Swift - Starting the New Year training with Swift 1/7/13 - A long read...

Thanks Inkeper!

 

Officially I'm back with Swift...

So I'm back in with Swift. I made it just under the deadline whereby I would have to reapply and go through a more lengthy process. Instead the process of getting back in with Swift consisted of a "reinstatement" since my actual date of self-termination was within 1 month. I am thankful for that because if I had do a complete application and orientation all over again I may have applied to other companies. Since Swift made it easy I'm coming back here for now while I look at other opportunities.

My plan is to get a Hazmat book or find one online that I can study so I can get that endorsement. I also need the double/triples endorsement. Once I get these I think I will be that much more appealing to other companies. And with the HazMat I can make more money. It's about that time to make more money and start moving up in this field.

Right now I'm calling Richmond daily to wait on a new truck. Keeping my fingers crossed for a decent truck, hopefully another newer Prostar. So far they have nothing. My terminal leader mentioned something about Greer, SC but I don't really want to pick up a truck that is not local since I would prefer to just move a lot of my things back into a truck here, where it would be easier. I'm going to try and simplify what I keep in my truck this time around but I still have a decent amount of things to bring along. It took a few days to get my medical card attached to my WA state CDL since I faxed it to them instead of doing it in person. It's attached now.


Planning for a new trip starts now...

I'm kind of sad my adventure is over but I'm ready to get back on the road, start saving for the next one and I'm going to start planning it while I drive. I met a lot of other solo motorcyclists that are traveling to much more distance places. They are on a budget as well so I know a more extended adventure is doable. I was coaxed along to join some of them but it wasn't in my budget, as appealing as it was. Next time, to simplify, I'm going to make sure that my DOT physical is up to date when I return so I don't have to go through this whole mess again.

There is a new ferry running from Panama to Columbia. I have a few new friends that are heading to the tip of S. America and they are using this new ferry option. It is much more affordable than the alternatives of using a sailboat like the Stahlratte, flying their bike or shipping it on a cargo ship. Those options run roughly around $900-1200. The ferry is about $180 U.S. dollars for the bike plus the fare for me. With that in mind, I think my next trip will be down to the tip of S. America, spending more time in Guatemala to visit with friends, less time in Mexico and some extra time in Columbia. I have already started the planning.


Summary of my adventure...

I had originally predicted to be back around December 2nd. I arrived on the evening of December 1st. I would consider this trip to be epic. It was a life changer.


Here are some stats:

- Rode for about 9 weeks for a total of around 11,000 miles (17,700 km);
- Top speed hit was 104 mph (167 km) while following and being escorted by federal police out of Chihuahua City;
- Got 1 flat tire (in San Antonio on the way down to MX), no breakdowns, topped off the oil twice, bent one rim and busted my fork seals (last day in MX thanks to a vicious pothole), and destroyed (severely softened) my rear suspension about one month into the trip;
- Went through 2 front tires (Tourance to Texas and had TKC80 installed - still on there);
- Went through 3 rear tires (Tourance to Texas, TKC80 installed, bought a rear Heidenau K60 in Guadalajara and installed in San Cristobal - still on there)
- Spent the night in about 52 different motel rooms, about 10 of which had no hot water, 6 had no electrical outlets;
- Parked in approximately 7 different hotel lobbys. Twice inside restaurants inside the hotel;
- Got stomach sickness a total of 0 times including brushing my teeth with tap water, taking my vitamins with tap water and occasionally drinking a glass of tap water. Caught a small cold twice;
- Spent the night in the jungle in Mexico in a room with no windows or full walls;
- Got drunk 1 time at a table in San Marcos, Guatemala with a transvestite named Hannah and a bearded old man named Merlin whom looked like a wizard;
- Saw 1 extremely large drug transaction/transfer at a small sketchy motel in Ciudad Cuauhtémoc near the Guatemalan border and possibly could in Ciudad Cuauhtémoc near the Guatemalan border and possibly could have come up missing thanks to a Canadian mate that had bad timing in taking out his cellphone;
- Saw 2 different ruins - Palenque in MX and Altun Ha in Belize;
- Spent time on the Pacific Ocean, the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico;
- Spent time in 4 different countries crossing 5 different borders. All border crossings were effortless generally and hassle free;
- Was pulled aside at approximately 7 different military checkpoints;
- Police attempted "la mordida", or "the bite", only 1 time - no bribe was paid (San Blas);
- Highest elevation was around 11,000 feet while traveling over the Guatemalan mountains to a festival;
- Saw 1 drunken horse race (Todos Santos Cuchumatan!!);
- Got beer sprayed all over me 1 time (at same Todos Santos listed above);
- Visited one semi-ghost town up in the mountains at 9,000 feet elevation (Real de Catorce);
- Broke one camera (Canon 20d falling off my seat in Texas BEFORE the border crossing);
- Lost one SPOT tracker off my bike in Texas (also in Texas before crossing MX)
- Possibly had 2 items stolen (a BMW emblem off the beak of my bike and a Chinese knockoff Yankees cap). This is still undetermined if actually stolen - they may have fallen off;
- Bought 3 shirts;
- Ran over approximately 16,000 topes (a guess). Fastest tope crossing speed was 70 mph/112 kmh. Highest tope was around 13 inches. Experienced about 8 different tope styles included the dreaded triple/single;
- Got 1 phenomenal tattoo in Guatemala;
- Had the opportunity to GoPro film 2 different Big Wheel Drifting sessions down a mountain leading to Lake Atitlan in view of volcanoes.
- Spent 1 night in the jungle in a thatched roof, windowless hut ("Margarita and Ed's" in El Panchan)
- Got purposely abandoned by 1 angry Canadian rider;
- Was officially drunk approximately 7 times and 1 time completely nonfunctioning drunk;
- Witnessed 1 day of wild crocodile sighting (San Blas);
- Sadly witnessed 3 dogs getting run over in front of me;
- Experienced 1 major road-closing protest. Resulting in 6 hours on the only major highway between Coban and Flores, Guatemala. However, made 7 international friends and 1 American from this occurrence;
- Rode through the Barranca del Cobre 2 times. A canyon deeper in some parts than the Grand Canyon and larger overall than same;
- Visited 1 partial ghost town (Real de Catorce); - Rode at night approximately 25 nights. (Not advisable but doable)
- Spent 1 day soaking in a river (Batopillas) and one day enjoying beautiful natural pools (Semuc Champey);
- Rode countless miles of off-road; Crossed two rivers via moto where the road had washed out;
- Dropped the bike a total of 2 times (1 time in mud in a park near Creel near giant ##### shaped rocks Valley de los Monjes and 1 time cutting through a funeral held in the street while trying to navigate a tope with concrete blocks obstructing it - with permission of course);
- Witnessed 3 mass protests in various Mexican cities due to the murder of 43 students;
- Witnessed 1 manta ray "sting" (San Blas with the French surfer girl);
- Tried to sneak into 1 town hall meeting and was escorted out to a gringo-friendly art gallery;
- Bribed 1 tuktuk driver to allow me to drive his tuktuk. Success. Friend sat in the back videotaping it while driver sat next to her. Nearly rolled back into 1 other tuktuk. Cut off another tuktuk driver and experienced 1 tuktuk driver shaking his head at loco gringo;
- Met 1 ex-Chicagoan that now sells street hotdogs and hamburguesas that fled the U.S. (in Juchitan);
- Was questioned at approximately 15 different checkpoints including military and police. 1 time at both military and federal policia within 1/4 mile of each other;
- Couldn't find cold milk (leche fria) 4 times in Guatemala;
- I met Mexicans, Guatemalans, Belizeans, Australians, English, Spanish, Dutch, American, German, Swiss, French, Kiwis, Chinese, Koreans, a Brazilian, Canadians, and countless indigenous.
- Tried fish for the first time (white fish from Lake Peten Itza in El Remate) - delicious by the way;
- Spent 1 evening drinking Belizean rum with a rasta that sold coconut water and taught me some patois, all in view of the Altun Ha ruins;
- The 4 most common questions I universally get asked are (in Spanish): Where are you from? Where are you going? What size is your bike? How much does it cost? Sometimes I am asked about how fast my bike is.
- I was never called "gringo" although I referred to myself this way.
- Made countless new friends along the way that I hope will remain in my life for the rest of my years. Andy "Spoons" the crazy Aussie traveling down to the tip of S. America in a heavily modified overlander Mercedes truck, to Benjamin and Jeff my new Big Wheel drifting tattoo artists friends, to Rosio my new Columbian friend and Flores restaurant entrepreneur, to Roland the crazy German living in Halifax traveling to the ends of the earth at the tip of S. America and to Brayde and Matt the two Seattleites pointing their 2 motos to Tierra del Fuego, to Richard Chang Jonfe my new Guatemalan friend and advisor to all things Guatemala, to Julio my buddy in San Cristobal de las Casas whom helped me locate the place to change my rear tire and rode with me down to Comitan and to Cisco Prahl my Guatemalan riding buddy and partner in Mexican crime. These friends made the trip more worthwhile than I could have predicted.


Here are a few observations I made about Mexico and Guatemala:

Although the people, the climate, topography and cultures are vastly different in these countries there are some common themes found in both places. I feel safer in Mexico and Guatemala than I do in any large American city or in any Motel 6 for that matter. Despite the ubiquitous bars on the windows and security I never felt unsafe anywhere in any of these countries (with the exception of a little sketchiness in South Belize City). The people are the most friendly and welcoming I have ever met and they all went out of their way to help me when I needed it. Family and, second, friends are the most important aspects of their lives. This is their center. They are hard-working, straight forward, honest and respectable and I believe they have honestly captured how life is supposed to be lived. Traveling solo is the only way to travel with the exception of a few days on the road with friends you meet along the way. Get lost everyday, all day, purposely and with an open mind. Pack light because whatever you don't have you can buy in Mexico, Guatemala or Belize. Cold milk is sometimes hard to find in the tiendas in Guatemala but that's ok - gives you a purpose to walk around more. Learn some Spanish, even if it's bad gringo Spanish. It is appreciated and shows an interest in them. Learn conversational Spanish and you will open up a whole new experience. Leave your comfort zone and go where the locals live, work and play - avoid the gringo tourist spots. Learn one song you can sing in English at karaoke. Eat street food and talk to those who have prepared it. If you have to travel at night, do it slowly or not at all. If you have a choice between the libre (free) and cuota (toll) roads, always always always ride the libre. It's cheaper, more scenic, more twisty and it cuts through those smaller towns you don't want to miss. Pass vehicles that slow at the topes. Watch for branches or piles of rocks placed in the road because a hazard is coming up. Left blinker on the highway from the vehicle in front of you usually means it's clear to pass the vehicle (or they are making a left, or they forgot to turn their blinker off, or...). Some things are cheaper in both places (habitacion, comida, etc.) Some things are more money (gasoline I think, some clothes, some pharmacy, American fast food which you don't want to eat anyway). Be humble. Be inquisitive. Be open-minded.

 

Yeah I may have to do this. Are they going to send me down in someones truck from the Richmond terminal?

 

I will make sure the bus is not the short type lol.

I was emailing my terminal leader today and he said the same thing about the bus. But we're trying to avoid it. After Christmas, if there are no trucks available here, I may have to bus down to Greer. Looking up the mileage it is a little over 400 miles from Richmond. That's going to be a pretty long bus ride. Keeping my fingers crossed that a truck shows up in Richmond.

 

No short bus for me because I got me a fancy new truck!

This morning I got a message on voicemail and email telling me some strings were pulled and they have a truck sitting up here at the Richmond terminal. I was out the door after a quick email reply and heading up to the terminal. The truck just got out of the shop. I'm not sure for what, I guess I should have asked but it wasn't on my mind. The only thing on my mind was that I had some new wheels.

Truck is a 2014 Prostar. I was told in the email that it was a 2015 which kind of piqued my interest as I haven't seen any brand new Prostars yet. As it is, the date of manufacture is January 2014. It has something like 93,000 miles on it and it's in relatively great shape. Inside probably has to be cleaned up a little before I move the rest of my things in but overall it is decent. There were a few scuffs on the side. Nothing big. The only real damage I could find was the passenger mud flap support is dented in like someone had either backed into something or was possibly rear-ended. I asked the mechanics if this would be a DOT issue and I was told "no". From what I can tell, it won't be. The mudflap covers the rear tires and is secure. So far the trucks I have driven (solo) with Swift have all been Prostars - a 2011, a low mileage 2014 and now this 2014.


I completed the truck inspection sheet, moved a few small things in and checked her over. After 2.5 months of not being in a semi, it was pretty exciting to be up in there again. I had to move it from the back of the shop to the bobtail parking and just moving it had me excited. Regardless of whom you drive for, I think the sensation of getting back into a big truck after some time off is kind of exhilarating. I'm going to be a little nervous hooking up to that first trailer but once I get under way it will all be back to the same experience I knew before. It is like riding a bike, you don't forget how to do it all. But the only difference in this is when we spend so much time in our trucks and in this job, every day 24/7, any significant time off is noticeably felt. When I have 3 or 4 days out of the truck it is no big deal. But months out and it feels almost new again.

I haven't heard back on who my driver manager is going to be. I asked that I start driving after Christmas, either the 26th or the 27th. The only downside I can see right now is that I am returning in to this during the slower freight season. I'm hoping that once I'm back out there that I can make my way back west so I can spend that first time off in Washington. My other bike is needing some love after sitting for 4 months.