xxiv24
Expert Expediter
One fine afternoon in Apr of '09, I find myself sitting in a truckstop parking lot doing the usual waiting for a load. My owner, at the time, calls and tells me that dispatch from Omaha wants me to do a load picking up in Houston, Tx 350 miles away from me and going straight through to some remote location in Utah about 20 miles west of Beaver.
I ponder this natuarally and blurt out the the most ignorant response i could muster, " What's it pay?" I asked curiously.
" The load pays 2475 all in."
And there you go. Like a drunk after 10-15 drinks, I had suddenly become invincible. You see, all thoughts of straight through and 350 mile deadhead to pick-up the load went screaming out of my left ear shortly after entering the right.
"Of course, I will. Throw it on me."
So, I set the course on my trusty Tom-Tom and make for Houston, Tx.
Picking up the load went smoothly and i immediately set out for Amarillo, where i planned to nap for about 4 hours before pushing on to my destination.
Being invincible allows me to do silly things like sleeping for 4 hours on a load nearly 1900 miles in total. But hey, this is it, my chance to be heroic is at hand. (Fool) This is where I learn that heroism and expediting do not even remotely mix well together...on with the tale.
My plan thus far is going smoothly, I arrive at a truck stop in Amarillo and flop in the back for my nap...snuggling up next to the 2700 lb genny that i am hauling.
It doesn't seem like i have slept at all when the screaming meanie blows me through the side of the sprinter. <a love to hate device, i assure you>
So, i hop out of the van make for the inside of the truckstop, and grab a hasty shower. The shower was meant to wake me up for the rest of the trip, i was so clever.
With a fresh scent and a renewed me i exit the truckstop to find that i have a flat tire. Setback. Fortunately i am in front of a repair shop, and the fellas inside pull the defunct tire off the vehicle and plug the tire with a plug kit. Putting that tire in the spare rack and the spare tire on the rim, i am now on the way a little over an hour behind schedule.
The rest of the journey across Az and Nm into Utah was largely uneventful. Aside from a few early morning headbobs that is.
I would regale you with the specifics of the route i took but i no longer remember the interstates and hwys taken the Tom-Tom does all of that for me, not that i can't read a map. I am just terribly lazy.
It is nighttime now and i have crested the top of a large mountain. Stopping at a rest stop at the top, i walk around a bit to let the cold air work it's magic on me. And it did...frozen tears, leaking nose, frost bit ears...and so on. Nearly frozen solid, i continue towards Beaver.
I think, upon reflection that this was possibly the most dangerouse stretch of road i had ever traveled. About a mile down the road was a caution sign warning of falling rocks. A mile further a sign for leaping deer, and then further still icy roads and the customary downgrade. At this point there were so many hazard signs i began looking for alien landings and spiderman.
Finally i make it to the wonderful town of Beaver and the final leg of my journey. I have about 27 miles to go to the end and i pull over at a truckstop to again pull in the air to awaken me. 14 mountain dews' no longer had any effect on me. I crawl back into the driver seat and look to the Tom-Tom and discover that it has found a short-cut. It saved 7 miles off the trip. Wow....7 miles. I plot it up and it literally pulls up a road called The Pass.
Bear in mind, that at this time it is nearing 3am eastern time when i start down this road. It is pitch black out and no moonlight.
The road takes me down a service road through Beaver and onto a single lane dirt road lined with cattle gates on either side. Ahead is a sign with a pic of a truck on it and below written words of last turning point. I shrug and tell myself, ha i am in a van, no problem. I continue on. After a few short minutes, i am out of town and rolling down this path seemingly into the heart of darkness. I can see nothing save for what my headlights show me and that was very little. A few tumble weeds and scrub was all there was to see.
Then after about 20 or so minutes go by i realize that i have begun to climb a hill. Pressing on the hill continues to get steeper and steeper until it becomes clear that this was no hill but a small mountain. Looking at the road i see that i only have perhaps 2" of road on either side of the tires and come to a switchback. This turn was nearly 90deg and i had to bring the van to a stop and manuever it around the turn. Ok this is getting silly, but way too late to turn back, so i press on. The higher i climbed to more frequent the turns up and around up and around i went. Also of note is that the road wasn't even a road to speak of. It was packed sediment like sand with cracks in it where previous streams of water had run through it. It was good luck for me that the ground was still frozen from the cold or i would have certainly sunk to the axels in it.
Because of the nature of this road i was on my speed was around 5-7mph. As i neared the top i noticed things getting white...snow? No way. Yup. Now i find myself at the top of a narrow mountain in about 2 feet fo snow.
There were no other vehicle tracks here. In fact, the only tracks aside from those that i had left behind, were the tracks of a rather confused jack rabbitt hopping about in front of me looking into my headlights from time to time.
Looking at my cell phone, I was pleased to see i had no service. So here i was at the top...likely looking like the grinch, his sleigh precariously balanced by his dog over the precipace of a very steep drop. What choice did i have, but to continue down and around. Slowly but surely i managed to make my way down the other side and back onto level ground.
The time is now 6:30 am. I come into a town a couple of miles from the delivery. A local gas station has just turned on the lights and i need fuel. So pull up to the pump, fuel up and stumble into the station. By this time, my eyes are bloodshot, my hair is disheveled and nearly standing on end, boots covered in dirt and snow, one pant leg pulled up and i am sort of stumbling.
There is a woman behind the counter counting her money for t
Staring blankly at her i nodded in affirmation.
" My sister took it last week," she looked up and smiled. " I wouldn't advise it of anyone."
With that i payed for my fuel, thanked her and went on down the road to my delivery.
On the way back i stayed to the highway this time and as the sun came up i could see that awful thing i climbed in the night. It sits out in the middle a a vast expanse all alone and peaks as though it were a pyramid of ghiza.
Early in this narrative i stated that the most ignorant response that i could come up with was how much does it pay? Well folks this story is why it was an ignorant question.
So on your journeys, if you find yourself on a load in Utah, just west of Beaver, for the love of God (or whoever you worship) do not take The Pass.
I ponder this natuarally and blurt out the the most ignorant response i could muster, " What's it pay?" I asked curiously.
" The load pays 2475 all in."
And there you go. Like a drunk after 10-15 drinks, I had suddenly become invincible. You see, all thoughts of straight through and 350 mile deadhead to pick-up the load went screaming out of my left ear shortly after entering the right.
"Of course, I will. Throw it on me."
So, I set the course on my trusty Tom-Tom and make for Houston, Tx.
Picking up the load went smoothly and i immediately set out for Amarillo, where i planned to nap for about 4 hours before pushing on to my destination.
Being invincible allows me to do silly things like sleeping for 4 hours on a load nearly 1900 miles in total. But hey, this is it, my chance to be heroic is at hand. (Fool) This is where I learn that heroism and expediting do not even remotely mix well together...on with the tale.
My plan thus far is going smoothly, I arrive at a truck stop in Amarillo and flop in the back for my nap...snuggling up next to the 2700 lb genny that i am hauling.
It doesn't seem like i have slept at all when the screaming meanie blows me through the side of the sprinter. <a love to hate device, i assure you>
So, i hop out of the van make for the inside of the truckstop, and grab a hasty shower. The shower was meant to wake me up for the rest of the trip, i was so clever.
With a fresh scent and a renewed me i exit the truckstop to find that i have a flat tire. Setback. Fortunately i am in front of a repair shop, and the fellas inside pull the defunct tire off the vehicle and plug the tire with a plug kit. Putting that tire in the spare rack and the spare tire on the rim, i am now on the way a little over an hour behind schedule.
The rest of the journey across Az and Nm into Utah was largely uneventful. Aside from a few early morning headbobs that is.
I would regale you with the specifics of the route i took but i no longer remember the interstates and hwys taken the Tom-Tom does all of that for me, not that i can't read a map. I am just terribly lazy.
It is nighttime now and i have crested the top of a large mountain. Stopping at a rest stop at the top, i walk around a bit to let the cold air work it's magic on me. And it did...frozen tears, leaking nose, frost bit ears...and so on. Nearly frozen solid, i continue towards Beaver.
I think, upon reflection that this was possibly the most dangerouse stretch of road i had ever traveled. About a mile down the road was a caution sign warning of falling rocks. A mile further a sign for leaping deer, and then further still icy roads and the customary downgrade. At this point there were so many hazard signs i began looking for alien landings and spiderman.
Finally i make it to the wonderful town of Beaver and the final leg of my journey. I have about 27 miles to go to the end and i pull over at a truckstop to again pull in the air to awaken me. 14 mountain dews' no longer had any effect on me. I crawl back into the driver seat and look to the Tom-Tom and discover that it has found a short-cut. It saved 7 miles off the trip. Wow....7 miles. I plot it up and it literally pulls up a road called The Pass.
Bear in mind, that at this time it is nearing 3am eastern time when i start down this road. It is pitch black out and no moonlight.
The road takes me down a service road through Beaver and onto a single lane dirt road lined with cattle gates on either side. Ahead is a sign with a pic of a truck on it and below written words of last turning point. I shrug and tell myself, ha i am in a van, no problem. I continue on. After a few short minutes, i am out of town and rolling down this path seemingly into the heart of darkness. I can see nothing save for what my headlights show me and that was very little. A few tumble weeds and scrub was all there was to see.
Then after about 20 or so minutes go by i realize that i have begun to climb a hill. Pressing on the hill continues to get steeper and steeper until it becomes clear that this was no hill but a small mountain. Looking at the road i see that i only have perhaps 2" of road on either side of the tires and come to a switchback. This turn was nearly 90deg and i had to bring the van to a stop and manuever it around the turn. Ok this is getting silly, but way too late to turn back, so i press on. The higher i climbed to more frequent the turns up and around up and around i went. Also of note is that the road wasn't even a road to speak of. It was packed sediment like sand with cracks in it where previous streams of water had run through it. It was good luck for me that the ground was still frozen from the cold or i would have certainly sunk to the axels in it.
Because of the nature of this road i was on my speed was around 5-7mph. As i neared the top i noticed things getting white...snow? No way. Yup. Now i find myself at the top of a narrow mountain in about 2 feet fo snow.
There were no other vehicle tracks here. In fact, the only tracks aside from those that i had left behind, were the tracks of a rather confused jack rabbitt hopping about in front of me looking into my headlights from time to time.
Looking at my cell phone, I was pleased to see i had no service. So here i was at the top...likely looking like the grinch, his sleigh precariously balanced by his dog over the precipace of a very steep drop. What choice did i have, but to continue down and around. Slowly but surely i managed to make my way down the other side and back onto level ground.
The time is now 6:30 am. I come into a town a couple of miles from the delivery. A local gas station has just turned on the lights and i need fuel. So pull up to the pump, fuel up and stumble into the station. By this time, my eyes are bloodshot, my hair is disheveled and nearly standing on end, boots covered in dirt and snow, one pant leg pulled up and i am sort of stumbling.
There is a woman behind the counter counting her money for t
he till to start the day. Before i could say anything to her, she says without even looking up at me, " Let me guess, you took the Pass."Staring blankly at her i nodded in affirmation.
" My sister took it last week," she looked up and smiled. " I wouldn't advise it of anyone."
With that i payed for my fuel, thanked her and went on down the road to my delivery.
On the way back i stayed to the highway this time and as the sun came up i could see that awful thing i climbed in the night. It sits out in the middle a a vast expanse all alone and peaks as though it were a pyramid of ghiza.
Early in this narrative i stated that the most ignorant response that i could come up with was how much does it pay? Well folks this story is why it was an ignorant question.
So on your journeys, if you find yourself on a load in Utah, just west of Beaver, for the love of God (or whoever you worship) do not take The Pass.
