STRAYCAT’S DOGGONE BLOG

Life Day 21223: Las Vegas Lackadaisicalness

August 20, 2005 on 9:42 pm | In On The Road |

Back to the Daily Journals: Continuing the trip to University Park, IL, I left Knoxville at 1130 on Saturday, the 13th. I drove to Richwood, KY. I had lunch here, walked the MMM of course, then left at 1700. I drove to Hebron, IN where I stopped for the night. I used 8.5 of the 9 hours that I had available to work today, driving 493 miles in 8.25 hours.
On the 14th, I had a short day, but not by design. I left Hebron at 0830 and drove to University Park. I did the drop/hook delivery then drove the 1/2 mile to the truckstop to wait for my next load. After about an hour or so, I got a Pre-Plan which picked up in Monee, IL and delivered in Kansas City, MO (4 miles empty and 478 miles loaded). However, it did not pick-up until 1000 the next day, so I settled in to wait. It was just as well because I was feeling a bit achy and feverish. It would have been a perfect day for WiFi, but nothing was available at this location. I worked 1.5 hours using 1 hour driving 41 miles.
The 15th, I left University Park at 0800 and drove across the Freeway (literally) to Monee to pick up the Kansas City load. While I was waiting for my load to be completed, I took the MMM for a walk. There was a pond behind the Shipper with a gaggle of Geese in residence. I took the following pictures.

I tried to get them to take flight by walking toward them, but they were too tame. They just took to the water instead. Another “Kodak Moment” thwarted by uncooperative subjects.
I left Monee at 0915. I drove a 6 hour stretch all the way to Foristell, MO. I took a short break here, then drove to Oak Grove, MO where I stopped for the night. I worked 9.5 hours of which I utilized 9 hours driving 488 miles.
The 16th was a frustrating day. I awoke at 0330 with a Pre-Plan on my QualCom. It picked up in our Terminal in Edwardsville, KS and delivered in Los Lunas, NM (21 miles empty and 798 miles loaded). I accepted it, fueled, then left Oak Grove and drove to KC, MO to make my delivery. This all went smoothly and I was finished by 0500. I then drove to Edwardsville to pick up my Pre-Plan. Here’s where I encountered the “glitch”. I discovered when I reported to the Dispatch Window, that they had somehow managed to lose the paperwork for my load. They (Dispatch) had to wait until the CSR for the load (in Phoenix) arrived at work. The CSR then had to contact the Shipper and have a copy of the paperwork faxed to them, then, in turn, fax it to the Edwardsville Terminal. This rigmarole took over 6 hours (my 14 hour clock ticking away the whole time). After FINALLY getting the paperwork in hand, weighing the load, and walking the MMM one last time, I left Edwardsville at 1345. I drove to Goddard (Wichita), KS where I had to stop for the night because of the 14-hour rule. I managed to work 5.25 hours expending 4.5 hours driving 265 miles.
The 17th was grueling. This load delivers at 1600 today which would be O.K., but for all the time wasted yesterday with the lost paperwork. Now, it’s a problem. I left Goodard at 0515 and drove to Liberal, KS. A 15 minute break here, then I drove to Santa Rosa, NM. A 1/2 hour break here, then on to Los Lunas. I arrived at 1545 (just in time for my appointment). It was a drop/hook delivery, so it went quickly. After the drop/hook, I recieved a PrePlan which picked up in Belen, NM and delivered in Rialto, CA (10 miles empty and 736 miles loaded). I accepted it and drove to Belen, NM. It was also a drop/hook. After picking up the load, I drove to Albuquerque, NM where I was forced to stop for the night by that “pesky” 14-hour rule again. I worked 11.25 hours using 10.5 driving 623 miles.
Another grueling day on the 18th. I left Albuquerque at 1015. I drove to Flagstaff, AZ. After a short break here, I drove to Kingman, AZ. Another short break, then I drove to Barstow, CA where I stopped for the night. I worked 11.25 hours utilizing 11 hours driving 639 miles.
On the 19th, I left Barstow at 0700. I drove 1.5 hours to Rialto. This was supposed to be a drop/hook Customer, however there were no empty trailers available onto which to hook. After waiting here until about 1400, I drove to Ontario for lunch. After lunch, I retreated to our Terminal in Fontana. I waited until 1630 before the Planner offered me a Pre-Plan which picked up at the Terminal and delivers in Las Vegas on Monday at 0400 (10 miles empty and 231 miles loaded). I accepted it, picked up the paperwork, walked the MMM, fueled and left at 1745 (right in the middle of “get away Friday” traffic). BLEAH!! I drove directly to Las Vegas. I arrived at 2230. I worked 7 hours 6 of which I used driving 296 miles. HOME AT LAST, HOME AT LAST.
Today, Saturday the 20th, was a lackadaisical day. After dropping my trailer in a secure location at the Wild, Wild West I drove to the TA Truckstop. I did my laundry, then tried in vane to get on-line. Since I had encountered the same problem the last time I was here, I called the Tech Rep for the TA Speedzone Server (with my technical illiteracy, I have them on speed-dial). :>} After spending a half hour on the phone with him, we ‘discovered’ that there was, indeed, a problem with their equipment at this location. He said that they would get the problem fixed as soon as possible. I don’t know whether this means that they will be sending someone out from their office, or if they will contract with someone locally, but my bet is that nothing will be happening until at least Monday. I’ll try it again the next time I’m in town. After getting a shower, I decided to move north to the Flying J. Along the way, I stopped at the Palace Station for dinner. On the spur of the moment, I tried the Buffet. It was only $6.99 for dinner. It was definitely worth the price, but it’s not the RIO.