Distraction

Almost dropped a trailer today, literally caught it on my frame right below the 5th wheel. what a long day it has been for such a short run.

I've had a lot on my mind lately due to a major surgery coming up that a close family member is having, and I've been forgetting some things here and there, but today could have been a lot worse had I dropped the trailer further. During training it was mentioned over and over that your mind is the number one distraction, and today proved it. of course I didn't do it on purpose, but it started off bad when I went to drop the trailer. I did everything out of order, which is also important to do everything the same way to ensure you dont make this type of mistake. 8-9 months and this is the only time I ever came close to dropping a trailer. Going home soon for some much needed home time.

Hang in there, Jamie, and THINK! Make a list of things to do if you need to. An accident only takes a split second but can ruin your career forever.

Jamie, glad you caught the trailer in time. Yeah, you do sound stressed out, I could hear it in your comment. Always best to take a breather when that happens.

Forgot to mention, this was a drop and hook , and I just completely forgot to roll down the landing gear. Usually when I drop a trailer, I'll do my walk around for a post trip, roll the landing gear down, and then disconnect the air lines and pigtail and then pull out slowly enough so when it falls off the 5th wheel, I'll stop to make sure the ground will support the weight.

But today I got out, did my walk around and disconnected the air lines and pigtail, and skipped the landing gear completely... glad I caught it when I did, so just took a bit to get it cranked back up. It was an eye opening and a let down all at once, since it shouldn't have happened. Completely preventable.

I'll be glad when the surgery is over, since it's a high risk surgery due to their health condition. Should be heading home starting today or tomorrow.

Jamie my thoughts are with you and your family member. I hope all goes well.

Our minds can be a distraction worse than any mobile device because we can lose focus without realizing it. However we do not have the option of losing focus when you are in control of an 80,000 pound vehicle.

I've made students stop and do a midtrip inspection to help re focus their mind. They thought i was just being a jerk until they saw me do it as well. If they can't re focus I'll end their shift. I'd rather reschedule a delivery then risk them having an incident or worse.

I'm glad you ended up only having to do a little extra cranking. I hope others will see it and be reminded how important maintaining focus is out here.

Get home safe!

I did it also once only I didn't do a tug test and crank my landing gears up. When that trailer hit those frame rails about crapped my pants. I was in a hurry and of course it took me a good 45 minutes to an hour to get that trailer cranked up only had 42 thousand pounds on it... trust me I learned my lesson about being in a hurry.