As I typed last night's episode into my shiny silver computer here, I had a sneaking suspicion. I had a suspicion that there actually may have been a reason to send me 350 miles from Pennsylvania to Virginia with an empty trailer to pick up a load. Maybe there was nobody else around. Shortly after I finished that post, my trailer was repaired and I sent a message asking the fine folks in Missouri to put me back on the board. In a minor surprise, I immediately got a reply acknowledging my request and telling me that I was on the board. Yeah, seriously.
I was #1 on the board at the time. We normally have a billion trucks on I-95 so I guess my suspicion was confirmed. I must have been given that 350 mile deadhead because there was simply nobody else available. They wouldn't try to send me back over to West Point then, would they? It was a decent run, after all, but the dude who rejected my trailer was not a very cordial fella. I sure as hell didn't want to show up again and try to convince him that the 'metal tape and black tar special' from the T/A was the answer to his complaints. I sat around for a few hours expecting just such an outcome, then finally gave in and went to bed for a while.
At 6am, that most magical of hours, the satellite unit woke me with a new assignment. Wanna guess what it was? (♪ Meet the new boss, same as the old boss... ♪) Yeah, I got the same load in West Point that caused last night's troubles. Hey, at least I already had my hard hat and safety glasses this time. I had to call the dispatcher people (yet again) to make sure that I wouldn't be sent directly to the pickup once I confirmed the load. My 14 hour clock was reaching it's waning moments by this point. No worries, I was told. I could stay and finish my break and then head over. Good deal. Our omnipotent 'computer' even gave me time to take a ten hour break starting with the time that I confirmed the load, but that was unnecessary. I already had been parked for five hours before then, so I only needed another five hours of down time.
I got up late in the morning and found that the sun was out. That's always nice. I walked back and hopped in the trailer to see exactly what was the story. The T/A guy had described the issue as a hairline crack rather than a pinhole. What had appeared to be the pinhole and the origin of the leak was merely the lowest point in the crack. I could definitely see the crack to which he was referring but there was no light coming through. Guess he did a good job then.
So, back over to the shipper for Round 2... The security gal didn't even let me get inside the gate this time around. It turns out that there was still some dampness on the floor, qui es no bueno. Well, shit. She said that I could try parking with the doors open for a while to air it out and then check in again later. So I asked her if there was anywhere nearby with room for me to park. "I have to send you to a truck stop or a rest area." But that would be like twenty miles away. Isn't there anywhere closer? "I have to send you to a truck stop or a rest area." Yeah, thanks for nothing.
I started back on VA-33 toward the freeway and, a few miles to the southwest, spotted a little office building with a 'For Lease' sign out in front. The parking lot didn't look big enough but I sure as hell didn't feel like going all the way to the rest area on I-64, so I decided to give it a shot. The street behind the office building had a little cul de sac at the end and the street was not in use, so that was good enough for me. I swung around with the ass end of the trailer facing the wind and sun and opened up the doors. Just to cover all the bases, I gave the trailer another good sweeping since I could see more dirt in the sunlight than I had seen last night in the dark. I also spotted a couple of nail holes that went all the way through the floor, so I grabbed a wad of good old black electrical tape and a Phillips screwdriver to plug them. Hillbilly spackle, we'll call it. My relatives in Georgia would be proud.
Then there was nothing to do but listen to the ballgame and wait for Mother Nature to do her thing. The weather was hot and sunny, with a pretty decent breeze, so I was fairly confident that the dampness in the floor would be gone within a few hours. At 3pm I did a progress check and the thing was just about completely dry. Those people were some real ball busters though and they had already rejected me twice, so I gave it some more time to make sure there was no trace of moisture. At 4:30pm, after the Tigers and Redskins had both finished their pitiful performances, I headed back over to the shipper for a third try.
This time everything went smoothly. I was at the dock for an hour or so, but I got my load of paper and hit the road. Surely there couldn't be any more issues, right? Heh, yeah, that was a silly question. We'll have to see how this one shakes out but, in a nutshell, here's the deal. I was dispatched to arrive at 6pm tomorrow. The earliest that I could arrive is somewhere around 4pm tomorrow, perhaps a little later depending on traffic. So far, so good, right? Ahh yes... the consignee is open from 7am to 2pm, and delivery appointments are required. Hmmm.
I sent a satellite message with the above info and received a reply a short time later. The upshot is that the dispatcher was aware of the 2pm deal but he had to keep the dispatch legal. If my trailer had been kosher and I had gotten loaded last night, this issue would not have arisen, but we are where we are. Last night's timeline got all jacked around by the trip to the T/A for repairs and then today's timeline got a lengthy interruption for the whole air-drying process to play itself out. The dispatcher also said that he sent a message to our customer service people explaining the situation. What happens from here, I have no idea. All I could do was head westward and let the people in charge do whatever it is that they do. In a nice break from the last day or two, the weather and traffic were pleasant and I was able to keep my foot down for the most part. I got into South Carolina and parked for the night in Cowpens, leaving somewhere around six hours of driving to reach Montgomery tomorrow.
By the time I get kicked out of my consignee for showing up late and without an appointment tomorrow evening, my remaining time under the 70 hour rule will be running pretty low. Not sure how the week will unfold from that point, but so far I have 778 miles on the books so the week is off to a decent enough start.
I was #1 on the board at the time. We normally have a billion trucks on I-95 so I guess my suspicion was confirmed. I must have been given that 350 mile deadhead because there was simply nobody else available. They wouldn't try to send me back over to West Point then, would they? It was a decent run, after all, but the dude who rejected my trailer was not a very cordial fella. I sure as hell didn't want to show up again and try to convince him that the 'metal tape and black tar special' from the T/A was the answer to his complaints. I sat around for a few hours expecting just such an outcome, then finally gave in and went to bed for a while.
At 6am, that most magical of hours, the satellite unit woke me with a new assignment. Wanna guess what it was? (♪ Meet the new boss, same as the old boss... ♪) Yeah, I got the same load in West Point that caused last night's troubles. Hey, at least I already had my hard hat and safety glasses this time. I had to call the dispatcher people (yet again) to make sure that I wouldn't be sent directly to the pickup once I confirmed the load. My 14 hour clock was reaching it's waning moments by this point. No worries, I was told. I could stay and finish my break and then head over. Good deal. Our omnipotent 'computer' even gave me time to take a ten hour break starting with the time that I confirmed the load, but that was unnecessary. I already had been parked for five hours before then, so I only needed another five hours of down time.
I got up late in the morning and found that the sun was out. That's always nice. I walked back and hopped in the trailer to see exactly what was the story. The T/A guy had described the issue as a hairline crack rather than a pinhole. What had appeared to be the pinhole and the origin of the leak was merely the lowest point in the crack. I could definitely see the crack to which he was referring but there was no light coming through. Guess he did a good job then.
So, back over to the shipper for Round 2... The security gal didn't even let me get inside the gate this time around. It turns out that there was still some dampness on the floor, qui es no bueno. Well, shit. She said that I could try parking with the doors open for a while to air it out and then check in again later. So I asked her if there was anywhere nearby with room for me to park. "I have to send you to a truck stop or a rest area." But that would be like twenty miles away. Isn't there anywhere closer? "I have to send you to a truck stop or a rest area." Yeah, thanks for nothing.
I started back on VA-33 toward the freeway and, a few miles to the southwest, spotted a little office building with a 'For Lease' sign out in front. The parking lot didn't look big enough but I sure as hell didn't feel like going all the way to the rest area on I-64, so I decided to give it a shot. The street behind the office building had a little cul de sac at the end and the street was not in use, so that was good enough for me. I swung around with the ass end of the trailer facing the wind and sun and opened up the doors. Just to cover all the bases, I gave the trailer another good sweeping since I could see more dirt in the sunlight than I had seen last night in the dark. I also spotted a couple of nail holes that went all the way through the floor, so I grabbed a wad of good old black electrical tape and a Phillips screwdriver to plug them. Hillbilly spackle, we'll call it. My relatives in Georgia would be proud.
Then there was nothing to do but listen to the ballgame and wait for Mother Nature to do her thing. The weather was hot and sunny, with a pretty decent breeze, so I was fairly confident that the dampness in the floor would be gone within a few hours. At 3pm I did a progress check and the thing was just about completely dry. Those people were some real ball busters though and they had already rejected me twice, so I gave it some more time to make sure there was no trace of moisture. At 4:30pm, after the Tigers and Redskins had both finished their pitiful performances, I headed back over to the shipper for a third try.
This time everything went smoothly. I was at the dock for an hour or so, but I got my load of paper and hit the road. Surely there couldn't be any more issues, right? Heh, yeah, that was a silly question. We'll have to see how this one shakes out but, in a nutshell, here's the deal. I was dispatched to arrive at 6pm tomorrow. The earliest that I could arrive is somewhere around 4pm tomorrow, perhaps a little later depending on traffic. So far, so good, right? Ahh yes... the consignee is open from 7am to 2pm, and delivery appointments are required. Hmmm.
I sent a satellite message with the above info and received a reply a short time later. The upshot is that the dispatcher was aware of the 2pm deal but he had to keep the dispatch legal. If my trailer had been kosher and I had gotten loaded last night, this issue would not have arisen, but we are where we are. Last night's timeline got all jacked around by the trip to the T/A for repairs and then today's timeline got a lengthy interruption for the whole air-drying process to play itself out. The dispatcher also said that he sent a message to our customer service people explaining the situation. What happens from here, I have no idea. All I could do was head westward and let the people in charge do whatever it is that they do. In a nice break from the last day or two, the weather and traffic were pleasant and I was able to keep my foot down for the most part. I got into South Carolina and parked for the night in Cowpens, leaving somewhere around six hours of driving to reach Montgomery tomorrow.
By the time I get kicked out of my consignee for showing up late and without an appointment tomorrow evening, my remaining time under the 70 hour rule will be running pretty low. Not sure how the week will unfold from that point, but so far I have 778 miles on the books so the week is off to a decent enough start.
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