[AT] Tractor hauling

[Cecil Monson]

> Cecil..............Your note is exactly what I was referring to........I
> learned this the hard way about 20 years ago when I sent a trucker to pick
> up a running Terex 8230 crawler.  The owner and the trucker spent all day
> trying to get the "runner" going.  They finally gave up, the trucker came
> back empty and I was out 750.00 for his time and trip.
> 
> I shipped an AC model M back to Pennsylvania a year or so back.  It was a
> partial load for the trucker and he shows up with a trailer with no space
> except on the front of the deck.  Fortunately I could lift the whole machine
> up and set it down on the bed but it certainly wasn't expected or
> anticipated.  I have made loading ramps/docks of varying height around the
> place to cope with unexpected trailer heights.  Even though I try to plan on
> the unexpected, I am still capable of being surprised by a new twist.
> 
> John Parks
> Boise, ID

> I won't say that I won't ever..........but, these sort of problems are some 

of what spurred me to sell my last truck in 1993.  Cecil did hit it 
right on

the head.  As far as the trucker showing up with room only on the front 
of the

deck for the partial load, well, some truckers don't plan well either.  Of

course the dispatcher may have screwed that up, or possibly it was a 
weight issue.
> 
> If all went well, though, hauling antique tractors around the country would 

be a fun job.
> 
> Ron Cook
> Salix, IA 


	I have to say I enjoyed doing the hauling, meeting new people,
and seeing the country.  The problem with me is there is something in
me that dislikes waiting for others - and especially as a result of
poor or no planning or preparation for what is to be done. Nothing could
be worse for me than to pull in to pick something up for someone and be
greeted with, "Oh I didn't know you were coming today."  or something to
that effect. I don't do it much any more either so I guess those days
are pretty well gone. When I saw John's post, I knew exactly what he was
talking about because for some reason a lot of people seem to thing the
trucker is going to take care of the loading and all they have to do is
point to whatever it is and say, "There you go."  ha ha ha  Yeah, well,
have fun, pal, and don't call me.

	I used to manage a fairly large commercial storage company and
did a lot of shipping by rail and by truck. If I remember right we had
between 30 and 50 tractor trailers and maybe a half dozen to a dozen
rail cars to load or unload a day. At least with commercial shipping
you didn't deal with drivers much except to spot them where you wanted
them. We dealt mostly with dispatchers. If there was a problem with a
trucker, you called the dispatcher and it became his problem. With the
private haulers, I saw more of them in the construction business later
on. At least my conscience is clear in this matter as I always made sure
the trucker would not have to wait on our end.

	Mike was doing some reminiscing. I think he misses working at
the tractor dealership and wheeling and dealing in farm equipment. It
is not easy to be retired, Mike.  I think he mentioned stacking trailers
on a flatbed. I ordered a cable reel trailer one time and it was shipped
in on a flatbed trailer. I was in my office when the trucker drove into
the construction yard with all these trailers stacked on top of each
other. I went out and asked him how he unloaded them. He showed me how
they were loaded so he could turn a trailer and drop it on to the deck
of the trailer. Then he grabbed the tongue and quickly pulled it off
the deck and let it fall to the blacktop on to it's wheels. Geez, it
bounced about 6 feet in the air and bounced again - but it was off and
unloaded and the whole thing didn't take 5 minutes. He told me it was
all in the loading and pre-planning and he was right.

Cecil