Leaving Fontana, I drove to pick up a border relay load in Calexico. I had a short chat with the Mexican driver. He was concerned that I would be stopped for a couple of defects on the trailer. One of these "defects" was a burned out tag light. Under the current laws, we can have unfavorable points added to our record over seeming insignificant things as burned out tag lights, marker lights, and other minor things. My co-driver was stopped and ticketed recently for that very thing - a tag light.
Our trailer contained 29,000 lbs of DVD movies, valued at approximately $2 Million or more. Obviously, we had been briefed earlier in the day to what the security requirements were. One of these requirements was to drive 300 miles nonstop from the border relay point. I achieved this at around 2:30am, a few miles east of Tucson, Arizona. My co-driver and I took turns inside the truckstop store. I sent in messages communicating where we were, why I stopped, how long we would be there, and who was currently attending the truck. When my co-driver got ready to resume our trip he sent in another message communicating that it was us in the truck, and that everything was alright.
I went to bed shortly after he started driving. A few hours later, I woke to discover that we were parked among hundreds of other trucks in a vacant lot in Wilcox, Arizona. I-10 had been shut down in New Mexico, due to icy roads and accidents. It was going to be closed for several hours to come. We considered backtracking to Phoenix, and taking I-17 up to I-40. However, I-40 was closed as well! All we could do is sit and wait. With both of us in the truck I don't sleep well; I just don't. The Interstate reopened about an hour before I usually take over, noon. While our truck was still trapped among the other rigs, I jumped out to get some coffee from the truckstop. By the time I returned, we were ready to roll.
My driving day didn't go as badly as my partner's, but I did get caught in various congested areas - a lingering result of so many trucks hitting the road at the same time.
Twelve hours later, it became time for my partner to take over again. We had sent in repeated revisions to our estimated delivery arrival time, and more winter weather caused us to continue updating.
It was my birthday. I had been enjoying so many birthday wishes on Facebook. While my partner drove, I got myself ready to begin another day. A short distance ahead of us, a truck collided with another, sending him off of the roadway, and into the trees. My partner stood on the brakes. I went flying backwards, toward the front of the truck. My back took a nasty scratch and cut on the way forward. My shirt was ripped and bloody. I groaned on the bed for a little while before I awkwardly gave myself first-aid. My back was ugly, but I felt that I didn't need any professional treatment.
I made 3 stops in Memphis, before my trailer was empty. None of our customers grumbled about us being late.
Our trailer contained 29,000 lbs of DVD movies, valued at approximately $2 Million or more. Obviously, we had been briefed earlier in the day to what the security requirements were. One of these requirements was to drive 300 miles nonstop from the border relay point. I achieved this at around 2:30am, a few miles east of Tucson, Arizona. My co-driver and I took turns inside the truckstop store. I sent in messages communicating where we were, why I stopped, how long we would be there, and who was currently attending the truck. When my co-driver got ready to resume our trip he sent in another message communicating that it was us in the truck, and that everything was alright.
I went to bed shortly after he started driving. A few hours later, I woke to discover that we were parked among hundreds of other trucks in a vacant lot in Wilcox, Arizona. I-10 had been shut down in New Mexico, due to icy roads and accidents. It was going to be closed for several hours to come. We considered backtracking to Phoenix, and taking I-17 up to I-40. However, I-40 was closed as well! All we could do is sit and wait. With both of us in the truck I don't sleep well; I just don't. The Interstate reopened about an hour before I usually take over, noon. While our truck was still trapped among the other rigs, I jumped out to get some coffee from the truckstop. By the time I returned, we were ready to roll.
My driving day didn't go as badly as my partner's, but I did get caught in various congested areas - a lingering result of so many trucks hitting the road at the same time.
Twelve hours later, it became time for my partner to take over again. We had sent in repeated revisions to our estimated delivery arrival time, and more winter weather caused us to continue updating.
It was my birthday. I had been enjoying so many birthday wishes on Facebook. While my partner drove, I got myself ready to begin another day. A short distance ahead of us, a truck collided with another, sending him off of the roadway, and into the trees. My partner stood on the brakes. I went flying backwards, toward the front of the truck. My back took a nasty scratch and cut on the way forward. My shirt was ripped and bloody. I groaned on the bed for a little while before I awkwardly gave myself first-aid. My back was ugly, but I felt that I didn't need any professional treatment. I made 3 stops in Memphis, before my trailer was empty. None of our customers grumbled about us being late.
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