Magnum ltd - fargo, nd

So far Oregon has only had one area that sucks. Ladd Canyon. It went from dry, to left lane icy, to whole road icy for about 10 or so miles and a reduced speed limit of 30 mph. Meacham and Cabbage were clear and above freezing.

When did they raise the truck speed limit over here in OR? The last time I was here it was still 55

The Paccar motor isn't quite as strong on jakes as a Maxxfarce...yes, you read that right...not as good as a Maxxfarce. When I was at Poly, I could come down Cabbage 50-55 mph with 40-44k+ lbs, 95% of the time on jakes, only touching the brakes a couple times. This Paccar, does good, but not that good. 42k lbs and 45 mph touching the brakes a half dozen times just slightly to keep from over rev'ing.

 

So this load I recently mentioned where the 3rd drop rejected their portion was a mess. I was at the 3rd drop for 24 hours...in the dock. Going inside and asking for status updates (I did get to sleep through the night). There was back and forth about rather or not they would accept it. Finally, they decided they would not accept it. So I returned the load to the shipper.

I just have to commend everyone at Magnum working this behind the scenes. Communication was excellent. Especially for the system being down all day. I was calling the dispatcher for that load, the dispatcher for my next load (so he could know when I'd be available for my next load) and the person in charge of that particular customer to provide updates from my end. Chad (Operations Manager) took the lead and told me I only need to go to him for communication and he will disseminate to the proper people. That was very helpful.

When it came time to taking the product back, Chad just asked "when do you think you can get there?" I gave him a time (over-estimated a bit to be safe) and he said "ok I'll let them know". No questions or urging me to be quicker about it. I'm getting max detention time (10 hours) plus I was told they are looking into giving me a layover day (miles + $75), and counting an additional drop into the load (+ $30) which are both above and beyond.

The original shipper was very cordial when I arrived to return the product. They assigned me a door and unloaded, just like it was a regular delivery. No questions asked.

What could have been a horrible experience was neutralized by great communication and professionalism. People here, in my experience, are very reasonable and proactive. I didn't even put in a detention request. They called me to get my times this morning and made a point to make sure I was compensated fairly. This is the kind of service that makes me love this company. I don't have to beg for anything. Like I've said before, I hope I make their jobs just half as easy as they make mine. I can just focus on driving and making appointments on time.

For those of you reading through here researching companies, this is the kind of service you can expect as an OTR driver at Magnum. It's easy to come on here and share when things go sour. We all do it, and there's nothing wrong with getting the positives and negatives. But it's the good parts that normally go left unsaid that I think need to be spread. Though I do think there is an overall positive Magnum vibe here.

 

Ya, the paccar Jake's are pretty weak, but still enough to crash you on an ice patch. As for the speed limit, they upped it on portions of the 84 last year but most of the state is still 55.

 

I had a death in the family. Matt repowered my load so I can catch a plane home.
Leaving the truck and empty at a truck stop for a few days then I'll fly back here and be back on the road Monday.
Magnum was awesome about it. Just made things happen, no questions asked, told me to take all the time I needed. Thanks to Matt especially.

 

Well, Matt sent me a load I can't do legally...big shocker there I know. Bellingham WA to 2 stops, Oconomowoc and Melrose Park. Pick up after I deliver in the morning and the 1st stop is 8 a.m. Monday, 2000+ miles away, 295 empty from my delivery. I just ran 3400 miles in 7 days, and have 9.09 available, and get back 4 after tomorrow. If I were to make it somehow, that would make almost 5700 in 10, including weather slowdowns in UT and OR. When I wanted miles, I couldn't get them, now that I don't care anymore, it's a deluge(since home time that is. I only had 6600 last month because this load carried over into March).

 

Maybe he'll have you take it to Fargo and someone else will finish it off. I'd call Matt and be like hey... look at my hours. And then call nick and be like hey can you take this from me on the way through? Someone must have overlooked your hours, or they know you can't make it and are already planning on intercepting it. I was in a similar situation before and as soon as I called Matt, before I even said anything he was like "yeah I know, nick will be calling you shortly". I was like uhhh.. ok...? lol I dropped it off in Fargo. Some loads we weren't meant to complete when they're assigned to us. But at least your hours are getting maxed out, so that's good!

Edit: come to think of it, didn't you say this was your last hurrah? Are they having you stop in Fargo to turn your truck in? Sorry if I left out details... I'll have to go back and read.

 

Hard to fault the Paccar when you're coming down the mountain too fast. Supposed to be in 6th with that much weight.

http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/MCT/docs/EmigrantHill.pdf

 

I mesaged him with the hours issue, but I can't make Fargo soon enough to give someone enough time to deliver on time.

As for the turning in my truck, I haven't offically given notice, so unless they're gonna pull me out early, I think it's just a coincidence. Matt does this to me regularly, so it's not a new occurrence. I warned him with enough time for an appt change or a reassignment of the load. I did all I can, it's up to him from this point.

 

Hey teach...those posted speeds on the yellow sign are 'recommended' speeds...not speed limits. And I wasn't pointing the finger of blame...all I was doing was comparing this motor with a motor that people have claimed to have a weak jake. I found my Maxxfarce jake to be one of the better jakes, when driven as recommended by the manufacturer(pretty much everything else about that motor I disliked). This one's jake isn't bad, it's just not as strong as the Maxx when connected to similar gross weights. I have owned trucks with much worse (especially if you consider not having a jake in the comparison)

 

Didn't want somebody else launching it off the top in the wrong gear.

Recommended safe speed is a really, really good idea. Turn it into a non-event.