Monday, October 5, 2009

First Moan

Bernie's Salad Some pics of Minerva








Look at them legs lol



I only asked for a turkey DrumstickMust have been one big ass Turkey lol


Well I had my four plates full of buffet and Bernie had salad. It was that big he could not finish it.
We then set off to Minerva. Stopping on the way a couple of times. Ended up getting there 1 hour later than we would have liked. But it would have made no difference. They still left us till last for some reason. Which then made us very late for our collection in Canton Ohio. Which was just 10mins down the road. I was in a little rush going back through the town with us been very late so went round a couple of really tight corners a bit quicker than I should. One I had to turn one way then the other straight away to allow me extra room to get my trailer round these tight bends. As I did it I heard a thud in the back. I thought it was something dropping off the top bunk where we keep our baggage etc. It turned out I had woke Bernie up, by pinning him up against the side of the truck as I went round the bend. He didn’t say much as he was still half asleep. Had he been fully awake, he would have just moaned in a playful way like I did a couple of days before, when he did it to me. I could not stop laughing to myself each time I thought him sprawled over the side of the truck. I did feel bad for waking him up though.
Well we got our collection and off back to Toronto we went. Dropped the trailer and bobtailed down the road for our collection which was going to Winnipeg. When we was on our way to Winnipeg. I was driving over night, and was about 10 miles outside a place call Dryden, when I came round this bend and my headlights shone on a truck on its side in the ditch and a pick up truck with its lights on parked in front. So I jammed the brakes on expecting Bernie hitting the floor in a big snotty heap lol, thinking it had just happened. I jumped out the cab to find I could not see a thing, so jumped back into the cab for my torch, which took me ages to find. All this time Bernie was awake, but he never let on. I could not see anyone in the pickup, so I run up to the truck on its side to see crime tape and frost all over it, so panic was over. In the mean time another tuck had pulled up to assist, but I said all was good. The pickup must have just been guarding the load till rescue arrived. I then set off again. When I got into Dryden, I pulled in to go to Tim Hortons for my Mocha. I normally get one if I driving in the night. Good thing they are open 24hrs. The guy that pulled up at the wreck did the same. While in the store, he said he was impressed that I stopped as there was a few that just drove by, and he bought me my Mocha. He then asked if I mind him keeping with me as I was going at a decent pace and he was a little tired. It really takes it out of you driving at night, round all the winding roads with no street lights expecting a moose or deer to be stood in the road at anytime. So it makes it easier to just follow the lights in front of you. So we set off. For the next 200km’s. the roads are constantly winding and going up and down hill, on a single 2 lane road. This guy stuck so far up my backside most of the 200k I could not see his lights lol. We chatted on the CB for a while. When we finally reach just outside Winnipeg. He wanted to stop for the bathroom and another coffee. So I pulled in with him. He expected us to be going round the perimeter road, but we did not have time to go round so was going through the city. On the way back to the truck. He gave me is Number and said, “when ever you are looking to change, give me a call as I like the way you drive. If I can drive 9 feet away from your rear bumper all that way, on those roads, and never feel uncomfortable or unsafe, that’s the kind of driver I want working for me” he was an owner operator, doing flatbed work. I should have said, if you ever do the ice road, give me a call lol.
We dropped our trailer at the customer, bang on time and bobtailed over to the yard. We was then supposed to collect a load going to Edmonton, Alberta, but when we got there it changed and we had to take an empty two and half hours down into the states, St Cloud Minnesota, for someone else, as he had run out of hours. We have never had to run empty like that before. When we got there, we was suppose to switch for a preloaded trailer going back to Toronto. Now this is where the problems start due to one cock up in despatch.. Our trailer was missing. Not where is was suppose to be. Nearly seven hours later, it was found. In someone else’s yard ten miles away. The day dispatch had not told the night dispatch which in turn was not told to us. I wake up thinking we are not far from delivery to find we had only been on the road 2 hours. This caused a knock on effect. We was then late making the delivery back in Toronto. We then had to bobtail up to our Brampton yard and collect a trailer going to St Apollinaire, Quebec. We was going to be too late by minutes to make the delivery before they went home for the weekend, so we just had to drop it at our Dorval Yard. We was then suppose to collect something to bring back to our Dorval yard, had we made the delivery. Then by that time, we would not have had to sit around too long before picking up our midnight collection going back to Winnipeg. But instead we have had to sit around for 12 hours, doing nothing, which meant not getting paid because of one cock up. So I was not an happy bunny. By the time we had made the delivery in Winnipeg, it would have made our pay week the worst to date really, with all the hanging about we had to do this week. In actual fact. If a single driver was to do his 3500 miles for the week which is the norm. He would have earned the same as me, and he gets to sleep and rest for at least 10 hours in a bunk that was not been chucked around with the bad roads of Canada. Anyway that’s my first moan out the way lol not that it will make a difference, as no-one in the office reads this anyway. Maybe that’s a good thing hay Mike lol
So we are due home this week so our next load was 4 drops in the states. One in Maryland, one in Pennsylvania, and two in New Jersey. Its 1500 miles just to the first one, so should be there sometime tomorrow. Hopefully after that our reload goes straight back to Woodstock. So till then, Have a great day.






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