Still Kicking

So after a week in Cancun, Cozumel, and Playa Del Carmen I came home and jumped into a rental car to make my way onto training for a food grade tanker position.

After just the first few runs I'm hooked. But also very humbled. It's amazing just how different something a few feet shorter will back.

Surge is no joke! My first load I didn't feel a thing. I drove slower than any bluehair you ever seen but I made a point of stepping on the brakes. I wanted to see what all the fuss was about... but nothing really to speak of.

Second load was a lot different. Same product but it was about six thousand pounds lighter. I got loaded and again slowly took off and planned a quick stop off at a gas station down the road "perk of being shorter" But I realized as I came to a stop that this was not the same load as yesterday.

I don't think I've ever read exactly what to expect with surge other than "liquid sloshes" and with good reason. It's really hard to describe. Yes it pushes you.. forward and backward. And if you get seasick either bring Dramamine or this might not be the job for you..

Learning to shift all over again along with how to back all over again has been oddly fun. And I'm much happier now that I get to work outside of the truck rather than just sit in a seat all day.

I've been released from training and pulled my first completely solo run although nobody rode in the truck for my "training" loads. They just met me at the receiver to show me how to offload.

All in all it's been fun and a welcome change of pace.. And I'm still kicking.

Comgratulations! Welcome back.

Pretty awesome Cwc!

I pulled a food grade tanker for a year and I really enjoyed it myself. It's a cool little niche that has its unique perks and challenges.

I've had the surge hit me so hard it knocked the hat off my head and washed everything off my shelves and onto the floor. The worst thing I ever had to haul was saltwater. It's super heavy but obviously a super low viscosity so you can only fill the tank like 2/3 of the way before you're maxed out on weight and that leaves a lot of room for that water to slosh around. Anytime you touched the brakes it felt like a big rig slammed into you from behind. Brutal stuff.

Take things extra slow and be doubly careful going into curves. Make sure you get that truck slowed down before you enter that curve. If that liquid sloshes forward hard while you're going around a bend on slick roads it's going to be bad news.

I enjoyed it though. It's a cool little niche for sure. A pretty unique job!

Playa del Carmen... honeymooned there back in ‘05... good times. Great to hear from you! Yeah, the surge has also knocked me into a gear I wasn’t aiming for. Drive safe!

Hey Pete! I did finally get that Giant I told you about months and months ago.