Comments By Uncle Rake

Wednesday, September 23

Started this morning at 0700, just as soon as my trainer regained his 14 hour clock. He and I can each drive 11 hours per day, but he has to be “on duty” anytime I’m driving as long as I’m a student. That limits our daily driving to his 14 hour clock, which is actually less due to breaks for food or fuel. Eastern Montana somewhat desolate, so this is a good time for The Ten Lists, Day 85.

Very first verse spoke to me today: “After saying all these things, Jesus looked up to heaven and said, “Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son so he can give glory back to you” (John 17:1). Reminds me of Matthew 5:16 which teaches that we should live in such a way that others will see our lives & glorify our Father in heaven.

Thursday , September 24

Started today from Sioux Falls, SD. Apparently someone decided our 700 mile days were either too extreme for PSD, or insufficient to get us to NJ on time because now we are heading to Wisconsin where a team will take our load. I-90 is taking us across southern Minnesota. This stretch of highway has a number of old, charming farm buildings nestled within abundant fields of corn.

The Ten Lists for day 86 brought me to Psalm 86:5: “O Lord, you are so good, so ready to forgive, so full of unfailing love for all who ask for your help.”

Tuesday, September 22

Between the two of us, we managed to drive 717 miles today. If we can repeat that for the next three days we should be able to get these apples to NJ on time. This was my first trip across eastern Washington. I found it interesting how it could suddenly change from majestic mountains to fertile farm land. Northern Idaho is beautiful, especially around lake Coeur d’Alene. But I think I have enjoyed Montana most. The often untamed mountains, with rivers flowing along the bottoms appeal to this small town Texas boy. I started a spreadsheet today to keep track of my miles. Managed 347 miles in six hours with an average speed of 57.8 MPH.

I guess the drive across unfamiliar territory distracted me from TTL today, but I did get some work on the memory project.

Monday, September 21

I forgot to mention yesterday that my first week with the trainer is completed. I have had a good opportunity to drive in various terrains. I have also driven in places with a lot of traffic and a lot less traffic. I think I am pretty comfortable driving a truck now. I am sure my comfort will continue to increase as I continue to drive. I also forgot to mention yesterday that the verse list I read was for day 83. One more thing that I saw yesterday was the man parked beside us in his Western Star truck. He said it has 1,600,000 miles. That’s a lot of miles for one truck.

Left Olympia & arrived at Costco at 0850 for 0945 appointment time (allowed for one hour early). They took paperwork then gave us a pager. They told us to park to the side & wait for pager alert to tell us which door to go to. Time for breakfast & TTL, Day 84. Have Philippians 1:1-16 about 99% committed to memory. Wonderful book of Scripture for memorization & meditation.

After being unloaded, we went back to Sumner Truck stop & waited for hours to return at 1430. Received instructions for new load from Wenatchee, WA to New Jersey. I got some sleep while waiting, considering the possibility of night driving, but I believe my trainer intends to drive.

Sunday, September 20

I drove about five hours yesterday through southern Oregon mountains. Then my trainer drove through the night to get us to Sumner, Washington around 0400. After sleeping a few hours I got up and called my wife using the new headset. It seemed to work well even as I walked through the parking lot. I am not implying that its range is that great. It worked well since I had the phone in my pocket.

When my trainer woke up we looked for another location to spend Sunday night since the current lot charges for staying there. We did not find a local truck stop and had to go south of Sumner about 40 miles. We spent the day in Olympia Washington and will sleep here tonight. Our delivery tomorrow is at 0940 in Sumner, so we will probably be there at least an hour early. I think I have the first sixteen verses of Philippians 1 pretty well tucked away in my memory. I need to practice it another couple of days to make sure, but I look forward to moving on to the next section. In The Ten Lists today, part of the reading included my favorite passage in Scripture so I have to share that with you. The verses I have been sharing may sound a little unusual. I’ve been reading through the NLT because that is what my sister reads. So it does sound different, but in many cases it is also helpful to read from a different translation. In my opinion, the more colloquial versions help in some places such as the book of Job. These translations make the speeches of Job’s friends sound more like something we would hear today. Anyway here is the NLT version of Romans 5:1-2, my favorite passage:

Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. 2 Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory.

I'm following along on your training journey, Raif.

I'm enjoying your diary Uncle Rake! Safe travels!

Thanks, PackRat & Tortuga!

Friday, September 18

Miscellaneous Notes

Yesterday I learned about parking in cities with limited areas. In the place we stayed in Ontario, California, parking is $25 per night. But if you purchase $25 worth of merchandise, that covers your expenses for parking. I am trying to build a list of areas to park in different cities across the country.

Another note relates to the comfort of the driver’s seat. My first two days were almost unbearable because of discomfort to my back. I kept thinking it would get better but finally I mentioned it to my trainer. He told me about an additional way to adjust the seat. Since then, the only discomfort I have is on the bottom and I don’t know that there is a great solution for that.

Our delivery today is 3/10 of a mile from our location. I looked at the receiver’s location on Google maps to see if I could identify where to enter. Once we got there, I found that the area for the gate that I had seen on Google Maps was accurate. I will try to make this a regular habit. Our appointment time was 0500. We arrived at 0440 and they started to unload us about 0520. They finished around 0720. In my 10 lists for the day I read day 81 (The Ten Lists). It included the following meaningful passage:

Job 19:25-27: But as for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, and He will stand upon the earth at last. 26 And after my body has decayed, yet in my body I will see God! 27 I will see Him for myself. Yes, I will see Him with my own eyes. I am overwhelmed at the thought!

I know all Bible verses are meaningful, but on certain days certain ones seem to stand out more. Memory work is pretty strong now through verse 13. After reading I slept another hour and then read trucking truth for a while, trying to learn about split sleeper.

We got our hours back about 1420 and delivery time was 1630. We had to get through a busy area of Los Angeles to the Carson area so my trainer drove. Despite the QC routing us through an exit we did not need to take, and all of the rerouting necessary to reach our destination, we did arrive just in time. We dropped our trailer there and picked up another one headed for Sumner, Washington. I began driving as we left. I gained additional good experience driving in the mountains and learning to manipulate and trust the cruise control system during descents. I drove until about 2120 when we were in the Bakersfield area. I began to get sleepy and then realized I had been awake (except for that one hour) since 0340. My trainer took over and I got some sleep.

Tuesday

Awoke at 0430 to trainer’s alarm. Got up & went to millennium building to go to restroom. Went into the gym & shot five free throws & made all five. Guess the reason I have struggled to make free throws in recent years is because I was not doing it early enough in the day. We left Springfield at 0630. My trainer drove the first couple hours, then I drove from 0930 to @ 1900. We took 400 through Kansas and then 54 down to Stratford TX.

Wednesday, September 16

We continued traveling west on 54 at 0900 with the trainer driving, coming into New Mexico around 1035. Continued down 54 to I-40 & headed west. Not sure where I started, but I drove through a good bit of NM, including Albuquerque. Driving through the hills and curves with other trucks on both sides can be somewhat unnerving. In addition, I am learning how to use the cruise control and the engine break to slow the truck in the hills.

Read Ten lists day 79 today. In memory work I’ve been struggling to remember verses 10 & 11 the past couple days. Went through two time zones today. I have an analog watch and I decided not to change the time displayed by the hands as we travel. That way the hands will always show the time in Springfield and at home. Went to sleep just before 2300 (Home time).

Thursday, September 17

Woke up today at 0545, finally obtaining a good block of uninterrupted sleep. Got up and went inside to use the restroom and brush my teeth. Sometime around 0600 I realize it’s actually 0400 here in Arizona. Need to figure out how to handle frequently changing time zones. Not really an issue, I guess, as long as we’re using electronic devices which keep up with the changes. Anyway, went back to sleep and slept another three hours until 0715 local time.

Remarkable how God designed the human body to recover so well with a good night’s sleep. After driving yesterday my entire back was sore. This morning it’s completely renewed. Think I finally got Philippians 1:10-11 down. Next section is very familiar, so I hope to learn it quickly. Will try to get ten lists read this morning while trainer is driving. Probably not too much to learn watching him drive through western Arizona. Shortly after I decided there was not much to learn, we passed mile marker 213 and got into the hills where I started learning more about the cruise control/engine breaking system. Eventually finished the Ten Lists for day 80 & encountered several memorable passages, including John 12:24-25, Romans 2:4, & 2 Timothy 1:9.

Romans 2:4 Don’t you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant, and patient God is with you? Does this mean nothing to you? Can’t you see that his kindness is intended to turn you from your sin?
2 Timothy 1:9 For God saved us and called us to live a holy life. He did this, not because we deserved it, but because that was his plan from before the beginning of time—to show us his grace through Christ Jesus.

Coming down out of Flagstaff I continued learning about the cruise control system. It doesn’t just set speed, but it manages speed based on a number of factors, controlling accelerator and engine breaking. I began driving in Arizona and into CA on I-40. I drove down to Ontario where I had the opportunity to learn about the truck systems while I was behind the wheel. I have no interest in driving in the mountains using a standard transmission as long as I have the opportunity to use the automatic transmission and breaking systems on this kind of truck. Drove to the prescribed fuel stop & refueled truck, reefer, & DEF. Then I drove to the overnight location & backed into a parking spot.

Well, it’s 2130 here, & I have to be up by 0340 for our delivery. So, goodnight.

Monday, September 14

Awoke about 530 this morning and prepared to do laundry. Had to use two washers and two dryers in order to wash three pairs of jeans and my other clothes. The washer for my jeans did not have a final spin, so I ended up having to do two cycles in the dryer to get them dried. Did my 10 lists for day 78 while clothes were washing. Went through memory work and got through verse nine pretty well and through verse 12 with a little assistance. Perhaps I will have time to relearn Philippians bit by bit.

My trainer called and said we would be getting a load today. I spent some time getting all my stuff organized and prepared to leave. On Saturday evening one of my children had a collision with a concrete barrier. She was not injured, but I have been talking to an auto body shop friend about what it would take to get the car safe to drive. It does not look good at this point. His words were, “It looks pretty hurt.”

Trainer called just after 1100 to let me know he is on the way to pick me up. He came to Campus Inn & we got my stuff loaded. Then he bought lunch for us at Cracker Barrel while we were waiting on a load. We got our load assignment to pick up a trailer from the terminal. Just as we were preparing to hook up to the trailer a yard dog came by and told us that the trailer had to go to the shop. We backed it into the shop and my trainer asked them to call him when they were finished. By 2030 we decided to get some sleep and I slept from then until 2230. After going to the restroom I slept from 2300 until 0430. I have a huge Columbia duffel bag on the outside edge of my bed running parallel to the bed. At the far end it is kept in place by the overhead storage bin. I have my legs running down beside it. It is a little tight but apparently did not affect my sleep at all.

Sunday, September 13

My trainer has a few issues with his truck such as the APU not cooling as well as it should. He said that would make it really warm on the top bunk where I will be sleeping. He got it into the shop late last night and so I did not expect to hear from him this morning. Once he eventually contacted me, I learned that he had been up until very late and then slept some this morning. We have another scheduled time at the practice pad at 1700. I am working on my pre-trip and have it all down except a few phrases and words that I say slightly differently. I recorded myself going through it from memory and then listened to the recording and watched the checklist and highlighted sections where I was not perfect. I think I could pass the pre-trip now, but I will do my best to correct the areas where I am not exactly consistent with the checklist.

We returned to the pad at 1700 and I did more backing today. I did an offset right and got it into the box with no issue. I tried an offset to the left and I got to looking at my tires and overthinking it. That led me to let off on the prescribed movements slightly and I ended up going out of the box a bit. That would cost me two points on the test. I did the rest of the maneuvers exactly as prescribed and they all went well including alley dock. I had to do one pull up on alley dock and then backed just past the boundary. That would be another two point deduction on the test. As long as I don’t have more than 12 deducted points, I will pass. On each maneuver I used my GOALs (Get Out and Look) to verify that the truck was in the right position as I prepared to adjust my turn. I still need some practice, but I think I have learned where to make changes in reference to my view of the landing gear. After that I drove for a while on the highway. My trainer was giving me ideas of what to remember for the test as I drove. When we finished I asked him if I had scared him any and he said no, so I guess that’s a good thing. When we got back to the pad he had me back the trailer into a space beside another trailer. I had to do a couple pull-ups but I got it into the space without hitting anything (except the curb).

Nice reading your updates, Raif.

Good luck meeting that trainer tomorrow morning.

Thanks, PackRat.

Saturday, September 13, 0525

Was tired last night after all of the pre-trip time and classes yesterday. Went to bed around 2100 and went to sleep directly. Woke up only once in the middle of the night but was awakened at 0425 due to someone’s unceasing alarm. It took probably ten minutes for them to turn it off. After that I tried unsuccessfully to go back to sleep, and finally got up. Prepared to take my prescriptions but the container was empty so I had to refill the weekly container (this comment was primarily for my wife to know I have been taking my meds 😀). I did not have much time yesterday to work on my memory work and today only got through the first six verses. Read The 10 Lists for day 77. Proverbs 15:1 is always a good reminder: “A gentle answer deflects anger, but harsh words make tempers flare” (NLT).

I had thought of some questions I wanted to ask my trainer such as: How many students have you had? What are your primary expectations of a student? Absolutes? Schedule for next few days? Are you a lease operator? I met him for breakfast and the conversation sort of flowed naturally. He is very easy to talk to and the questions were answered in the course of normal conversation. After breakfast we talked for about four hours in his truck. I went back to my room for a bit and returned to the practice pad at 1700. He did the backing maneuvers to show me, and then I tried them. Straight line backing was very simple and I have no problems with that. I did one of the offsets and got it into the box. Then I did a parallel to the other side and got it into the box. I only tried alley dock once or twice and have not yet gotten gotten my angle correct.