Distracted Driving !

Back in the good ol' days there wasn't much to distract you. The radio in the truck usually would only pick up country western channels on the am side, we didn't have CB's until the late 60's and no mobile phones.

Now however the phones are as bad as drunk driving. And the silly thing is the Government in it's ultimate wisdom made it illegal to hold the phone in your hand if your driving a truck but you can use handsfree devices to carry on your conversation while trying to negotiate rush hour traffic.

The problem isn't holding the phone so you have to drive one handed,

 it's being involved in the conversation at all. 

I know that many people think they can multi-task and do two or three things at once equally well but                                                                       they are wrong !

Just test it some time. If your on the phone while driving, pay close attention to the conversation and after you hang up try to remember your surroundings while you were on the phone, like what you passed on the side of the road or how many cares passed you in a mile, what song was playing on the radio, things that would have registered in your mind had you not been engaged in a conversation.

That is why it doesn't register that you may have changed lanes unsafely or you probably slowed or speed up without even knowing it while other motorist adjusted to keep from having a problem with you're erratic driving.

I not only see a lot of people talking or worse texting [were they take their eyes of the traffic in front of them] but see them putting on makeup, brushing their hair, tuning the radio, adjusting their cloths or a myriad of other things that could cause them to loose that split second of stopping time to keep them from that accident that could take their life or someone else's.

What really bothers me is seeing truck drivers doing it when it's so much harder to change lanes or slow down rapidly to avoid a wreck of a serious nature.

I was taught to keep your eyes moving from out the windshield to each mirror so you can know what is happening around you all the time, always have an out, and pay attention to what the 5th vehicle in front of you is doing and react to him and you will be one step ahead of the rest.

                   Until Next Time, KEEP ON TRUCKING  

  

More Good Ole days

I'll try to share pictures of some of the trucks I've driven as I write about the events.

Back in the fifties and sixties Mack had a series of trucks that came with two stick transmissions which were a carryover from the beginning when all trucks had manual transmissions and a lot of them were 2 stick setups. 

There was due-plex, tri-plex, 4x4 and the most popular roadranger 6,7,9 and 10 speed which was 1 stick with a high and low button on the stick, and a few more depending on make, model and year of the truck. all were non synchronized and required double clutching or learning how to shift without the clutch altogether, which was a real trick with the 2 stick trans and many found out the hard way.

I learned to shift a due-plex while working as a local union driver in Ohio but I never could shift it without the clutch and sometimes couldn't get it right with it, and if you get both sticks in neutral at the same time you just about have to stop and start all over. It really was fun in Florida hauling liquids in bulk tankers when you would get a lot of slosh, even to the point of almost stopping your forward movement. I was the only driver that would use the B model Mack on that job.

Again, keep on truckin until next time

The good old days

I just retired from trucking after 55 years of beating around the USA in a big truck and I have seen a lot that I would like to share.      

  

When I started at 17 years old, I just road along and help unload, but the guy that I went with thought I would make a good driver so he took me under his wing and taught me everything he could about being a SAFE and PROFESSIONAL driver.

Back then the only way to get a good paying driving job was to pay your dues and drive for some small outfit that didn't pay well and worked you as hard as you would let them until you got 2 years experience then you could apply at a big company but you still had to have someone to put in a good word for you or you probably would not get hired.

I started driving a cabover GMC with a 238 Detroit engine with a 5 speed trans and a 2 speed axle giving it 10 forward gears and if you didn't load it real heavy you might get it to 70 on the flats with no headwind. Along with very few interstates, it made for a pretty tiring day especially with no air ride suspension or air ride seat or air conditioning or power steering and a radio that would only pick up country western channels.

BUT, in my opinion those were the good old days !  Everybody acknowledged other drivers, there was a comradery that has been lost in the last 20 years that the current group of drivers will never know or understand. There used to be mom and pop truckstops that offered real home cooking in a downhome atmosphere that the corporate chain stops can't come close too. but then they didn't have all of the amenities that the current stops do. I can remember when Jim Ryder started the T A truckstops. At that time it was Truckstops of America not Travel centers of America and was touted as an upscale rest/fuel stop with modern facilities for TRUCKERS that the traveling public could share.

To be fair there were other truckstops on the roads like Union 76, Standard oil, Skelly oil and the like but I truly feel that the T/A was the best for it's time. All offered fuel, parking, food and showers in varying quality but T/A was just a little better until it was sold, then it started down hill and hasn't stopped except for some who have slowed it's demise a little.

In the next few months I will try to recall some of the more interesting situations I've found myself in so all may get a laugh at some of my mistakes and luck.

Keep on truckin 😁