Snackbar's new adventure at Moore Freight Services

Rolled thru the house after unloading in Orlando. Did a 36, just in case I am asked to go to Canada, and unloaded a bunch of stuff I didn't think I will need. Enroute I get a beep on the Peoplenet...I play it, Church Hill to central MI, but no return destination. Then 2 min later, another beep...same load, only with a return to Church Hill. Then, 5 min later, another beep...my DM, saying I am NOT going back to Church Hill after all...then I asked a stupid question (I thought, given the over all lack of planning lately)...I asked "do they know where I am headed, or will I have to wait to see where I am needed most on Friday?" (I wanted to ask a little differently, instead of saying "needed most", I wanted to ask which yard was going to have the most available parking). Turns out, after MI, I head to Rossford OH to live load going to Laurinburg. Been here 20ish months, and prior to my time off, I think I had loaded 2 or 3 loads, since coming back to work, this Rossford load will make it 4 or 5 in the last couple months. Not that I mind though, it makes me an extra $100 for every glass live load, and with the way freight has been, I'll take every $100 I can get. And this one will be easy. I am taking 6 packs of 130" x 204" glass to MI, then reloading 5 packs of 130" x 204" glass in OH headed to NC(only slightly thinner). Don't have to change anything, just secure the removable supports in place and roll.

 

The company is dangling a carrot in front if me. They have some sort of deal in the works out in Cali. You go out there for a month+ and run up and down the west coast, and according to my DM, this includes western Canada...the only caviot is, you have to trade to a new(er) truck with an APU, ie an Anthem. Now I have been BMW'g for more miles. I usually run 4-6-8 weeks at a time, and I would love to see the western provinces of Canada, but I am not entirely comfortable with driving one of those Lego-nanny braking no storage space Anthems. My DM asked if I would like to go out there, and I said I could IF they had an empty Pinnacle with an APU. I know they have been putting APUs on some of the newest Pinnacles that were under a certain mileage. I am waiting to hear back from him today to see if any are available. They waited until 4:30 in the afternoon to ask.

 

This customer has unique toilets, 1st time I have seen these. Instead of a lever you pull or a motion sensor that flushes and washes your butt every time you move, they have a "wave your hand" sensor on top of the tank like the paper towel dispensers at the Peelot...although, I hate the whole room motion sensor lights they have. If you don't hurry and finish your business, you're in the stall, in the dark. Now all they need to invent is a methane detecting under seat exhaust fan...as soon as it senses your 1st pressure release it sucks it right out from under you.

 

Friday was a looooooong day. Got to my delivery and a Combined Transport was in the dock about 1/2 way done. So, I lined up and got my tarps pulled so I was mostly ready to go once I got backed in. On the 2nd pack of glass they took off my trailer, the almost brand new primary unloading crane took a crap right at the worst possible place. They have a 2nd crane on the same rails, but it is for moving glass from the racks to the cutting tables...and the unloading crane was right beside the tables. He had forward/backward and up/down control, but as he got it part way into the isle between the racks, the side to side control quit. They called the crane people, and they had to come all the way from Detroit. An hour later, they were working on it. After a while, they couldn't get it fixed, so they unlocked the drive system and moved it sideways with a come-along far enough that the guy could set the glass in a rack and get the crane out of the way. Then use the production department's crane to finish unloading me. 7 hours to unload. Then, I had to drive 90 miles to the Rossford, OH Pilkington plant and do a live load. Inside the Rossford loading bay it was 105° and no air moving. Once they start loading, it's like pouring concrete, you don't stop until it's done. That was as close to heat stroke as I have ever been. I think the only thing that wasn't soaking wet with sweat were my shoelaces. I rarely get affected by heat, but I had gotten to the point of getting queezy and not sweating...but I finished getting the tarp on my load, bungied it tight enough to hold, parked, changed clothes and cooled down in the truck for an hour or so, then tied everything down right. At 5:30 this morning, rolling down the road just south of the southern 475/75 jct, it was still 80°.

 

We get detenion only on AGC loads. Thankfully, the last 2 long unloads were AGC. Pilkington loads don't pay detention no matter how long you're there...some sort of deal they made years ago to get the contract

 

They do have me set up thru Monday. I drop this Rossford load at the Laurinburg plant, pick up an empty flatbed trailer and take it to Church Hill. Then bobtail to Mascot and pick up a new double drop and take it back to Laurinburg. Adds a little over 600 miles.

They decided not to switch me to another truck and send me to Cali just yet. I still can't get an answer to why they insist that only the new trucks go out there. The only thing I can think of is that the Pinnacles are leased and the Anthems are owned and they have a mileage limit on the leased trucks. All our Pinnacles are clean air certified so we can idle as needed out there, so.......