Enjoying North America while earning a living...: 2010-07-29

About this blog's layout...BLOG UPDATED ONCE PER DAY...

I follow my journal daily by writing under the daily title, "FIRST 5 YEARS:" The first five years will strictly follow my 5 year journal. If I find the day I am writing about to be boring, I will either write about thoughts I remember(placed under the title of "SECOND 5 YEARS"), write a trucker tale(placed under "A Trucker's Tale"), give a helpful trucker hint, ask a "student driver" question or do something.....When a location appears after the day of the week after "FIRST 5 YEARS:", it is where I am at the start of that day((IE: FIRST 5 YEARS: (Sunday-Kansas City, Missouri))..... I would encourage those that find themselves enjoying North America to follow me day by day.....REMEMBER: THIS IS A BLOG ABOUT WHAT LIFE IS LIKE FOR A TRUCKER THAT DOES NOT HAVE A DAILY ROUTINE ROUTE(called a "dedicated" route). THERE WILL BE MANY TIMES WHEN THE ROUTING, SCENERY AND DAY'S ACTIVITIES WILL BE SIMILAR(boring???) TO PREVIOUS DAYS; THAT'S TRUCKING! THERE WILL BE DAYS WHEN THE ROUTING, SCENERY AND DAY'S ACTIVITIES WILL BE TOTALLY NEW; THAT'S TRUCKING. Frustrations? I mention the frustrations I had as a driver. I loved my job while earning a living and realized that all jobs have frustrations; truck driving is, and was, no different..... Many pictures on this blog can be left-clicked and made larger.....Questions?...Please E-mail PT at fabalt2000@centurylink.net

July 29, 2010

July 29, 1990, 2010

FIRST 5 YEARS:(Sunday-Kansas City, Missouri)
Slept in today and when I got up I checked where I was on the TRB. I was 22 and that meant it was a day here in Kansas City. Just took it easy today and associated with the other drivers and did some writing(typing on my laptop).

My Opinion: (unreasonables...)
I was caught a few times for speeding but for some reason didn't get a speeding ticket. I didn't count on luck so for the most part I stayed within the road laws of each state. Well, the only exception was the meat hauling company I drove for in the Second 5 Years. Among it's drivers, it was a point of "honor" to at least break the speed laws in the state of Ohio a little bit. Their Highway Patrol were so strict(YES, you would get tickets for 56 in their 55 mph speed limit interstates---no warnings; see Highway Patrol-Ohio under "What's in my blog...???" below) they became-and may still be-a challenge to see if you could break the laws without them around. Some city police didn't even like them!!!

Now, was this unsafe??? Answer that question yourself. Their truck speed limit was(I believe still is) 55 mph while cars were 65. When I and other truckers would break their laws, we did it driving under 65 mph, often under 60 mph, When I drove, many states had 60 and 65 mph as their upper speed limits already. I saw several states, including some Communist states in the northeast, raise their speed limits to 65 and 70 mph(a couple to 75 mph) while I was driving. Ohio had good straight roads, not like the many mountainous, curving roads in Pennsylvania and they-Pennsylvania- raised their limits.

In states where the speed limits are kept at 55 on the interstates, the trucker is used as an "income" maker for the state' coffers-totally unfair!!! These states are NOT interested in road safety as much as they are seeing the truckers build up their coffers. If the speed were so vital to safety, than why have I seen so many lawman watching a "safe" steady flow of fast moving traffic-including semis- without issuing a single "speeding" ticket. (see Highway Patrol-California and ESPECIALLY "Catch 22" under "What's in my blog...???" below...)