7/10/09

I am generally among the very few drivers who don't mind the 55mph speed limits in the states that impose them. Since everybody else tends to ignore the lower speed limit anyway, I'm able to kick back and relax without a whole lot of braking or lane changing. Days like today remind me that there's one major qualifier to this viewpoint - covering only 600 miles in eleven hours is bullshit. So... I only like the 55mph states for shorter distances. That'll do.

The trip down to the Con-way terminal in Kettleman City took a little over three hours. That wasn't bad. That terminal only operates at night, so my loaded trailer was sitting on the lot waiting for me this morning. After getting my paperwork from the security gal, it was back out to the highway. The drive across CA-58 through the desert wasn't crowded or anything, but damn was it a long one. By the time I got onto I-40 I was struggling to stay motivated to keep moving. Fortunately the Tigers were coming on the radio so I had something to keep me occupied. I slugged out my full eleven hours and made it to the T/A in Kingman, Arizona. And the Tigers won a pretty entertaining game to continue their streak against the Tribe.

The paperwork from Con-way says that this load is due in Alabama by 5:30pm on Tuesday. My dispatch from Con-way Truckload says that I'm due at 3:43am on Tuesday. So they're trying to say that I need to get there as soon as possible, but the computer's reckoning will have my 70 hours running out at some point on Monday. I have no desire to drive those last four hours after midnight Monday night, so I'm hoping to make good time over the next couple of days. If I'm going to run out of hours anyway, I would prefer to get the trip done by Monday evening and then start fresh with the hours that I'll pick up on Tuesday. The computer figures the trip at 52mph and I'll be able go a lot faster from here on out. It's going to be tight but we'll just have to see how it goes. That 55mph business today sure wasn't helpful.