Ten Year Anniversary

Ten years ago I started my career as a professional truck driver. It wasn’t an easy decision, but it seemed like the right decision. I was burned out with teaching and in trying to decide what other career I should pursue, it just seemed logical to get my CDL and team drive with Larry. I think Larry was a little surprised at my decision. I had spent a few weeks on the truck with him as a passenger so I knew that it was not an easy life, but it has been more challenging than I ever thought it would be.

Four weeks at a Truck Driving School and it was off to Werner Enterprises out of Omaha, NE. I had to clock 250 hours behind the wheel as a team driver with Larry before I was officially hired by them. And I almost didn’t get hired. I failed the drive test because of being so nervous. It took Larry defending my ability as a driver by stressing that, if he felt safe enough to go to sleep in the bunk with me driving, then I was ready to be a truck driver. Thankfully that was enough to convince them that I was ready to be officially hired.

Here are some milestones of the last 10 years:

I’ve driven well over a million miles and all accident free.

 I’ve driven on most major highways and through most major cities in 46 states.

My favorite place to drive is anywhere west of the Mississippi. (except California)

My least favorite place to drive (besides California) is the mid-west and the east coast.

I’ve driven in all kinds of weather with a few harrowing experiences – even driven in a hurricane. But I still haven’t seen a tornado. One went past us in the night, but we never saw it.

I’ve driven 7 different trucks, from a 9-speed to a 13-speed; 2 Peterbilts and the rest Freightliners.

I’ve worked for 3 different companies.

On the personal front:

I’ve gained weight and I’ve lost weight.

I started out with brown hair and now have gray hair.

I had no grandchildren and now I can count 10.

I have 3 new daughters-in-laws.

We sold a house and bought a house.

3 of my kids graduated from college while another one started his own business.

I’m still fairly healthy, with only a few minor issues, which is amazing considering the lack of exercise and good eating habits.

I’ve never regretted my decision to go on the road. Being with Larry has been amazing, and grateful that we have been able to be together out here. But it is a hard and stressful life and I’m ready to move on. I don’t know what the next few years will bring, but somewhere there’s another adventure waiting for me.

New Trucks Can Lose Their Appeal

I admit it, I love new things. I don't shop at Thrift Stores because of that very problem. I like the smell, the feel, the experience of all things new and fresh and untouched. But new, doesn't always mean better. In the 10 years that I've been driving, I have been in used trucks as well as new trucks. And I've realized, even with trucks, new doesn't always mean better.
With Interstate, we started out with a used truck. It had been taken care of so it was in good shape. The only big issue we had was the transmission. But it was getting old and things were starting to wear out. So we were issued a new truck.  Or fairly new - only 1 other team had it but only put 30,000 miles on it. It was in fairly good condition with a little wear and tear on the inside. (I figured they must have cooked their meals in it, which we don't do.) This new truck, however, had a constant problem with the electrical system, and we were always having to get it repaired in the shop. Also we had a AC system in the bunk that needed constant shop work.
Then last fall we got our 2nd brand new truck - only 2,000 miles on it, just the mileage to get it from Mexico to Tacoma. It had that nice, new truck smell, everything clean and pristine. In the 8 months that we had it we started out with an oil filter blow out, grinding brakes that never got resolved, and an overheated brake the sent us to the shop; also, fuel filter problems and a exhaust system problem that resulted in being towed to a shop.
And then the infamous refrigerator malfunction with the exploding milk carton. But that's another story.
Onto the 3rd new truck just issued, now a month old. Yay, another pristine, sweet smelling, clean, and problem free truck. Wrong. We had only been on it a week and the air conditioning went out.  By the time we got it back to the shop in Tacoma at the end of that first week, we had 8 things on the repair and please-check-this-problem list.
So, go ahead and give me new trucks: after all it nice to start clean and fresh, but don't be fooled by the idea that new means trouble free, because it just ain't so.

Road Rage

They say, (truckers, I mean) that if you don't get flipped off at least once a day, you haven't done your job. I'm not sure I agree with that, but I do know I get flipped off a lot, and horns blasted at me a number of times per week. But, that's the name of the game when an 18-wheeler shares the road with the 4-wheelers.
I've avoided out-and-out road rage until the other night, traveling through Pennsylvania on a dark, drizzly night on I-70. There weren't too many cars or trucks on the road. We were light so going up and down the mountain roads did not slow me down.
I looked in my side mirror and saw a car approaching on the left. Suddenly, he dove behind me and followed me for a few miles. This happens occasionally and it is very disconcerting. Is it a cop checking me out? Is it someone who likes to follow big trucks?(Surprisingly there are those that think following close behind a truck increases their fuel mileage. NOT!) Are they trying to take an exit and realized that they can't pass me in time? Nothing seems to happen - just following behind.
I was approaching a slow Land Span truck in the right lane. There were 3 lanes so I wouldn't be getting into anyone's way by jumping into the middle lane. I passed the Land Span and looked into the right side mirror and saw him flash his lights. I turned my turn signal on and moved over. Suddenly I heard a roar on my right side (which would have been the shoulder) and saw a car zip past me on the shoulder! Where did he come from?!?
If figured he was the car that was following me, but why did he end up on my right side? If he wanted to pass me, why did he wait until I was passing the Land Span, and more importantly, why didn't he pass on the far left lane?
It unnerved me but I didn't think more about it. A few miles later I saw the same car on the side of the road. The driver had his door opened. I didn't think much about it, but thought later that maybe he was looking to see if he had any damage to his car. After all, the shoulder was not that wide and there was a guard rail there.
I drove another few miles thinking about where I was going to stop to change drivers. I was about an hour from the turnpike so figured once I got on the turnpike we would switch there. It had been a grueling evening, picking up the load in Columbus, OH, and I was tired and ready to stop, but wanted to give Larry a little more sleep.
There were no cars or trucks ahead of me or behind me. I wasn't paying too much attention but happened to do my cursory glance in the side mirror that I do when I'm driving. There, right on the back bumper of my trailer were headlights. I saw the car swerve just barely past the corner and then run up the side of my trailer, over the center line and as he approached the cab of the truck he swerved into me. If I hadn't swerved the truck onto the shoulder I don't know if he would have actually hit me or not. He flew past, apparently content with the payback and was up and around the hill, with my brights on full to let him know I didn't think it was funny. It happened so fast I didn't think to hit my air horn.
That unnerved me. Was he going to meet again on another corner? Did he have other intentions? I decided I didn't want to take a chance so a few miles later there was a truck stop and I stopped to get myself composed and to wake Larry up and get some TLC.
We waited about 15 minutes and I continued on down the road and didn't see him again, thankfully.

New Year 2012

It's a New Year. I like the concept of a new year. I don't normally do New Year's resolutions but I try to "resolve" to be better, do better, and work harder. I made a list of goals years ago that I'm still trying to work on. Life is, basically, a work in progress, and who knows what the final outcome will be.  
We found ourselves driving the lonely 1-70 in Kansas last night. As midnight approached Central Time we were fueling at the Petro Truck Stop in Salina, KS. There were very few cars on the road. Almost no trucks. It was quiet. In the store there was the clerk and someone cleaning. Midnight struck. No fanfare, no fireworks, no tooting of horns. 
Larry came out with a bag of chips and some chip dip, and we scarfed them down, thinking about our blessings, and how 2011 on a personal basis wasn't a bad year. When you think about the chaos of the world, and the drama of our job, it's nice to think that when you scope it down to the minute particles of your life, that there is some saneness and a lot of blessings
So here's a goodbye to 2011 and a hello to 2012 and let the fun begin.