Temple, TX

I stopped last night in Temple, TX just a bit north of Austin. I have 300 miles to drive this morning before I arrive in Laredo at noon. Yesterday was a rainy day. It rained in Wichita, KS and for that matter most of the way through KS. It rained as I was driving through OK, and there was a downpour just north of Dallas, TX. This morning the skies are dark and it is very warm and humid.

Driving has been fine. Visibility for me in the rain has been fine, but I can't say the same for those behind me.

I realized yesterday that except for the section from Duluth to Mpls I will be driving the whole length of I-35. It ends in Laredo. It's a long stretch. 504 miles in TX.

I continue to work on websites on the way, when I'm not driving. I'm now in the process of finding a bulletin board or forum for the Jungian website.

In case you haven't been following, the Cubs have won 7 in a row, and my hopes are high. But alas. . . They are the Cubs.

I hope you all have a nice weekend. I'll let you know where I'm heading next. - James (Jibs - Dad/Papa )

Laredo, TX

Well, I'm back at it. I drove to Blaine, MN this aft, picked up an empty trailer there, dropped it off in Shakopee, MN and picked up a loaded trailer of popcorn which I'll be taking to Laredo, TX. I need to be there by Monday morning, July 2. I think it is about a 1500 mile trip. I'll have plenty of time to make it. Currently, I'm in Albert Lea, MN for the night. The route down there will be to take I-35 south from the Twin Cities to Laredo and take a left. I don't think I'll get lost.

I had a full weekend in NYC and it was fun. Frank and I worked all 4 days (fri-mon) on the renovations. We took out the front doors to the two apts and framed a wall that created a nice entryway which helped to merge the two apt. We installed a new front door and put up the sheetrock around it. I built shelves for an area which was the kitchenette for the front studio apt and which will now be a closet. We moved in furniture to the new space. It looks really nice. Both Frank and Melinda are pleased with it. I met with his colleagues on Monday evening at a nice restaurant on the upper west side. We had dinner and I showed them the website I created for them. They were impressed with the way I set it up. We also talked about the next steps we needed to take. I would have to say it was a very successful trip.

My next trip is to SF to visit Gene and Neil. Kathy, Jim and I will be flying out at the beginning of August for a few days. I'm thinking I might need to go to NYC ever 3 months or so.

I hope you all had a great week. I'll keep you informed as to how my drive to Laredo goes. - James (Jibs - Dad/Papa )

Red Wing, MN

I just found out I'll be able to go home after the truck is unloaded. I'm at the dock in St Paul and it is being unloaded. It'll take another hour. I'll need to drop the truck in Blaine and then drive to Red Wing.

I drove from a little north of Kansas City yesterday all the way to the Twin Cities. Stopped twice along the way for extended rest breaks. A leisurely 420 mile trek.

Now I'll have the rest of today, tomorrow and Thursday to spend in Red Wing before I fly to NYC to help Frank with his apt and meet with his colleagues. I'll start driving again a week from tomorrow.

I hope you all will have a nice week and I'll get back to you for sure next Wednesday. - James (Jibs - Dad/Papa )

St. Paul, MN

Well, I'm heading home. After delivering the trailer to Oklahoma City this morning, I was sent to Tulsa to pick up a trailer and I'm to deliver it to St Paul Tues morning. I'll be done sometime on Tues. The squeaky wheel gets the grease. My strategy worked.

I'll get as far as northern MO today and drive the rest of the way tomorrow. It's about 700 miles.

As I drive I'm listening to the US Open on XM. I'm for someone other than Tiger. I hope you all have a nice Sunday. - James (Jibs - Dad/Papa )

Oklahoma City, OK

I'm in Carlisle, PA at a Schneider Operating Center and will take off in the morning for Oklahoma City. It is about 1400 miles and will take parts of 3 days. It needs to be there by 6:00 am Monday morning 6/18. I'm not sure if I'll head west on I-76 to I-70 and through OH, IN and IL or head south on I-81 to I-40.

I had a short haul this morning. (26 miles) through southern PA. What beautiful country and what winding roads. I took a route recommended for trucks, but it wasn't the fastest trip.

I communicated with my team leader and his associates about getting home on Tuesday night. They said they'd try. So, we'll see. At least I won't be in Canada like the last time I was trying to get home.

I looked up the Jeff Gordon Racing School. It's web address is: www.jeffgordoneracingschool.com. That's who I picked up the cars for. Also I read a review in the Washington Post of a movie entitled 'Big Rig'. The title of the article was 'Open Highways, Empty Checkbooks'. It talks about the struggles of truckers.

And then I talked to a driver who went through training with me back in December. He's a real nice guy. By the way, I found out there are 45 of is left driving out of a class of 72. Anyway, he was none to happy with his driving experience. He wasn't getting enough miles and said he was ready to quit. Getting enough miles hasn't been a problem for me. It was interesting to hear his story.

If any of you have thoughts about which way I should drive to OK, let me know. I hope your day went well. - James (Jibs - Dad/Papa )

Newburgh, NY

I drove all day from Max Meadow, VA to Wurtsboro, NY (11 hours). The drive went well. The trailer was light enough (25,000 lbs) that the mountains were easy to navigate. I did encounter some showers in PA, but they were scattered and only lasted for a few minutes at a time. I delivered the load to a Kohl's Dist. Center at 7:30 pm EDT. There wasn't another load available so I bobtailed to a truck stop near Newburgh.

I have just finished transferring the photos of the Atlanta Motor Speedway onto my computer, sent some to Crish to put on the 19th wheel Blog and also put them on my website:
www.101st-lugnut.com

Take a look at them if you want. I'll find out tomorrow morning where I'm headed next. I only have 11 hours of driving time left before I have to take a 34 hour break.

I hope you all had a good day! - James (Jibs - Dad/Papa )

Race Track Photos

1) This is a photo of one of the trailers. It was black. Sorry you can't see it more clearly.
2) One of the cars I took back to Lowe's Motor Speedway.
3) The race track from the infield near where I was parked.
4) I believe this is where they would make pit stops during the race.
5) The cars lined up ready to be put in the truck.

More Race Track Photos

6) The cars being loaded into the 2 trailers.
7) The two Schneider trucks waiting for the trailers to get loaded. Mine is on the left.

Wurtsboro, NY

Well, I'm finally awake. I made it to the Atlanta Motor Speedway last night at 10:00 pm. I had to drive under the race track to get to the infield. The lights were on and cars were zooming around the track. ( I have photos which will be either on the Blog or my website). Jeff Gordon and Mario Andretti have a racing school and they were in Atlanta for the weekend. They had 2 trailers that held 6 cars each. (3 below and 3 above) The trailers were black with photos of Gordon and Andretti on the sides. They were low to the ground and looked much better than our orange trailers. There were 2 Schneider drivers and we caravaned (?) to Charlotte. Left at midnight and arrived at 5:00 am. We dropped them off at the school and then I drove to the operating center in Charlotte.

I slept on and off for 6 hours and now pick up a trailer headed for Wurtsboro, NY. I need to be there on Wednesday. I'll drive for 3 or 4 hours today and the rest of the way tomorrow.

The race track was huge. I wonder how many people it holds. I haven't experienced something like that. I imagine it is really loud on race day and crowded.

I'll keep you informed about how it is going. Take care! - James

short email, GA

Last night while at a truck stop in Cartersville, GA I looked up the NASCAR racing schedule. There is no race in Atlanta, but there is one at the Pocono Motor Speedway somewhere in PA. Jeff Gordon is racing there. So I'm not sure what I'm picking up tonight. In the pickup info it said a preloaded trailer (Gordon1) and that it was a car. I'll let you know what it is.

I'll be taking a 10 hour break from about 11:00 am to 9:00pm today (a Sabbath rest), so that I can drive through the night. I hope you have a great day! - James (Jibs - Dad/Papa )

Dacula, GA

I was going to email last night, but I had no phone service where I stopped. I arrived yesterday afternoon in Hancock, MI in the upper peninsula of Michigan. When I got to the delivery location everyone had gone home for the day. So I backed up to the dock and spent the night there. The truck was unloaded this morning at 8:00 am. From Hancock I drove south to Marinette, WI to pick up a load (181 miles). This load I'm taking to Dacula, GA (957 miles). I need to be there by 8:00 am 6/10, Sunday.

While driving today I got a message that my next assignment will be to transport Jeff Gordon's racing car from the Atlanta Motor Speedway Sunday night to the Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord, NC. I need to pick up the car at 10:00 pm and have it delivered by 8:00 am on Monday morning. (280 miles). I wonder what that will be like. I'll bobtail to the racetrack and pick up the 'Gordon1` trailer which should already be loaded, and then drive through the night to NC.

Also, I drove thru Baraga, MI this morning which isn't too far from Hancock, and saw a Petibone (?) plant. Dad (grandpa) worked for Petibone in the 50's and 60's. That was fun. One of the workers in Hancock said they got 200` of snow every winter (lake effect snow off of Lake Superior).

Tomorrow I hope to drive close to 700 miles (11 hours) so it will be a long day. I'm now in Bloomington, IL. I'll take I-74 to I-75. The load is light (18,000 lbs) so the mountains won't be bad.

I'll let you know how it goes transporting a race car. I hope you all have a great weekend! - James (Jibs - Dad/Papa )

New Brighton, MN

I didn't have to start until this morning. The driver befor me didn't get in until 10:30 pm last night. I picked up the truck and full trailer and drove 7 miles from Blaine to New Brighton. Currently, they are unloading the trailer. It shouldn't take more than 45 minutes. Then I may pick up a load back in Blaine and head North to Hancock, MI (the upper peninsula). They want me to get there by 4:00 pm this afternoon. It is 357 miles. I don't think I can make it, but they may still have me try it.

I had a full week off. I had lunch with Greta on her birthday (5/31). Tristan and I visited mom and dad over the weekend. I watched 2 of Tristan's baseball games. And I worked on two websites: jungnyc.com and facemask.biz. Working on the websites is fun for me.

Well, I need to get rolling once again. I'll let you know if I go to Hancock, MI. - James (Jibs - Dad/Papa )