Profile For Robert B. (The Dragon) yes, I breathe fire and other sideshow tricks

I know the reference but won't give it away lol. I also know plenty of owners and company drivers capable of getting 6.7 - 7 mpg out of that truck. It depends on how it's set up and how it's driven.

Congratulations!! In regards to gloves, I'm a big fan of the Hydra Hide made by Wells Lamont. They're water resistant, last a decent while and also make an insulated version for the winter months. I always keep a couple pair so I can wear one while the other pair is drying. Good luck and have fun.

With all the conversation about the virus, I figured I'd go ahead and add today's load. It's a Cat 320E excavator going from just outside El Paso to Spokane.

They do good work. The oilfield truck I ran had a lot of their work done. They're the ones who swapped for the single larger turbo and boost controller. It normally ran at 690 but could be turned up to 750 on the dial.

I have a better idea. Send me the $150k you'll spend in startup costs and I'll tell you how I spent the money. I'll even throw in a few photos.

Or, send me $90,000 and I'll set you up in a used, custom 2003 Coranado with 625 hp, twin turbos, lots of chrome, super singles, and a freshened motor with a bunch of Pittsburgh Power goodies on it.

For $5,000 extra, I'll deliver it after the check clears.

For all those extras, you should have gotten rid of the twin turbo, swapped the intake and exhaust and put one large turbo. They run better, make more power and less problematic.

I have a better idea. Send me the $150k you'll spend in startup costs and I'll tell you how I spent the money. I'll even throw in a few photos.

Cali, Connecticut and Florida are the only states that require them closed. Cali sticks you at 12,34,34. Connecticut allows 36 on the trailer and Florida allows 44 on a tandem set. If you know you're going to be doing a lot of Florida and don't want to close them, you can purchase an annual permit for the truck for $110 , unless they changed the price.

Today's bit of fun is only 10' wide but 14'2" tall. It's a bit lighter than the previous excavator but top heavy and being on rubber tires makes it a bit like a feeble wobble lol. Anywho, it's going from San Antonio to its new home in Sparks Nevada.

Not to go completely off topic here, but I'm curious Robert, are you now in an Coronado? Going off your previous pictures you had a Pete?

Wow, id better be making good money I would think to myself if I was going to be doing oversize as a owner op if I was.

Something else to keep in mind when working with over dimensional freight. In the case of width, you have two different measurements. First is the width of the item going on the trailer. In the case of that excavator, it's 10'6" wide. If you're not paying attention when you load it and it isn't square on the trailer, your friendly neighborhood DOT officer will measure the widest points because that's how wide you really are. It's very easy to make an item wider than originally measured by not getting it square on the trailer. You also never order permits for the width of the item. Always order a few inches wider to give some wiggle room, unless it might throw you into a different category of routing, escort requirements etc. Then you make sure you get it right. In the case of this excavator, it measures 12" of overhang on each corner. I got lucky and set it right the first time.

It's paying me $.97 cpm as a company driver, so yeah, it pays well lol.

You are correct sir lol. I applied with this company the same time I applied with Kivi but these folks didn't have a truck available. My goal was to make it up to the heavy haul division and after hauling roughly 40% of my loads as over dimensional and overweight, I kept getting various reasons as to why there were no positions available on their heavy side. These folks called and offered me a position doing what I truly want to do with better money and the same benefits but almost half the cost, plus I have two good friends here who have been here 3-4 years. After some thought, I made the move. I have absolutely nothing bad to say about Kivi though because they treated me very well. My terminal manager and load planner didn't want to see me leave and after face to face conversations with them, they completely understood and told me if I ever wanted to come back, they'll make a spot for me.

Wow, id better be making good money I would think to myself if I was going to be doing oversize as a owner op if I was.

Something else to keep in mind when working with over dimensional freight. In the case of width, you have two different measurements. First is the width of the item going on the trailer. In the case of that excavator, it's 10'6" wide. If you're not paying attention when you load it and it isn't square on the trailer, your friendly neighborhood DOT officer will measure the widest points because that's how wide you really are. It's very easy to make an item wider than originally measured by not getting it square on the trailer. You also never order permits for the width of the item. Always order a few inches wider to give some wiggle room, unless it might throw you into a different category of routing, escort requirements etc. Then you make sure you get it right. In the case of this excavator, it measures 12" of overhang on each corner. I got lucky and set it right the first time.

It's paying me $.97 cpm as a company driver, so yeah, it pays well lol.

Something else to keep in mind when working with over dimensional freight. In the case of width, you have two different measurements. First is the width of the item going on the trailer. In the case of that excavator, it's 10'6" wide. If you're not paying attention when you load it and it isn't square on the trailer, your friendly neighborhood DOT officer will measure the widest points because that's how wide you really are. It's very easy to make an item wider than originally measured by not getting it square on the trailer. You also never order permits for the width of the item. Always order a few inches wider to give some wiggle room, unless it might throw you into a different category of routing, escort requirements etc. Then you make sure you get it right. In the case of this excavator, it measures 12" of overhang on each corner. I got lucky and set it right the first time.

Practice, practice and more practice. The speed will come but speed isn't important. What matters is getting the securement correct and accounting for potential situations which can cause things to go sideways in a hurry. Focus more on the basics and looking at each load, figuring out exactly what it needs. Don't worry about whether or not you're meeting the minimum requirements. Worry more about, my family is in the vehicle's next to me and are they safe with what I've done to secure my load.

What permits and how you got them for that load Robert B.? Thats way over 80,000 pounds gross, did you have to go to a special route?

Today's load. It's a John Deere 225D excavator. It's not a very large one but still fun to operate and load. I picked up at Ritchie brothers auction in Davenport Florida and deliver to Hidalgo Texas where it will cross the border to its new home in Monterey Mexico. The unit itself is 10'6" wide and weighs just shy of 58,000 putting my total weight at 93,540. The trailer it's on is a 3 axle heavy haul low profile step deck rated for 80k. Have a great weekend all.

The company contacts each state that I'll be traveling through. In this case it's Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas. Every state has different regulations regarding the routing, specs on the axle weights and travel restrictions. It's partially about safety and definitely about money for the state's when it comes to permits. Texas charges a flat rate based on the number of axles until you get up there in weight 150k and doesn't require an escort on wide loads until 16'. Mississippi and Louisiana fees are based on weight with Alabama and Florida being flat rate states with various provisions. Oklahoma, Arkansas and Tennessee are the most expensive to travel through with over dimensional, overweight loads and we avoid Tennessee like the plague unless the delivery goes there. In Virginia, anything over 112k is considered a super load and requires an extra, more expensive permit. New Hampshire and I believe Massachusetts require a bridge review once axle weights reach a certain weight. Those bridge reviews run $1000 per review, per bridge. It can get expensive quickly. The routing also varies from state to state and some are more extensive than others depending on the load.

Today's load. It's a John Deere 225D excavator. It's not a very large one but still fun to operate and load. I picked up at Ritchie brothers auction in Davenport Florida and deliver to Hidalgo Texas where it will cross the border to its new home in Monterey Mexico. The unit itself is 10'6" wide and weighs just shy of 58,000 putting my total weight at 93,540. The trailer it's on is a 3 axle heavy haul low profile step deck rated for 80k. Have a great weekend all.

Don't forget to take into account that Cat scales weigh heavy intentionally. It's part of the reason they can guarantee you won't be overweight, unless you make yourself overweight after scaling it.

20# on an axle grouping isn't worth them wasting the paper to print off a ticket. Most states won't mess with you until you're 500# over with many turning a blind eye up to 1000#. Over gross is a bit of a different story. Another thing to consider is that an over axle violation is considered a non moving violation and is a fine only, no points on your PSP and no points against the company CSA. In Ohio, your fine would be a whopping $1.

I'd still take 40. 70 just had a significant snowfall from grand junction to just west of Denver. Several sections have been closed on and off and they've been working avalanche mitigation as well.

You can get through the entire process a bit faster than that but you have to stay on top of the folks at FMCSA. I'm not sure what your disability is that might require you having the certificate but it's important to know that not every doctor will annotate it on the physical. It took me 4 years to get released from mine and I keep a copy of the release form from FMCSA, should a different doctor try to determine I should have it again.

I'll defer to Robert when it comes to oversized / over-dimensional loads. It's hard to judge securement from that picture alone. Same with lights and banners.

I appreciate the kind words. I'm definitely not an authority but have done my fair share. Oddly enough, I'm currently on an OD load headed to new York and hopefully ummmmmm the next few weeks will be doing nothing but oversized / overweight loads.

More than happy to help. I'm not on very much but occasionally get to chime in lol.