly ash pushing them down the hill!!!

If I can't use the jake brake in this situation, nad I can't hit the brakes because doing so may throw me into a slide, should I downshift and let the engine compression hold the truck and trailer back? Isn't doing this the same as using the jake brake??? And, they say to steer into the direction of the slide (get the tractor and trailer in line again). But, what if steering into the slide is steering towards the cliff? I think the desire to survive would cause me to steer away from danger and punch it to regain traction (and head towards a solid wall of dirt to crash into)???

I'm sorry if these questions seem really stupid... I really like the company where I work. I don't want to go home just because it snows! I want to learn to drive in this stuff and not be a danger to others on the road around me!!

One other question...

I now know when picking up the tractor tag axle to put more weight on your drives is beneficial, but are there circumstances where doing so is a bad idea?? Is there a time, or circumstances, where I want more weight on my steer axle???

Thanks!!!

 

Sorry. I must not have explained clearly....

I pull an empty trailer from Williston to the power plant, load, and then come back to Williston. The point where the truck went into a slide was northbound on 85 towards Williston. I was loaded. I picked up the axle to put the weight of the loaded trailer back on the drives and recover from the slide. And then, I dropped them again. I know not to drive with the tractor tag axle down when I'm empty because it lifts the weight off my steer/drive axles....

 

Would I have better control of the tractor-trailer in ice and snow, if I drive with the tag axle up? I don't care if it's illegal. Id rather risk getting a ticket than killing somebody! What's the "downside" of driving a loaded vehicle with the tag axle up (besides a ticket?). Is there a time when having more weight on the steers is beneficial???

 

I don't know how to explain...

The whole intersection was ice. I had 30+ tons of fly ash. I had to really gun in to get truck moving (the tires were slipping), and I was going through gears to keep up momentum. As I styarted into the turn, the weight of the trailer began pushing on the cab. It felt like the cab was folding under the truck as the weight shifted onto the left steer tire. I freaked, let up on the gas, decided that was a bad idea, and gunned it again. The "jerking" of gas, clutch, brakes, bunny-hop... hop... hop... almost stall... gun it again.. with all the weight collapsing onto the steer tire sent me into a serious slide. I panicked...

 

Well, if there's one thing the oil fields are teaching me, it's how little I know about trucking!!! Every day I'm amazed by the sheer volume of things I know nothing about!!! Tag axles, suspension gauges, sliding the fifth wheel, the math involved in "guess-timating your weight, and still being accurate enough to not get an overload ticket! Plus the various ways different axle combinations and fifth wheel positions make the trailer track behind you, and the adjustments you have to make in order to prevent running over your company's mail box. Yes, they are still upset with me about the mail box incident!

Add driving in areas congested with anxious four-wheelers and all the stupid things they do. I'm rready to declare, unequivocally, that the time I spent running around the country, holding a steering wheel in escorted convoys shouldn't even be counted as experience on my license!!! It was more like driving a very big car behind a posse!!! LOL!!!

I'm still nervous taking sharp corners in congested areas, especially when I'm loaded. However, I'm doing better shifting on the steep inclines, despite the smaller margin for error for shifting (or to recover a missed gear). Going down a steep incline still freaks me out because I feel like the trailer is pushing me out of control. And, I still panic when the dirt haul road gets slick because I feel like the tractor is slipping out from under me. Thank God the ice and snow are over (for now)!

I've become pretty good at maneuvering around the power plant in the truck I was used to driving. However, this week my supervisor threw me a curve ball when he placed me in a truck with a different wheel base/fifth wheel slide length vehicle. The first day driving this vehicle, I ended up off-set about 12" when I pulled under the loading bay. I was a little perplexed by the mistake, but after I was loaded the power plant guys explained that I didn't cut out of my turn fast enough to swing the trailer back to center. I got it aligned perfectly, and on the first try, today!!! Yeah!!!

I'm starting to understand the pieces of information I gleen from conversations with my supervisor, and put those pieces together into the bigger picture. I like that he doesn't just tell me the things I "need" to know... for instance, instead of just saying to put the tag axle down when I'm loaded, he will throw pieces of info in, like the pusher axle gauge should read 50 to 52 psi. If it's lower, I'll be overweight on my drives, but if it's too high, it could cause a roll-over or get me an overweight ticket And, raising the tag axle in squirrelly situations wiill put more weight on the drives and allow better control! And, the adjustment knob is that black thing under the driver's door, so don't kick it with my feet when I get in, and out of the truck. And, always check the gauge, regardless whether or not I think I kicked it...

Honestly, alot of this information meant nothing until he repeated it enough times, and I encountered enough situations where it started to make sense to me! Had he only told me to put the axle down when I was loaded, I would have wrecked the truck or got a ticket by now!!!

Today, I learned that the unloaded trailer I was pulling wasn't hopping and skipping when I braked because the brakes were out of adjustment. It was doing that because I was leaving the rear tag axle down when it was empty!

I'm also learning more about how to address difficult situations when other people are involved. Specifically (in the words of my supervisor), how to Cover My ###!!! I'm (clearly) not perfect, but when I make mistakes, I own up to them. I figure honesty is the best policy. Lying about something only prolongs the problem, and it will eventually ricochet back to you anyways so you may as well just fess up and save others the drama.

Well, other people are not so quick to take responsibility. And, I'm learning that others will lie, especially when their jobs are at stake. I've never encountered this situation before, and so I was a wreck when I picked up a damaged trailer. I didn't damage it, but how do you prove you didn't do something?? And, I didn't know who damaged it??? What to do??? What to do...???

I stressed on the situation for hours before I told my supervisor. I felt like I was being a snitch, but I didn't want to be blamed for damage I didn't cause?!? Apparently, I'm not the first truck driver to find myself in this situation. There are already protocols firmly established to address this exact situation!
Write up the damage in the Daily Inspection Report. Photograph the damage. And (this is the part where I struggle because I'm scared someone will get ugly and start pointing fingers), calmly inform the person responsible for the facility that you noticed the trailer was damaged before you take it. That's it!!! Cover My ###, and no drama involved! Hooray! I could have saved myself hours of heart ache had I just called in the morning, rather than wait half the day and get my panties in a knot with worry!!!

That's about it for the update! Been meaning to update sooner, but ran out of data on my internet package. Had to wait until I got paid before I could post anything!!