I was driving for my second time through Elk Mountain Pass in Wyoming yesterday.  The first time was before Thanksgiving and several trucks were turned over in the ditch.  This time I didn’t see any but the left lane was very icy.  Most trucks were going 40-50 miles an hour which I did only after I found out first hand by passing another truck just how slippery the left lane was.  Yes, my heart jumped into my throat as I said in a frighten tone,  HONEY, HONEY, WAYNE!! He quickly but calmly came to my side and said "ease off the brake" and a few seconds later I began to breath again.  That was the most frightening situation I have encountered since driving.  I have heard stories while at truck stops in Wyoming about this dangerous pass on I-80 and was told it shuts down alot due to bad weather but the respect I hold and will pass on will be " Slow down !!"  I certainly will.

This load of household from Anchorage to Arizona is over. Back to the normal daily grind of trucking in the Lower 48.
It’s refreshing to have your decisions confirmed. Like the decision to
leave Graebel. The Albuquerque
move coordinator really screwed up. Expected everyone else to do her
job for her. I arrived in Fort Defiance in the middle of the Navajo Nation
on the Arizona New Mexico border, a crew of three and a small truck
drive 150 miles one way and no one at Graebel has talked to the person
that’s moving. Long story short, I get more money for waiting around
and driving to Albuquerque, crew is highly upset having to leave at 5am
drive 300 miles for nothing. It took them till 7pm to unload and all I heard from the I/C (owner operator) that was doing the unloading was how much he’s worked and they’re not paying in a timely manner. He’s done 17 jobs this month and has only been paid for 6. Some from last month haven’t been paid and he’s got payroll to do on Friday for his crew.

I’m standing around watching the crew work hard in really hot weather
talking to the Operations Manager (who’s also standing around) and
after I tell him I used to drive for Graebel, he tells me how Graebel
is desperately short on drivers. My two cents = Should have paid mo’ money. I was pretty happy with the Vegas agent. When they moved us to Corporate fleet, I got new people that handled all my stuff, like payroll, permits and such. I could walk into the Vegas office and talk to whoever was handling my account, I was helped and listened to. I’ve always preferred smaller companies.

Another one of our drivers is pulling recoveries (left-over household
shipments) for Graebel and hating every minute of it. The decision from my
dispatcher (ex-Graebel dispatcher), we’re not doing any more for them.
They even have another one of our drivers pulling a
Graebel trailer for one trip. It gets our driver to where his trailer is, so it works out.

One of the reasons we left was when we did a recovery, it paid more, but
sometimes it meant more waiting around to get loaded or unloaded, which
is why they paid more. We were supposed to get detention and layover,
but we find out that if that’s how they planned it, it’s not a layover.
Every time we would show up at a Graebel
warehouse with a recovery, everyone hates loading or unloading
recoveries. They’re usually
already
late when we pick it up and it becames a priority when one shows up on
your doorstep. Plus, instead of us taking it to the residence, they’d have to unload it into the warehouse, load it again onto a different truck and unload it at the residence. Major PITB.

My dispatcher and me were talking and we’re giving Graebel another couple of years before some kind of
restructure happens. Graebel in Anchorage says they’re three weeks
behind on their shipments and the one we took is the only one that will
be on-time in a very long time. It’s almost a sure bet we’ll have something out
of Alaska next time if we plan it right.

Living in Vegas, tradeshows help in getting us back home. This one we loaded in Chicago for some kind of snack or vending show. We were one of five trucks for the Pepsi booth. This is a portable dock a forklift is used to push it up against the truck then drive back and forth unloading.

The inside already mostly unloaded. Ramps are tied up high and blocks for the trailer wheels on the left and a small deck in the back. Driving around inside a building is always fun!

1 Comments

• At November 18, 2005, Aaron wrote:

  Man.. you guys DONT hit the docks!

  Just go ahead and drive through the door!

Well, almost… Vegas fixed the truck, good enough to get it down the road and deliver the load. Then back in the shop. I feel like driving back to Vegas and driving this truck down their throats. But I really don’t want them touching it again, ever. The plan (at the moment) is to deliver this, go to a Volvo shop in Maryland, if they’re not busy and can look at it right away, then if it can be fixed in one or two days, we get it fixed. If not, we limp to Minneapolis, put it in the shop out there and hang out with family until after Thanksgiving. We’re still going to try and be in Minnesota for Thanksgiving one way or the other.

This wasn’t supposed to be about Adventures in getting wayne’s truck fixed! It is part of trucking and part of doing business. But these things happen, we’re looking forward to getting this fixed and get driving. We’re in Virginia and deliver near Dulles Airport on Tuesday.

On I-40 on the Arizona and New Mexico border there is an exit with a rest area, an Indian trading post and a small truck stop. This cliffs are above the trading post and they put all sorts of animal figures up on the cliff. It was kind of tourist but kind of neat too.
These are just some cool clouds, I believe on I-80 in Wyoming. Remember you can click on the pictures to make them full size.

After our Alaska trip I ran a short haul back to Vegas. We’re moving Cindy’s son’s family from Vegas to Minnesota. We received the full retail price of a move with no middle-man. The owner of the company we’re leased to said that since it’s family he doesn’t want anything from us. This worked out really well. A good trip and Cindy spends time with granddaughters. I don’t do household much, for one thing, I’m not very good at packing the truck "high and tight". Loading in Vegas was worse than a sauna in the trailer and it’s not the neatest, but everything should be okay. We’re hoping for more help once we’re in Saint Cloud.

We’ve got the granddaughters in the truck and they are very well behaved. The truck is perfect for the kids to play in the back, watch movies and take naps.  We get a motel every night and it’s a leisurely drive.

Lately, I have to realize that we’re really working. We’re probably not making the most money we can right now, but we’re having a great time. Two weeks in Alaska, a week helping family and the next trip may be to Nova Scotia on the extreme east coast of Canada.

The truck is acting up and it’s more of an inconvenience and a pain in the butt, but nothing major right now and I want to put it in the shop for a few days while we’re in Minnesota. I’m really tempted to start shopping for a new one.

Click on image for a larger view. I’m not sure how often I’m going to upload a map. I thought I’d see how I could get it to work this time. We should be in LA sometime next week.

2 Comments

• At November 14, 2004, Amy & Martijn wrote:

  Hi there- That's really cool to see where you're headed this week. Have a nice and safe journey!

  Love,

  Amy

• At November 16, 2004, Linda wrote:

  I like the route idea. Gives me something to talk about with Ed's mom and soothes my curiosity. Be safe.

While we were waiting to get loaded in Van Nuys, CA we took a walk. Not expecting anything but an industrial area around the airport, we ran across The 94th Aero Squadron Headquarters. It was a restaurant made to look like an old french villa from WWI with biplanes and vehicles sitting outside. We went in for a drink and enjoyed the old pictures and memorabilia inside. With big band music playing we sat by the window watching airplanes take off and land while the sun was setting. Van Nuys is a small airport, but it had a lot of business jets, plus a couple of AT6 WWII planes were taking off and landing. It was very upscale inside with seating outside. After sunset the fire pits and candles on the outside tables were lit. The entire place was really cool. You would have never expected it in an industrial area at the end of a cul-de-sac.

UPDATE: Check out this link for more pictures.

1 Comments

• At December 14, 2004, Michelle Bay wrote:

  Oh my God! This is very cool. You better call me on your way back to Reno! You look like you are really having a good time. I want you to take me for a ride when you get here!

  Hugs & xxxx,

  Michelle

If you click on the pictures you’ll see all the ballons lifting off the ground near Gallup, NM (two weeks ago). I didn’t know hot air ballons come in different shapes now. There’s one shaped like a cactus and it’s hard to tell from the picture but there was one shaped like a goldfish with fins that was pretty cool. This was right next to the interstate and the pictures were taken while we were driving by.

Keep this truck agoing!!! Wow, is there a mechanic out there that can help? The loud grinding noise is gone after several new parts but now can’t shift into a gear without missing several times. We are wondering if an automatic transmission will be the best choice for the next truck? Sure its GREAT not shifting but not worth it if not driving. We left Las Vegas Friday morning and arrived in Virginia Sunday afternoon. We did some teaming and that seemed to work good. Tennessee was beautiful!!! My first time through that state and I was amazed by the rivers, rolling hills and all the greenery plus the weather was perfect.