Las Vegas... and leaving Las Vegas

We drive (pretty much) straight through from Ft. Worth to Flagstaff, AZ, and stop for just a minute, then head to Kingman, AZ. We sleep there, then head to Las Vegas the next day. We think we are going to be really early for our 2pm delivery.... only this truck doesn't have any Jake Brakes. (Jake Brakes are special engine brakes that somehow use the power of the engine to slow it down.. amazing.) But without Jake Brakes, you are stuck just using your regular service brakes.

We run into some pretty severe hills between Kingman, AZ and Las Vegas, NV.... and we are having to use our service brakes quite a bit. We used lower gears, and applied "controlled braking" apply & release,.... only..... half way through the hills our tractor(truck) brakes started smoking. So we had to stop and let them cool off a bit (15 mins) and we start taking the hills even slower...... So we get there only 20 mins early..... but still on time!

We get unloaded (pretty much) right away, and we head to our pick up. Get loaded with Wood, heading for Lowe's distribution warehouse in Stockton, CA.....
All Right we are heading in the right direction.... toward Home!
(or so we thought...)

Still Leaks...

Well, the scilicone didn't work (sorry sweetie), and we hit another storm on the way out of Texas...

We waited in line at the new Wal-Mart to unload... it took a while.... and there were grasshoppers all around and up their walls too. Weird.

We see a "roach coach" and get something to eat. Yummy breakfast burritos.

After we unload, we went to the Flying J in Wichita Falls, and waited. Wendy at Schneider and Debbie at Sam Kholi Ent (SKE) couldn't find us a load out of there. So... we waited. We waited for a load, and we waited for a fax from Brook for signs to put on the doors. The name of the company and other information are required to be on the doors.... but the paper signs that WERE on the doors got blown off during the storm. So she faxed us new signs and we taped them onto the doors. (inside sheet protectors). he-he..... I almost typed... sheep protectors. :)


Finally, Wendy finds us a "beer" load for Miller beer out of Ft. Worth (about 50 miles east) heading for Las Vegas. Only it doesn't load until tomorrow at 4pm. But this gives us time to search every truck stop between Wichita Falls and Ft. Worth for Cargo Straps and Load Locks. (We were looking for a particular kind of Load Lock... but no such luck.)

So at the final place, we buy the Load Locks that are available. It's a good thing we did. THIS load needed them. Miller beer uses the Cargo Straps for a bulk head, and the Load Locks for stabilizer bars in the rear.
We got to Ft. Worth the night before and go to a truck stop about 3 exits away and sleep. We actually show up to Miller 3 hours early, and they take us!! Yeah.

As we are heading out of Texas... we run through another storm. (not quite as bad).... but we find out that the front windshield still leaks. Bummer.

Phoenix, AZ to Wichita Falls, TX

I have to admit... this is Way Better than what we have been doing! Thank you God!!!

We deadhead (means miles traveled while empty) up to Phoenix, AZ. It was a good thing we had an hour and a half to get there because the address on our paperwork was wrong, twice.

The first address said 417 W. Buckeye Road, then below that it said that the above address was wrong it should read 417 E. Buckeye Road.

We leave Casa Grande at 10am, and arrive at 417 E. Buckeye Road at 10:50am, only it is an empty lot! So we call the client and they tell us the correct address is 4417 W. Buckeye Road. Thank God we are only about 15-20 mins away. We arrive at the correct address at 11:20am. Still On Time.

Leroy checks in, and Laurie backs up to the dock!!! I actually did it all by myself. Yeah! I think my knees are gradually getting use to the clutch.

We get loaded, and are able to fax the papers we need to fax to Wendy at Schneider. Yeah! Last time, we faxed ONE page at the TA and it costs $3. Ouch! This time is was free, since we asked the shipper if we could use their machine! Yeah! Much better.

Thursday, 9/6/07
Leave shipper about 1:00pm.
We stop at the QT (a truck stop on I-10) in Phoenix to weigh our truck. It turns out to be a Medium weight, 57,900 GVW (Gross Vehicle Weight). We are carrying Wire Decking. (I have no idea what that is.) To a new Wal-Mart in Wichita Falls, TX.

From Phoenix, we head up to Flagstaff to catch the I-40 heading East.... All the way from Phoenix to Flagstaff, I (Laurie) am driving and having "tummy trouble", and all this time Leroy is sleeping. I am having to stop about every hour to "go". Finally when we get to Flagstaff -- a great truck stop at I-40 exit 198 "Little America" -- Laurie takes some Imodium AD and we decided to stay the rest of the night. Good choice, that way we are close to a bathroom, and we get a chance to look around this place. Wow! - With all the figurines, it makes me think of my Uncle Jeff. He collects Native American (Indian) statues and old cars models, and... boy does this place have a great selection. Lots of stuff, and a diner too.

Friday, 9/7/07
We get up and Bobtail (unhook the trailer and just use the tractor/truck) to a nearby Albertson's for some supplies. Come back, do a thorough Pre-Trip Inspection, eat breakfast/lunch then head out. about 12:30pm.

Laurie is driving and feeling much better. It is really nice to have all this time. One of us drives one day... the other drive the next day.

Laurie driving through Arizona.

5:00pm
We get stopped at the border check point going into New Mexico. We are told to stop and go into the Border office. We are told that we will need to buy a one-day permit in order to cross NM! We call Jim. He gives a credit card number to the lady behind the counter (who is very rude - but we are nice :) to pay for the permit. The cost of the Permit is based on weight - 57900 gvw. $57.25 (for permit) + $8.95 (fee) for using a credit card. Ouch! Our new company does not have a "permit" to carry heavy loads across New Mexico. They have applied for the permit about 2 months ago, but it hasn't come in the mail yet..... But No One told us. If we had known we could have gotten cash out at an ATM before hitting the border and have been prepared for all of this..... Oh Well. We know that each thing that comes our way each day is known by God, and filtered through Him, for our good.

After that I drive some more, and we stop in Casa Blanca, NM for dinner. After that, Leroy drives til a little past midnight. I try to sleep while he is driving, but can't. Leroy drives to Santa Rosa, NM where we stop for the night.

Saturday, 9/8/07
In the morning Leroy drives again.


Leroy driving through New Mexico.




We stop at a DQ in Tucumcari, NM. (Yum!) It is the last town in NM on the I-40 East, before crossing into Texas.

My mom, Irene, emailed me about these great Life-sized sculptures of Jesus' last days somewhere near Amarillo TX....which so happens we are going to be near. I think we should stop, especially since we have the time... might as well.
(More on those in the next blog.)

4:30pm local time
So we stop and see them. Wow!!! If you ever get a chance... go see them! It is really worth your time. Along with the sculptures is the Largest Cross in the Western Hemisphere! You can see it from about 5 miles in each direction.

FYI... they are about 35 miles east of Amarillo, TX... I-40, exit 112.

This stop to see the sculptures was sooo God! It had been raining the day before, so everything was a little muddy, but the sun was shining when we were there, and it was beautiful!

After we see them ... we go to exit 96 to a Love's Truck Stop for the night. During the night it starts Raining, and Lightening, (but no thunder as far as I could tell)... so I slept kinda of on/off. It was sooo nice of God to give us that window of time to see the sculptures and get to a safe haven for the night. We serve an Awesome God!!

Unusual: at the Love's Truck Stop I notice hundreds of grasshoppers all over the ground! I asked the clerk inside about them, she said she didn't know but maybe the rain yesterday had brought them out. They were everywhere on the ground and up the walls of the outside of the building. very Weird.

Sunday, 9/9/07
We get up in the morning, Laurie drives. There are no church services at this truck stop, so we start driving south to Wichita Falls, TX. As we are going through this little town called Claude, TX... we spot a cafe called The Crazy Little Cafe. The building is bright yellow with silhouettes of people dancing on it. Cute! There are cars in front and a big parking lot for trucks on the side. We stop here for breakfast. Good food!

From Claude, TX to Wichita Falls is about 200 miles.... and it rained all the Way. So what normally takes about 4 hours to drive, took about 5 hours. But that's OK. Better safe than sorry.
We are now at a Love's Truck Stop in Wichita Falls, TX... about 5 miles from where we will drop the load first thing tomorrow morning.... and it is still Raining with Lightening!

Bad News... the front windshield leaks. Right in front of the driver, onto the dashboard. We discovered this while driving, and when it started raining. At first we put Leroy's t-shirts on the dashboard to catch the drips, but his shirts got soaked.... but it worked until we could get to the Love's. At the Love's, Leroy bought some clear silicone and climbed up on the hood in the rain, and put the silicone on the windshield. Bless His Heart!! -- (I hope it works. OK so far!)

Good night for now.
and God Bless. :)

Starting with Sam Kholi Enterprises

We took our drive tests with Jim, and passed!

Our first load was assigned to us by Jim, on Monday 9/3/07, Labor Day.
Actually, Sam Kholi Enterprises has recently contracted with Schneider National to do some of their "over flow" jobs. So this load is for Schneider.

We are taking a load of general department store stuff from City of Industry, CA (COI) to Casa Grande, AZ (south of Phoenix) to a brand new Target store, ...... and what is nice... we have a lot of time to get there (unlike when we worked for JIT).
We have to pick up the load by 8am on Tuesday, 9/4/07 in COI, and deliver it in Casa Grande at 9am on Thursday 9/6/07. No Problem!

Sam (Kholi) is buying several "new" trucks (2006 Kenworths - nice) and several new trailers (that will be stenciled with "Jesus Christ is Lord -- Not a Swear Word"), but they haven't arrived from Texas yet.... so we will be taking the "training" truck (that we took on the drive test) and an unmarked trailer. It's still OK.... A 2000 Freightliner is still better than anything we drove at TLC. And the A/C works. Yeah!!!

We got a ComData card for fueling, took the truck and trailer home to load all of our stuff into it, then headed up to COI the night before. We stayed at the TA (Travel Centers of America) in Ontario, CA (about 16 miles from where we need to be for the pickup). This was very good for logistics, but we didn't sleep very well.

So we get up on Tuesday, 9/4/7, and get to the pick up point early.... 7:30am for an 8am appointment time.

We get all loaded, and head back to the TA to get some sleep.

We also get Idle-Aire. See yellow tube going into the truck?

Side Note:
Idle-Aire is very cost effective. With Idle-Aire you get...
A/C, 110v outlets (x 4),
TV channels free - if you have a TV, or they will loan you a TV,
Pay-Per-View channels (optional extra),
ethernet connection to the Internet, and several other things.

Idle-Aire costs about $2/hour.
To idle the truck uses about 2 gallons per hour, and fuel costs about $3/gallon.
You do the Math.

Also... Jim said that Sam Kholi Enterprises (SKE) will reimburse us for the Idle-Aire. Yeah!

We sleep all day Tuesday, 9/4/07.

We get up and leave Ontario, CA at Midnight Wednesday, 9/5. Leroy is driving.
We arrive in Casa Grande, AZ on Wednesday, 9/5/07 at 9am, and try to get permission to deliver a day early, but they say No. They only have crews available on assigned days and times to unload the trucks.

So... we find a truck stop about 5 miles away and wait all day. We get showers, do laundry, rest, etc....

On our paperwork is says to be to the delivery point the night before, and we found out that there will be 4 other trucks needing to be unloaded beside us. So.. we decide to go to the construction site (the new Target) and sleep there. We arrive there about 8pm. We are hoping for a "first come-first served" unloading order....
By 7am, it is RAINING due to high humidity and heat. We get soaked checking in.

At 8am, the Target crew arrive and show us on our paperwork there are numbers as to who will be unloaded first... we are number 4.
They have two docks and start unloading the first two trucks right away.

Oh... I forgot to mention... on the way to this delivery we are assigned another load by the Schneider dispatcher, Wendy.
Pick up in Phoenix (about 45 mins away) at 11:30am on Thursday, 9/6/07.
Now there is a time pressure to get unloaded on time.

God Bless 'Em... they unloaded us pretty quick. We were all done by 10:00am.
Now we head up to Phoenix..... Laurie is driving now. :)

August 2007 and TLC-Total Logistics Cargo of San Diego

August was a blur....
I returned home after leaving Werner, and started driving with my wonderful husband, Leroy.
Leroy worked for a company called TLC (Total Logistics Cargo) out of San Diego, CA.... actually Otay Mesa... right on the border to Mexico.
I joined him there.

TLC hauls almost exclusively for a company called Steelcase. Steelcase has a huge warehouse in the City of Industry, CA (COI). That is in the Los Angeles area.
Steelcase makes office furniture. Metal desks, chairs, filing cabinets, almost anything to do with office furniture.
We would deadhead (bobtail) from San Diego, CA up to COI, pick up a loaded trailer and do deliveries throughout California, and several times up to Puyallup, Washington.
We took loads to San Fransisco, Livermore, UCLA, Ventura, Kaiser at Woodland Hills, all over....
The people at TLC are very nice...
the only problem is the equipment (the trucks) are very OLD, and not in very good condition. Several have bad oil leaks, one truck had a really bad air leak in the primary air line.... Like 100 lbs of pressure to 0 lbs in 10 seconds. When we did the pre-trip and discovered this leak... we refused to drive the truck! They found us another truck. Most trucks don't have A/C or the A/C hardly works.... which is bad when you are trying to sleep while the other person is driving, or trying to sleep during the HOT days.

On our last run for TLC, we were headed to Puyallup, WA. We drove as far as Dunnigan, CA. and stopped at the Pilot truck stop there. We arrived about 2 am. Neither one of us had had very good sleep in the last couple of nights, so we both took sleeping pills and went right to sleep. When we woke up at 8am, we discover that our truck has been hit!!
Actually, "hit and run".

Luckily... there was a witness who saw the whole thing and got the trucking company name... and even tried to warn the driver using the CB, that he was backing into our truck... but the driver just kept backing. It must not have been a violent hit.... since he was backing up slowly... we figured it just slowly "mushed" the front hood to the right, and that is why we didn't feel anything... (that and the sleeping pills) :)

Leroy and a couple of men nearby pushed the hood back into place (as much as possible) and secured it with a bungee cord. We also tried to bungee cord the light back in place... that didn't work too well. :)

We called our boss, then we called the CHP (who wouldn't come out and take a report because the truck stop is private property, and there were no bodily injuries), and the same was true with the local Sheriff. We did get all the info from the witness and passed it on to TLC for them to follow up.

Since our load was due the next day, another TLC driver (who also was headed to the same delivery point) came over to our location. He and Leroy shuttled the two trailers. First our trailer, then the other guys trailer. They drove team, straight up and straight back - twice - 14 hours each way. That was a LOT of driving in a short time period.

I stayed with the damaged truck. I had to wait until Monday to take it into the Freightliner dealer in Sacramento (about 35 miles south). Two problems.... one: with the headlights out, I could only drive it during the daylight.... two: there were Fleas in the truck!!! It is hard to lay down to sleep, knowing you are going to be bitten... ouch! Itch, Itch, scratch, scratch.

While Leroy was shuttling the trailers.... I took the damaged truck to the Freightliner dealer. I got an Estimate... but the owner decided to have us bring the truck back to San Diego where she could take the truck to someone she knows who can fix it cheaper. So I drove south (about 30 miles) to another truck stop and waited for Leroy.

After Leroy returned to me, I was able to get to a Wal-Mart and get some Flea spray. Yea! We sprayed everything! bedding, matresses, pillows...everything. It was bad!

The good news... the day that Leroy returned to me was our Wedding Anniversary. (8/28/99)We celebrated 8 years!! We were just happy to be together again! ( We will do dinner and a movie after we get back to San Diego.)

Thank God for Pre-Pass. That allowed us to bypass the scales/weight stations while we limped back to San Diego in a damaged truck. We just drove during the daylight, and returned as quickly as possible.

This was our last run with TLC.
We started on 9/4/07 with a company called Sam Kholi Enterprises....