Where is everyone #5

I would love to apply but my doctor wont give me a medical after my heart attack. he claims that 34% function is not enough for commercial driving so I got to retire at 63 instead of 70 which was my plan.

 

I've always liked that area. I'd love to live out towards Golden. My favourite stretch of Hwy 1 is from Golden to Field.

 

I guess this is what happens when you get sent home on a bus...

 

BEASTR123 the next time you drive by the area, you will see the small pull out rest area. I called ahead and ordered 2 loaded burgers and 2 chocolate shakes, jogged to restaurant and got it. Left my trainee to watch the truck. Funniest thing was I came back to 4 cars now pulled in and parked by the truck, and she was showing a whole group of enthusiastic kids the truck and the loader we were hauling. Not being a huge pull out, and now a bit blocked in, i asked 2 of the cars to please move some, and they were happy to so we could get out. Only over width and over height today, not even over weight or length, what an easy day. Took a dozer down, and a grapple loader home. Since you guys know the kootenays, you will laugh at this. The sawmill in Castlegar is where the loader was delivered to by the original truck hired by Caterpillar. Well its not even a sister company to the mill it was supposed to go to. It was dropped off there, and nobody knew why. After three days of phone calls with cat they figured out where it was supposed to have been delivered to, and I was hired to haul it the 5 hours to the correct mill. It is brand new and shiny, and will sit in my yard tonight, get dropped off tomorrow morning about 10 minutes from my house. I'm tempted to just drive it there in the morning, and have someone come pick me up in my car. My trainee was nervous about loading it today, i said just drive it on, i am not screwing around with the retractable neck just to put a grapple loader on the trailer, once she had it on, she commented on how easy it really was. A big wheel loader is not going to have a problem going up the beaver tail. Just dump the trailer airbags, and drive it on, reflate the bags, look at the pressure gauge, and see how much weight is on the trailer axles, move it ahead or back a bit if not about the same as the drive tires weight, and chain it down. A quick call for 2 permits and gone. Days like this are great and so easy! The narrow ### winding steep hill into New Denver got interesting when we met a wide load coming up the hill lol. I told her to stop asap when i saw him coming up, he stopped to...we all got out and chatted for a moment, then my trainee ran down the road to the cars behind the other truck, and told them they would have to back up down the hill a ways, so he could back up just enough for them to go around him and continue on. Then while she did traffic control, he backed down the hill about 1000 feet or so till we came to a wider spot, where we could both move right to the edge of the ditch and get past each other, and continue on our way. I stopped and got my trainee, hopped back in the passenger seat and off we went. Have to love these really narrow and twisty roads down here. The grapples literally are over the center line, and over the edge of the pavement both. For you guys who know the area well, don't you just love the telephone pole at the intersection in New Denver right beside the Esso gas station. Getting around it with a wide load is always interesting, Heaven forbid they installed it back another 10 feet, so i wouldn't have to use every lane including the oncoming traffic lanes to get around it.

 

I get to retire in 6 more years at the age of 58. Sorry to hear about your heart, that sucks.

 

Ol Grubby asked me to extend his heartfelt condolences to U Martin

At least U've been able to move on and make the best outta a horrible situation

 

Those new trucks you're ordering will be barely broke in!

 

Ur carrying this to a whole new level. ...Geez, thought I was picky