Indiana on my Mind

Back in Whiteland, IN. Got the same run that I got last week from Mt. Vernon, OH to Columbus, IN. Same shipper, same consignee, more $$$$.

When I emptied and sent the POD on the QC, they offered me a run from Paris, IL to somewhere in MI. 124 deadhead miles from Columbus to Paris and 431 miles to MI. Delivery was direct which means as fast as I can get it there.

As much as I wanted the money, I turned it down. It would have meant driving a total of 896 miles without any sleep. I figured the mileage would be more since their mileage figures are always low. Bottom line was that it wouldn't be safe.

After I turned it down, dispatch said that they were prepared to talk me out of it because of the safety issue. They had to offer it though since I was #1 on the Indy board. Didn't lose my board position though. They said they weren't going to penalize me for being tired. Looks like this company actually does care about the contractors that drive for them.

Kenworth, The Praying Mantis and the Battery Box Cover

Started the day #1 on the dispatch board. At 11:06 dispatch calls with a local run from Hebron to Chillicothe. You don't loose your board position when the run is local, so I figured what the heck and took it. Got paid for all the deadhead miles.

As I get in the truck, I notice a praying mantis on the right front fender. I hate these bugs so I don't mess with it figuring that the wind will blow it off. Start driving on the freeway and the mantis does a pretty good impression of a surfer and slides onto the windshield. So here I am trucking down the highway at 70 MPH with a praying mantis doing obscene things to my windshield. I couldn't believe it, but the wind is not blowing him off.

His backside doubles back over itself and I thought, OOOOHHH that's got to hurt!!!! Nothing. He's still there doubled over butt and all. I get to the pick up in Hebron, still there. Does he take the opportunity to bail while the truck is stopped??? Noooo, not this guy.

The "load" is a 25lb. box with a battery box cover in it for Kenworth in Chillicothe. I figure Kenworth is just as buggy as my passenger to pay this kind of money to have a battery box cover delivered. What the heck, not my problem.

So, I take off. I considered knocking my passenger off the windshield, but I thought "no I want to see how this plays out." I take the back roads towards Chillicothe, and decide to give my buddy a name. "Evel Bugevel" He's still there bent butt and all, but he's inching up the windshield towards the top of the truck. The last I see of him is his leg as he makes it to the body of the truck over the windshield.

I arrive at Kenworth. After signing in at the guard shack and getting my security pass (I considered asking for one for EB) I check the front of the truck. HE'S GONE. WHAT HAPPENED TO HIM?????? IS HE OK????

With a heavy heart I deliver my "HOT" battery box cover and head towards home crestfallen that EB left me to carry on alone.

I arrive home and the dogs and I hold a small but tasteful memorial service for EB just in case he's splattered all over a windshield somewhere, but I prefer to think that he just moved on to his next stunt. So if anyone is travelling in Ohio and you all of a sudden have a bent butt praying mantis doing obscene things to your windshield, tell EB I said hi and to please write home.

No Load for the Weekend

Sat at the Pilot in Minooka, IL until 14:00 and was still #3 on the Chicago board which was exactly where I was Friday night.

Decided to deadhead home rather than spend the weekend there or in a motel. Had enough fuel in the tank to get home anyway. If I had used some of the fuel to idle and had to buy some at this Pilot the cost was $3.03 gal. I noticed when I got about 10 miles south of Gary, IN the fuel cost at the Flying J and Pilot was $2.75 gal.

Now I'm #2 on my home board, so I'll be sure to get out tomorrow. Possible that I would get out today but Sunday loads are rare in expedite.

Drive Shafts for Cat

Delivered 1400 lbs. of drive shafts to the Cat plant in Joliet, IL this afternoon. There were only 10 of them in a small metal tub like pallet. The shafts were only about 2 feet long. Have no idea what type of vehicle they would be used on.

Spent an hour sitting in traffic on I80 waiting to pay a 60 cent toll. Then bumped into another jam caused by two big trucks going 20 MPH in both westbound lanes. Supposedly they were protesting the cost of diesel fuel. Don't know if any troopers busted up their little protest, but the CB was alive with comments, most of them not fit for this blog.

Hopefully, I'll get a load today as I don't relish the thought of sitting at this truckstop all weekend.

SUV vs. Two Big Trucks

SUV lost. I don't know how he did it but he was bouncing off the rear tandems of the trucks. One truck jacknifed in the left lane and the SUV came to rest against the tandems of the second truck in the right lane. There were parts of the SUV everywhere on the road. I even saw brake shoes on the road.

Add $300 to the week for a run from Mt. Vernon, OH to Columbus, IN. Used only 12 gallons of fuel even with the A/C running the whole way.

Only problem was the hour and a half it took to do 29 miles after that accident. Still made the appointment on time though. Sitting at the Flying J at Whiteland, IN. #3 on the Indy board, so should get a load by noon.

Short Run

Ran a short one today to get dispatch out of a jam. Started the day at #3 on the Columbus load board which usually means getting a load out between 13:00 and 15:00. Dispatch called at 10:00. Run from Mansfield, OH to Sydney, OH. 118 paid miles, 60 mile deadhead.

Some quick math tells me that I'll still make money so I tell them I'll take it. They ended up paying me for the whole 60 mile deadhead. Would have been only 10 since the first 50 is free, so I made a little more. Every little bit counts.

I've learned that in expedite, you don't turn anything down as long as you make a profit on the load. There are no guarantees that a longer run will be available, and there were two vans ahead of me on the board anyway.

Up side is that I'll sleep in my own bed in the A/C so I won't be idleing to keep cool. It was 95 here today. Also, the Idlebuster install was approved today so hopefully I'll be able to get it installed ASAP and my idleing days will be over.

Back on the Road

So here I am running the road again after losing my lease. I saw it coming for the last couple of weeks I ran with them so I wasn't too surprised when the driver coordinator called me in for a "meeting".

He started spouting about the current economic climate making it necessary to make changes, etc, etc. I told him to cut to the chase as I had better things to do than talk to him. (He's a total jerk) He said that I should look for another carrier to lease with since they had to downsize their O/O fleet due to some lost accounts.

It's a lie, but there was no sense arguing with the likes of him. I've seen this many times before. A carrier will terminate the leases of O/O's with a higher CPM and replace them with others at a cheaper rate and junk equipment. I had recently seen some of their new "contractors". One had a 1985 truck held together with bondo. This "driver coordinator" has only been with the company for two months and has already got the reputation of being a hatchet man.

I had come to this meeting prepared and even though I wanted to rip his lungs out, I stayed with my plan. I produced a letter of resignation that I typed up the night before and said: "I had already decided to sign on with another carrier since I have not been comfortable with the way you have been running operations since you came with the company, and you just saved me the two weeks notice I included in the letter."

After taking an immense sense of satisfaction from the dumfounded look on his face, I turned in my ID badge and radio, demanded a receipt for same, and left. The terminal manager told me when I stopped by to pick up my final check that the jerk was still upset that he didn't get the last word.

I had set up a lease with Tri-State Expedited several days before that only needed signed before I could start running with them, so I'll have less time at home but the money will not stop coming in.

They say that when one door closes, another opens so we'll see how it goes.