STRAYCAT’S DOGGONE BLOG

Life Day 21513: 666 Salutations

June 6, 2006 on 10:49 pm | In On The Road |

On Thursday, June 1st, with a renewed 70 hours, I accepted a load which picked up in Cheverly, MD (Washington, DC) and delivered in Mary’s Landing, NJ. It was only 149 paid miles, but there was an empty trailer available at the truckstop where I spent the last 2 days, so at least I didn’t have to chase one down. I did the drop/hook pick-up and drove back to the TA one last time to weigh the load (it weighed 45391# according to the Bill of Lading). The weight was good, so at 1130, I departed for NJ. E-Z Pass got me through all of the toll booths with no ‘out of pocket’ expense. I arrived at 1415. It took over 2 hours to unload. By this time it was 1700 (1900 local time). There was no more freight available, so I drove to a miniscule truckstop about 10 miles away in Buena, NJ where I parked for the night. The only restaurant within the immediate environs was the aptly named Buena Tavern. It was directly across the street from the truckstop. The food was edible, but expensive. I had Veal Parmesan. It cost a bit over $20.00 with tip. At least it was conveniently located. After dinner, I ‘geeked’ on the computer and watched Mother Nature’s “light show” until 2030, then went to bed. I don’t know what it is about rain, but I slept the sleep of the dead until just after sunrise. Maybe the sound of the rain hypnotizes me into REM 3 sleep mode.
In the AM, I accepted a load which picked up in New Brunswick, NJ and delivered in Tolleson, AZ. A good load, over 2600 miles. I left Buena at 0600 and drove to Paulsboro, NJ for fuel and a bite to eat. I then drove to the shipper in New Brunswick. It took over 4 hours to load (GEEEEEZE). At 1500, I finally left and drove to Carlisle, PA where I stopped for the night. This is a HAZMAT load, so i’ll need to watch my P’s and Q’s (watch for restricted routes, do a tire check every 2 hours, etc). These days HAZMAT loads recieve increased scrutiny from the DOT. I only managed to drive 302 miles even though I logged 10.75 hours.
Today, I finally began to cover some territory. This route for this load is almost identical to the route to Washington, DC earlier. I decided for no particular reason to use Swift routing on the way back across country. I left Carlisle at 0930 and drove to Valley Grove (Wheeling), WV. I took a 1 hour break here, then drove to our terminal in Columbus, OH for fuel and another break. There is a place here for the MMM to exercise untethered. At 1730, I drove to Brazil, IN where I stopped for the night. I drove 583 miles. Not bad considering I drove through Ohio, which is a Neo-facist Nanny State (55 mph speed limit for trucks).
On the 4th, I left Brazil at 0900. I drove across Illinois (another Neo-facist Nanny State). I made a short stop in East St. Louis, IL to deliniate the Speed limit change. From here on i’ll have 65+ mph speed limits. At 1315, I drove to Kansas City, MO. I stopped here for fuel. It starts getting more expensive the farther west I go from here. At 1830, I drove to Newton, KS where I stopped for the night at Newell Truck Plaza. There is a good restaurant here called Charlie’s Restaurant. It is one of a dwindling number of GOOD locally owned truckstops remaining. I drove 618 miles.
I started driving today at 1100 after a relaxing morning. As I was walking the MMM before I left, I passed by the Fuel Desk. The ‘girls’ there loved dogs, so the MMM got invited into the building for a visit. They enjoyed the unexpected attention. After that, I drove to Texoma (oddly enough located on the border between Texas and Oklahoma on US-54). Along the route, I took the picture below, which clearly illustrates the reason I avoid 2 lane highways as a general rule.

This picture was taken on US-54 in Kansas, somewhere between Wichita and Pratt.
From Texoma, I drove to Albuquerque, NM where I stopped for the night.
On 6/6/6 I left Albuquerque at 1000 (you thought I would leave at 06:06:06 didn’t you). I drove to Winslow, AZ where I took a 1/2 hour break. I passed the junction with former US-666 (now US-491) as I drove through Gallup, NM. At 1500, I left Winslow and drove to Phoenix. At our terminal, I swapped this load for another with an earlier delivery time. This load didn’t deliver until 1100 on the 8th. There was a dust storm in progress when I arrived.

I recieved a load which delivered at 0600 tomorrow AM in Tolleson. I also accepted a Pre-Plan which picked up in Tempe, AZ and delivered in North Las Vegas.
After this I had dinner at the Jake Brake Cafe in the driver’s lounge.

After dinner, I drove to the consignee, parked on the street, and went to bed.