Crane move

This has NOT been a fun trip.



Copy of e-mail sent to dispatch.

Not good.

It's still snowing. If I were to make it thru the Okie City Curfew (3:30 -6:30) I would have to leave within the hour....in good weather. The weather is not good.

Recap: I got to the load site about ten a.m. monday....after driving all over the county due to bad directions in the computer. Me and a stepdeck both missed the site and wound up way north. We eventually got turned around. There were trucks in front of us when we got there. More trucks arrived and also got in front of me. By the time it was my turn all the loading crew were tired and ready to go home. They were NOT being careful....or attentive. This was the first one of these that I'd loaded so I was unfamiliar with the routine.

They initially wanted to load me with the stinger of the trailer hanging off over the edge of the padsite. The stinger axels would have had little effect supporting the load in that position....actually the stinger landing gear was digging into the ground.....with the trailer empty. Had we loaded in that position the trailer would have gone right to the ground.....I'd have been stuck. They had a dozer standing by in case....I'm NOT thrilled about the idea of being pulled while heavily loaded.

I requested that they build a pad extension for the stinger axles. They did that although they complained a little....that took a while. The bulldozer come in handy pushing dirt.

Oh...did I mention that the wind was blowing thirty or forty mph?....and that they'd chosen a big mudhole to do this in?....

At any rate they got the extension built and backed me back under the house.....crooked and not far enough although I didn't notice that until later.

Whenever I'd ask someone about something or request something it was always the wrong guy...."go ask that guy"....a run-around in other words. If they put me off enough I guess they figured I'd "let it go"....which is what happend. There at the last the guy in charge was gone.

So it was very late when I finally got loaded , chained and down the hill.

Next morning it snowed and everything froze up. It was too late to move when the roads finally cleared up.

The NEXT morning it took several hours ...and half a bottle of brakeline antifreeze and a visit from a service truck to get unfroze.

$200 poorer from the service call the escorts and I left and now were here...Billings Oklahoma...the Cimmaron Travel plaza at mm 203 on I35.

Apparently the loading crew didn't do everything due to the conditions. We lost a fire extinguisher while in route, (i picked it up) off of the piece....also a window blew in...not broke just blew out of it's rails. The cab is full of snow (see picture)...the load is off center. Which I mentioned but they said it was only because of the slope of the land that it looked that way....it was actually alright....

In other words I got minimal cooperation. loading....can't blame em actually since the site and conditions were abysmal....and they were no doubt tired from being "in it" all day.

So here I sit... probably won't roll till tomorrow. I consider it ill advised to move with ice on the roadway. That's what my permit says anyway.

Please advise.