Old truck stop on the west side of Tucumcari NM

One of them up there off 40 was a pretty good stop back in my time. For what's its worth. You learned to sort out the riff raff that always wound up there. In other words, in eat food get out. We stopped using that stop in the early 2000.

 

Used to stop there, good food,and they were also a distributor for Shell Oil. I would buy a 55 gallon barrel of Rotella from them when I had room on my trailer,for some reason he was way cheaper than anyone else.
Also use to stop and have a beer sometimes at a little bar right up the street on the other side,in towards town. Forget the name,something to do with the RR iirc. The siding,caboose,something like that........Been a lot of years.
Like he said,wasn't much there for truck stops back then. Interstate wasn't built yet,and you had to go through town. When the interstate finally bypassed town,was the beginning of the end.

 

When you sit in the parking lot, if the wind is just right, turn your truck off and listen. You will hear the ghosts of engines past. 318 Detroit screaming out on the street, the unmistakable idle of a 425 Claterpillar. You will hear someone leaving grabbing gears, like 10 or more shifts before he gets to the interstate ramp....

 

Shell truck plaza, been there many times, the shop was run by another guy, then his son later on.
The same guys had a truckstop in Az, even had a gym upstairs and some hot tub or jacuzi rooms iirc. I don't remember the exit, though.

 

Before the bypass was built, you could plan on sitting for15-20 minutes at a red light because the locals would in a long line, march back and forth through red and green lights making you wait until you ran through them to get going again. Aholes by the dozens. My mistake, l meant Gallup New Mexico.

 

I would stop at the road runner truck stop in the 80's an early 90's when I ran cali. it was a great place to eat. petro was just starting up at that time an the old 76's was closing up.

 

You talking about this one,