Quote:
Originally Posted by Crew Chief
Puru, I've had my bacon saved more than once by a local tresident who was monitoring the C.b. there's nothing like getting the wrong (or no) directions, and there you are with a big truck on small roads... Some of those folks are just wonderful to talk to about there
"Home 20" as well as getting directions to our delivery or pickup.   |
Your comment reminds me of something.
One night, I was enroute to pick up a load of popcorn somewhere in Indiana (it may have been Nashville) and, being the kind of driver I was, I wanted to be there when they came to work the next morning. So, I arrived at my destination, according to the directions I'd been given, at about 1 AM. But, the directions led me to a farm and that just didn't look right to me. I was parked out by the barn and couldn't see anything which even resembled a loading dock. Since nobody was home at the farm, I got on the CB and just asked if anyone was listening.
Not surprisingly, someone was and he told me pretty quickly that I needed to be at their warehouse, which was a few miles away. He said to get back out on the paved county road I'd come in on, go a couple of miles farther, make a right and the warehouse would be on my left in about 5 miles or so.
Great! Thanks man!
So, I took off. After about a mile, the road went down a series of curves into the bottomlands of some river. Unfortunately, the pavement became gravel and the gravel just as quickly became dirt, with only one set of ruts divided by grass. Out of the darkness loomed a T intersection with another "road" just like the one I was on, with very deep ditches on all sides and a telephone pole sitting right on the corner on the right side! I couldn't make a right turn and would be damn lucky to make a left one and turn around! Both "roads" were a single vehicle wide and I was pulling a 48 ft trailer!
I had two options: Turn left, back up, turn left again and go back the way I'd come, or back up a couple of miles, uphill and around curves at 2 AM.
I got out and slid the trailer axles up as far as they'd go, then slid the 5th wheel as far as it would go too (thank God I wasn't pulling a reefer!). By hanging the tires over the ditches on both sides, I managed to make my left, back up and do it again. But, it was VERY, VERY close and I could have easily ended up with either the tractor or trailer in the ditch.
As you may imagine, I was cussin' everything in sight, especially the dunderhead who sent me that way. I called him every name I could think of on the radio, but he never responded. Hmmmm. I wonder why?
But a nice lady did. She calmed me down and hand-carried me right to where I needed to be. She never left the CB until I was backed up to the dock and then, marvels of marvels, even got out of bed, got in her car and brought me a cold beer at about 3 or 4 in the morning!
I don't know who she was or where she came from, but she's one of my guardian Angel's I've met a few times in my life and, Lady, if you're out there...how can I say thank you enough?
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