What a fiasco!

Ok, so when I posted yesterday, we were stopped at one of the "Oasis" stops on the I-294 Tollway. So we ate lunch and finally got the load. Headed south 254 miles I think to pick up our load. Drove all that way empty, but what the heck, we are getting paid. As we are heading down I-55 we stop at the 160 at the Pilot for fuel. There was another SNI truck bobtailing that was getting gas and I started talking to them. They were also a husband and wife team. Turns out, they are picking up at the same place we were and going to the same destination. Cool. So they decide to follow us, since we have GPS and the SNI directions didn't make a lot of sense. As usual. haha So, make it to the shipper at around 2000 hrs.

When we got there we weren't really sure where to go, but there was another SNI driver there so J went and asked him and he told them where to go. He also told us to make sure and weigh the loads because he was overweight on his tandems and had to come back to get them to re-load the trailer and distribute the weight a little better. So we take that to heart. Both of us get our trailers loaded and we head back about 45 miles to the nearest scale. Here is where it gets good. First funny thing that happened was that we were on I-72 and needed to go north on I-55 to get to the scale. It ended up that we took I-55 Business and that was the WRONG one. AND, it ended up that there was a 3rd SNI truck that was following us. haha So all three of us make a turn onto a tiny street to turn around. What a freaking cluster I tell you. Complete mess! But, we get turned around and find the correct I-55 and make it to the scale. Both of us weigh and sure enough, both of us are overweight. Now, because we are going to California, our tandems can only be in the 4th or 5th hole on the trailer. We had it on the 5th, as far back as we could go, and we were 560 pounds over. Too much to let slide. The other team was only 60 lbs over and he decided to run with that. He probably wouldn't get called in at a scale house for that. But we definitely would for being 560 lbs over weight. So the other team heads to Edwardsville to our OC to wait for us and we head back to the shipper to get re-loaded. Finally around 0400 J makes it back to the scale and we are legal. He goes ahead and parks there and we get a few hours sleep.

I get up at 0700, call the other team and let them know I am on my way and I take off. I had about 100 miles to go to get to the OC and I made it there about 0915. I fuel up and J and I run inside and grab a shower. The other team was still waiting on us because we were going to run all the way to California together. There is no rush on this load either so there is no pressure. After the shower we head back to the truck and run right down to the Flying J to grab something to eat. Now, here is where is gets even crazier. We didn't have our CB on when we pulled into the truck stop, but the other team did. Apparently, there was a driver that either worked for a cartage company or was an IC for SNI, because he was pulling an SNI trailer, but last night, he ran over a lady in the parking lot and killed her! I have no further information but I am going to see what I can find out by checking the local paper online. I don't know if she was a female driver crossing the parking lot, I don't know if she was a hooker working the area, I just have no idea. But either way, can you imagine? What an ordeal!

So we head out of there at about 1300 hours. We got there around 1100 but just sat and visited with the other team swaping stories for almost two hours. It is nice to talk to other people when you are out on the road. Especially when you are cooped up in the truck all the time.

Headed out and I am driving. I decided to drive past my normal time so J could get a little extra sleep since he had such a long night. As I am driving, I get a message across the Qualcomm. This is the final really freaky thing. Turns out, last night at our Dallas OC, one of our drivers was robbed in the back of the parking lot and shot! Thank goodness he is going to survive but has had surgery and is in the hospital. So now of course they are talking about all of the new security measures they are going to take and the new electric fences and electric gates they are going to be installing. Also remote camera in Green Bay will watch the yard, another 24 hours security guard on premis with a vehicle instead of just the one we have now that is on foot. So could it get any crazier? And yes, there was a full moon last night.

When we left Chicago, there were snow flurries. Bob said they got 5-6 inches over night. Thank goodness we got out of there. Then today as I was driving across I-44 in Missouri, I saw several cars off the road and two semi's that were on their sides off of the road. It seems that last night they had a storm come through with high winds and just enough precipitation to make the roads wet and slick but not actually cover it with ice. I guess everything happens for a reason. If we hadn't been overweight on the trailer, we could have been in Missouri in the middle of that storm and WE could have been the ones off the side of the road. So I just figure it is best to go with the flow and not question things!