The Adventures Of Daniel B.

Daniel,

How long did the broken window set you back? Can't imagine driving a vehicle in sub-zero weather with a broken window.

Daniel,

How long did the broken window set you back? Can't imagine driving a vehicle in sub-zero weather with a broken window.

It's not fuly broken, it's still standing but shattered and wanting to collapse. I taped it to hold it up temporarily. Two days later I'm still trying to get to a terminal. I have a tight load that goes to PA with a terminal on the route. But I guarantee if I stop at the terminal for repairs then ill be late to deliver especially with these road conditions. Trying to see what my dispatcher wants me to do. Maybe I can deliver then go to a terminal. Who knows, will keep updated.

12/8

Current Load: Othello, WA to Fort Atkinson, WI - 1727 miles + 180 deadhead miles. Total Weight: 78,200.

I woke up today having to do 530 miles. Since I hussled yesterday I am going to make it to my delivery a day early. Its Sunday and they wont be open but at least I can finally sit down and catch up on TT.

I did a 14 minute pretrip and drained my air tanks. I was on my way. The road looked great the entire day. I stopped at a walmart and bought myself a nice hammer and some clear tape to tape my shattered window. It was a bit tricky to get into this Walmart and even more difficult because its slippery and I don't know where the curbs are.

I got to my fuel stop in Black River Falls in WI. I fueled up and took an unneeded 30 minute break. I headed out again and the further towards my delivery I went the worse the roads are getting. My delivery route demanded that I take a US highway for about 50 miles to get there. The entire road was untouched and full of snow. There was only 1 driveable lane instead of two. It was a slow and dangerous drive. I took my time thats for sure.

Then I went on a state highway for 20 miles and that was even worse. We couldn't even see the roads or lanes. So we all just drove where we thought was right. I passed through small towns that were slippery as can be. I drove through them at about 20 mph.

They were very beautiful though! Everything covered in snow, the streets paved with christmas trees and lights - a real beauty. This is something that I never saw in CA and it was a sight to see.

I finally got my to delivery location slowly and behind my schedule by an hour because I was going slowly. That really doesn't make a difference though. I went around the building having no idea if I'm even on pavement or not. Its the weekend and theres no activity here so I dont have any tire marks to follow. I use common sense and it gets me to my facility. I drive to the back and confirm no ones there. I then drive across the street through the thick snow and park for the night.

Today I saw about 9 cars in the ditch. No joke. These MN and WI drivers disappointed me today, I thought they were good at driving on snow since it always snows here. No trucks were in the ditch today thankfully.

My shattered window!

Mountain top.

Beautiful small city in WI.

Yep, that's my disgustingly dirty trailer.

Sorry to announce folks. But the Adventure is retiring for now. I simply cannot find the time to do this and when I do it gets in the way of other important things. Its just too much of a hassle right now. I hope you all understand.

I have a few weeks left with Central. I want to relax these last few weeks and just coast through it. I start with Prime the beginning of '14 and will need to relearn many things. When I feel comfortable with everything I do at Prime then I will likely resume this. But for now, I need some time off. I see Brett answering questions all day on the forum and kind of feel bad for neglecting it. Afraid he will strip me of my 'Moderator' title.

So, I hope everyone enjoyed it! I will eventually add to this thread but only interesting days. I hope this thread helped people out.

Thanks, Daniel, for such an informative and interesting thread. I appreciate the time you took to fill us in day to day when you could have been doing other things. I will be re-reading the thread as there is a lot of information here to digest. Good luck at Prime and hope you get the hang of the new routine soon!

I see Brett answering questions all day on the forum and kind of feel bad for neglecting it. Afraid he will strip me of my 'Moderator' title

Oh nothing could be further from my mind. I love that you did this thread! That kind of journal is just priceless for people coming into the industry and it takes a lot of time to put that together. Believe me, none of that was lost on me. I very very much appreciate that you've taken all this time to do this.

Believe me, I'm still trying to think of a way to get really prominent placement for this thread. I want to make sure that anyone coming into the industry gets a chance to read this stuff so they know what life is like out there.

Great stuff!

Thanks for a great thread Daniel, good luck at Prime. See you out there somewhere! Stay safe!

Daniel...you're breakin' my heart here !!! I got used to reading your daily adventure..thru toilet paper tubes .... so nothing else infringed on my adventure, as I get to relive being on the road...

Now what am I left with ?? Youtube ??/

Sorry guys haha. I have 4 minutes left on my 70 hour clock, and its extremely tough to find the time to do this right now. I will update it here and there.

Also.

1000th post!!!!

I know I have said it many times, but really can't say it enough.

THANK YOU FOR THIS THREAD!!!!

It has been great Daniel, like setting in the seat beside you enjoying the ride and learning as we go. I hope one day I can write a similar thread.

Woody