Heading home

Fluffy cotton wool sky, north of Primm , Nevada
Marshmallow sky, going into California from Oregon

The obligatory arms crossed in front of truck pose

Hi all, loaded the bananas which was a pain as it took 4hrs due to a bone idle forklift driver and an even more lazy gaffer. The weather was truly glorious in Port Hueneme and was touching 80f, thing is I found out my Tripac had given in again which meant no aircon whilst sat and even worse the truck aircon needs regassing so things got a bit heated.
I have been feeling a bit low lately, no particular reason as I am very happy so maybe its just one of those things. What brought me back was I found a way to see who views my site and it was a breath of fresh air as I really felt like giving it up. I have readers in the Sudan, Japan, Holland, Belguim, Sweden, Hungary, Pakistan and Australia as well as the ones you might expect, Uk and USA. It relit the candle I think as although I dont get a lot of comment I know you are reading it!
Have put a big shift in today as need to get to Canada as my hours are running short. Remember I told you that the hours differ once you hit the border ?
I took an amazing video today driving through the Virgin River Gorge but the quality is too high and it would mean splitting it into 10 parts on Youtube as its almost 1.2gb in size. Its brilliant though.
Today was also really hot and I thoroughly enjoyed the drive up. I wish I could post the video I took to give anyone who is thinking of coming here a fantastic reason to come.
If anyone wants me to cover anything in particular then let me know, maybe an article on sliding axles or the best casino to visit in Las Vegas. Speaking of which, for lunch today I stopped at the Oasis casino in Mesquite. I have never seen a spread like it and the choice was awesome. I had Blackened Perch with potatoe salad, BBQ Ribs, some mexican stuff I cant pronounce, a small steak cooked to order and some Lemon Meringue pie with ice cream. Total cost, $7 including a soft drink.
I love this job !!!!!

On route for Bananas

Hello hello. Had a quick unload at Sutherlin and then hung round a bit while H&R decided to send me north or south. A decision was made and it was empty to Lodi California. Then this morning the message came through to run further south as its now a load of bananas from Port Hueneme which is good news.
Had planned to try to get my son over here before he goes into the Navy on 30 March but it looks like he has changed his mind and is now not coming. It seems thats happening a bit often now as I have been over here for 22wks and its getting to be a case of "Out of sight,Out of mind" Daft things like emails I send dont get replied to and invites to chat on MSN get ignored. I am not fussed, I am doing fine on my own.
Speaking of chat I have just installed Skype and so far I am Billy no-mates so if you use it add me, think my name is just "montedarlo"
Got nothing else really to say, I know Lyndon is down here somewhere so maybe I might get to meet him and catch up on stuff.

Back across the Crowsnest Pass

Hi. I cant remember what I was up to last time I posted so I will go back as far as I can remember.
Dropped the beer in Calgary and loaded out of Taber on Thursday morning. The satellite beeped and asked me not to pass Lethbridge as the load was not due for delivery in Oregon until Mon 25th. I called in at the yard and explained that I needed some jobs doing so I would get them done.
The steering had developed a bad vibration that was getting worse everyday and the last thing I wanted when in the mountains was for that to give in and also the "Tripac" had a fault and refused to start.
The truck was given a new set of front rubber and that cured the vibrations but the tripac was causing some problems. After having 2 nights at the Sandman courtesy of H&R I finally left at 1300 on the 23rd.
I really enjoyed the drive across Crowsnest and caught myself smiling for no reason on a few occasions. I parked at Post Falls in Idaho last night and couldnt get an internet connection so watched a few films and went to bed. Left at 9 this morning and am now parked at The TA truckstop 64 miles from the customer, so its a short run into Sutherlin for the unload. Hopefully it will be a quick delivery and then I can find out what the future has in store for me.

Need a cab ? Call Tibor.

H&R have an account with 5th Avenue cabs and while you are running around getting to driving school ect you will use them on a daily basis.
Most of the lads carry on to use them once they are on the road and occasionally you will get picked up by Tibor. He moved here from Hungary 16yrs ago and is a great driver. He is always interested in where you have been or where you are going and I think likes to practice his already good english.
I can thoroughly recommend him to all and when you call 5th Ave cabs ask for car 216.

The "Frank Slide"

The following is an extract from a website which tells the story of the "Frank Slide".
The town of Frank is close to Lethbridge and at first when you drive through it looks like a quarry but it has a hell of a story.

For all the info visit http://www3.sympatico.ca/goweezer/canada/frank.htm

The place not to be the morning of April 29, 1903 was the town of Frank, Alberta.
Frank was a burgeoning mining town of 600 nestled in the Crowsnest Pass in the shadow of the massive Turtle Mountain which rises over 7,000 feet above town.

At 4:10 AM that fateful morning the town and the mountain became one as a 70-million ton wedge of overhanging limestone broke away, shattered into large boulders, crashed 300 feet down the mountain across the valley and 500 feet up the another mountain on the other side of the valley.

In a brief 100 ear-shattering, bone-jarring seconds, 76 persons lost their lives, 23 were injured and 17 miners were trapped inside a mine shaft behind over 100 feet of rubble and stone.


The pics I have taken cannot do this place justice. When you see it with the human eye you can imagine the enormity of it all and the camera lens just cannot capture that.

Hello, well after a big drive I arrived in Calgary, dropped the trailer and hit the sack. The following morning I was asked to go to Creston BC empty and reload with beer to drop in the Calgary yard which I agreed to.
Now, I am not the biggest fan of going to British Columbia as the roads are pretty bad and there is limited parking places but the run to Creston is just fantastic. Its a 6hr jaunt full of fast roads,sweeping bends that you can carry speed through and I think it has some of the best scenery you can see. The pics above show a lovely panorama of Lake Moyie, covered in snow and just bloody glorious and a scale sign which has a great backdrop. I think its one of the best runs we do.
Loaded the beer and headed back to find I was loading from Taber which is 30 miles from Lethbridge to Sutherlin Oregon. Its only a short trip but once again the scenery is magnificent.
At the minute the truck is in the workshops as there is bad vibrations coming through the steering wheel as well as some funny noises and hopefully they will be fixed in the morning so I can have a steady time running the 1200 miles to Sutherlin in time to deliver on the 25th.
I am looking forward to the next few days as its a really nice drive. Will probably end up running into California for the reload but its not so bad now as I am getting used to the crazy drivers and hectic schedules. You never know, I could end up running down to load bananas then another night in Las Vegas could be on the cards, all in a days work eh !!!

To follow up below

Canadian Kilogrames and Pounds
The following list is in addition to the post below. All weights are the max allowed per axle group.
Steers 5500kg, Drives 17000kg, Tandem Trailer 17000kg, Tridem trailer 23000kg.
Steers 12125lb, Drives 37478lb, Tandem Trailer 37478lb, Tridem Trailer 50705lb
Gross vehicle weight
Tandem trailer 39500kg, Tridem trailer 45500kg
Tandem trailer 87081lb, Tridem trailer 100308lb

American Pounds
All weights are max allowed when entering or transiting the USA.
Steers 12000lb, Drives 34000lb, Tandem trailer 34000lb, Tridem trailer 43500lb
Gross vehicle weights
Tandem trailer 80000lb, Tridem trailer 89500lb.

Calculations and Conversions

After 100's of miles of crap roads from Ottawa to Cochrane (H-17) you get this. Bliss!!

Made an arse of myself the other day and it goes to prove that its best to plan everything.
Miles to Kilometers, Pounds to Kilograms, Feet to Meters ars conversions a truck driver here has to carry out countless times in a day.
So I pulled the trailer out of Montreal, looked at the truck suspension gauge and saw it had a low reading which for the weight I had on meant I was really heavy on the trailer. It was late so I drove to the Flying J and would scale the load off in the morning. I slept well, washed and ate then put 3929 on the weigh bridge, I knew it, 39280lbs on the trailer and 32580lbs on the drives. There was no way I could spread that excess amount legally over the axles so I fired off a message asking dispatch what I should do. The answer was simple, move your axles !!! Then it clicked. When running in Canada 99% of the time you are weighed in Kilogrammes, when in or going to the States its pounds, but, an american pound is differnt to a canadian pound and I had convinced myself I was running on the USA conversion.
Basically 17000kg(canada) = 37478lbs(canada) = 34000lbs(USA) which is a vast difference. After wasting hours it took 5mins to slide the trailer axles back which see-sawed some weight forward and I was legal.
I owe a few apologies, firstly to dispatch for wasting there time and secondly to the lad who loaded the trailer, and even though the axles wern't set right he didnt deserve the names I called him all beginning with "The french........"
Anyway, remember where you are and where you are going as it helps a great deal.

Some pics and a cracking soundtrack

Purely for a bit of fun. Sorry about the quality of the pictures but it was the song that I wanted to get on here as cannot find an audio player that works.

Mrs Montedarlo

Just a quick one to show you all the tottie I pick up. Any ideas who she is ?

A quick guide on how to put ya tyre jewellery on

Hi, hope you are all well. From talking to other drivers it seems everyone has there own routine when chaining up. putting the chains on for these pictures was only the second time I have done it but it worked for me.
Ok, Initially you will of checked the chains for condition and length before you need to use them so we will assume that they are in good condition.
The chain is drapped over the tyre as in Pic 1 and should be checked again for condition. I hang them so the front of the chain can be tucked under the front of the wheel. At this point you must ensure that the "teeth" are pointing outwards (Pic 2) and the "Cam adjusters" are facing you and are unlocked (Pic 3). Do this to all the wheels you are chaining which for me would be both sets of drive wheels and one trailer axle so 6 wheels in total.
When done roll the truck forward a few feet taking care not to drive over the chains of the foremost axle with the rear wheels as in Pic 4.
Onto the bottom photo now.
Connect the ends of the chains together using the hooks doing the inside of the wheel first trying to get them as tight as you can (Pic 5)
Using the tool, twist the cam adjuster to bring the chain links together which tightens the chain (Pic 6&7)
If you like a few bungee cords can be used to give added tension. Follow the above procedure for all the chained wheels (Pic 8)
Drive for a few hundered metres and check all of the chains for tension and re-adjust if neccessary.
Thats it folks. Some really useful stuff I recommend is a pair of waterproofs as you get filthy and soaking whilst chaining and a pair of heavy duty rubber gloves worn over a pair of warm gloves.
The time taken to chain the wheel was 6mins which included stopping to take the pics.

Nova Scotia, so near so far !!

Bridge from Port Huron Michigan to Sarnia Ontario

Hi, its been a busy week and have loads to say.
Made it into Des Moines Iowa the night before my delivery and parked in the yard. Had a quick tip and was promptly despatched to load about 2hr away at Ottumwa. As I scrolled down the loading instructions my heart beat a little faster when I saw the destination...Debert Nova Scotia. Brill, not only is it huge miles but it meant that New Brunswick and Nova Scotia could be added to my list of "places been"
The trailer was washed out and I was ready and waiting to load at 12.30, and I waited and I waited.Eventually at 5pm I was put on the dock and waited and waited. All in all I was ready to go at 11pm.
I had calculated the hours I would need to do the trip and because of wasted time I couldnt make it, I reckon I needed another 4hrs. The following morning I informed dispatch and received a message asking for my ETA at the yard in Mississigau, they were going to take it off me. I sent the info and floored the throttle only to be slowed down by ice on the roads for virtually the whole time spent transiting Illinois but I still managed to clock up 550miles. I parked at Flint Michigan and totted up my hours, I was still 1340 miles from Debert but I had 26hr driving available and 2 days to do it in. All I needed to do was average 51mph for the 26hr and I was there.
I informed H&R but it was too late, I had to drop the trailer at Montreal, what a bummer.
Its not all bad though as the trailer I have now is for British Columbia and I am dropping it at Calgary which is 2300 miles away so that will keep me out of mischief for the next few days.
Just out of interest if the load I have now had loaded in Nova Scotia and I took it to the delivery point the distance would have been 3500 miles. Awesome.
Anyway, whats the morale of the story ? Should I have taken the load for Nova Scotia and lied that I could make the delivery when I didnt think that I could or do as I did. Had H&R rang the customer I am sure a few hours wouldn't of hurt. Still its too late now, I dont like to bend my driving hours and there will always be another Nova Scotia.

Back in the truck

Hi, ended up having two nights in the Sandman as the truck wasn't ready and left for Iowa yesterday afternoon.
I know it sounds sad but the feeling I had when I got 3929 back after 2 days was the same you get when you get back home from holiday and put the kettle on. Everything I own is in the truck and it was good to get sat behind the wheel again.
I woke this morning in Hardin Montana and 3" of snow had fallen over night which stopped my plans to cross country to Rapid City South Dakota, best stick to the Interstates even though its 50 miles longer.
I have got 761 miles to go to the customer so I have ample time as the delivery is scheduled for the morning of the 11th.
I have written the text for the snow chain post but still need to actually take the pictures which will mean finding somewhere where nobody can see me chaining for no reason and finding a time when I dont freeze to death but it will be soon.
Thats it for now really, will update when anything happens.

A few Panoramic pictures

No time off and feathers ruffled a little

Early morning in Utah

Frozen waterfalls

Hi. Well when I got to Calgary the city driver who works locally told me to drop the trailer at the customer and he would tip it so thanks to him and I will buy him a drink if I see him out.
Next day I was dispatched to do a trailer swap in British Columbia at 11am. I arrived at the customer and was told that the load would be at least a few hours until it was ready so I had some food and generally wasted time until then. At 1630 I got the all clear to go and saw my backside a bit as it was a 6hr drive through the mountains to meet the lad who would deliver the load. As it turned out the weather wasnt too bad and I made good time, switched trailers and went to bed. The following morning I slept in and didnt wake until 1030 but no harm was done and I plodded on into Calgary. On the way I asked dispatch if it was possible to have the truck serviced in Lethbridge so I could have a day off and was told basically that the truck could be serviced anywhere and I was not a priority as I had not booked the time off. Now forgive me but I have worked for the last 17weeks and the only day I have had off was the last time the truck was in for service, was it too much to ask for a 24hr period where I could do as I wished. Although I was a bit miffed I shrugged the comment off and carried on.
The trailer I had switched was dropped in Calgary last night and I had already been preplanned to pick up a trailer to drop at Lethbridge but the load confirmation never came through.
It was panic stations this morning, I needed to pick up the trailer and get it to Lethbridge asap. No problem as the load was ready to go at High River and I was dropping the trailer by 1100am.
I am now sat in the Sandman Hotel courtesey of H&R as the truck is being serviced. For the first time in a long time I have had a few pints and relaxed. Although its only been a few hours I am looking forward to getting back in the truck and doing some work, sad eh!
I am off to Des Moines Iowa tomorrow and have plenty time to get there so I am quite looking forward to it.
Nothing else has really happened, the weather up here was not as bad as I was told but as you can see by the pics the cold does bring some beautiful things to see.
Coming up soon is a guide on how to put on snowchains with plenty of pics, bet your already looking forward to it !!!!

Ended up going to Las Vegas

Water fountains at Bellagio


While driving along and admiring the scenery it got me thinking that I havnt had a bad life really. Granted I have no money as such and 2 divorces behind me but I still have a good life and have seen things some people can only dream of. I travelled in the Army and was posted to Germany,N.Ireland,Belize and Cyprus and did stuff that would cost a fortune if you had to pay for them. Then 13yr European driving saw me visit almost every European country both east and west on numerous occasions. And now this, Canada and the States. I have driven through most of the lived in areas of Canada and been to well over half of the states in America. I know that most of the time its just passing through but every now and again I make the effort to explore and have a look at some of the accessible sights which makes it all worth while to me.
And so I ended up in Vegas purely because it could be the last time I ever go and how many of you can say that 2 weeks on the trot you partied in one of the best party cities in the world while being paid?
The shopping trip I had was cool, the outlet mall at Primm Nevada was just the right size to loose a few hours and I came away with some real bargains. I have always wanted some snake skin loafers, dont laugh. The last nice pair I saw where in House of Fraser in Darlo and cost almost £200. I bought some yesterday for $49, now I know they look a little like Alibaba shoes as they curl up slightly at the toe but I like them. The label on the shoes was $299 so I couldnt resist.
Parked up for the night now in Idaho, just over the Utah state line. Once again because I stopped in Vegas I have a big day ahead of me tomorrow but will make delivery on time to Calgary at 0100am. Then I might treat myself to a day off !!!

On way back up to Calgary

Cool street name

Hi all.Loaded yesterday without much hassle other than arriving at the shipper when they were going on there lunch. Two hours later I was on my way and took the route across the top of LA via Passedena. Big mistake as the traffic was terrible and I would say I lost more time yesterday than I have since I came over here.
Any plans I had of having the night in Las Vegas disintigrated but not too fussed really. I think the next time I go will be when I have some company as its not much fun mooching around on your own.
Parked at Barstow California at the minute and leaving soon. Going to call in at one of the big casinos on the Nevada border as they have a shopping outlet mall there and going to see if I can pick up a bargain.
Thats it for now, not much has happened so not much to write about.
Speak soon