Tour of Duty 10th to 16th November 2007

I had some trouble finding a suitable trip and was home a few days longer than I wanted. I was told about a trip from East Peoria, IL to Gulfport, MS but was unable to find an economical enough way to get to Peoria to make it worthwhile. Next I was told about a trip from Morris, MN to Missoula, MT. I finally figured out a way to get to Morris which is a bit off the beaten path but that trip fell through. Finally I was told about a trip from Latah, WA to St. Joseph, MO. I accepted that trip but found out I would not be able to make the pickup until Monday the 12th of November. Also I was not sure how to get to Latah as there is no public transport available from the Spokane area.

I did not want to miss church on Sunday and I wanted to get the truck Monday morning so I elected to fly up Saturday and I booked a Saver award on Alaska LGB-SEA-GEG (Spokane). I got online and did a google search for Reformed Baptist Churches in the Spokane area and found none but found out about a Protestant Reformed Church and made contact and arranged a ride to church on Sunday and then I booked two nights at the Ramada Limited in downtown Spokane using Trip Rewards points.

Saturday morning I was taken to LGB. I checked in, cleared security with no secondary and no hand search of carry-ons. I noticed that Alaska now has only three flights a day each way between LGB and SEA.

Alaska #311 LGB-SEA MD-80 Seat 14F Cruising altitude 35,000 feet Estimated flying time 2:07, actual 2:23 Scheduled departure 11h27, actual 11h25
Scheduled arrival 14h15, actual 14h03 Ticket cost: $5 security fee plus 10,000 miles

Configuration in coach was 3-2. I sat on the "2" side in front of the wing and no one sat next to me. Coach was not nearly full though first class was totally full. Pushback was 2 minutes early followed by taxi of 9 minutes and takeoff to the northwest. I saw Interstate 710, California and Compton. Then I saw Interstate 110 including junctions with California 91 and Interstate 105. It was too hazy to see downtown Los Angeles but it was clearer farther west. I saw Century City to the north. I saw the oil refineries in El Segundo and also saw Interstate 405 and LAX then we went over the Pacific and I saw Santa Monica.

We made landfall over the Malibu area but I did not see any evidence of the recent fires. We took a turn more due north and I saw the San Fernando Valley, US 101 and California 118. I saw the Newhall Pass and Santa Clarita Valley including the northbound truck weigh station on Interstate 5 as well as Magic Mountain. I saw Castaic Lake, the San Andreas Fault and the Antelope Valley and then we encountered clouds over the Tehachapi Mountains. There was partial clearing and I saw Arvin and the Bakersfield area. There were some bumps around Bakersfield. Due to the bumps the seatbelt sign stayed on longer than usual. I saw Porterville and the Sierra Nevada Mountains to the distance.

Announcement was made our ETA would be 15 minutes early and it was cloudy, 51F at SEA with winds gusting to 23mph from the south. I saw the east part of the Fresno area and seatbelt sign went off more than 30 minutes into the flight. There was a drink run and I got cup of soda and was served a small half-ounce (14g) bag of Party Mix consisting of Chedder Chiptole Bagel Chips, Pretzel Sticks and Honey Roasted Sesame Sticks). Picnic Pack was offered for sale for $5 but I declined.

We encountered more clouds as we progressed north but there was a little break and I saw what I thought may have been Yosemite partially blocked by clouds. I also thought I saw smoke from fires south of Yosemite and saw what I thought was Mono Lake to the distance. Then there were more numerous clouds and my view of the ground was totally blocked for awhile.

At 1:00 there was another drink run and I got another bag of Party Mix. I had a brief chat with a stewardess and was told Alaska was planning to get rid of its MD-80s by December of 2008. At 1:18 seatbelt sign went back on due to bumps and went off again at 1:42. Breaks in the cloud cover started appearing and I saw some of the Cascades including the Three Sisters partially blocked, Mt. Jefferson, Mt. Hood farther away. I saw Mt. Adams even farther and finally Mt. Rainier farther to the north.

I got a better view of Mt. Hood later as we passed over the east side of the Portland area. I saw Interstate 84, Troutdale and the Flying J and TA truckstops down below. We crossed the Columbia River at 1:56 and I was able to make out Mt. St. Helens. Announcement was made it was 55F with scattered clouds at 3,200 feet and winds were out of the south at 15mph at SEA. I felt descent begin at 2:01 just past Mt. St. Helens. Seatbelt sign went on at 2:06. There were decent views of Mt. Rainier and I also saw downtown Tacoma and the Tacomadome. We overflew SEA and descended over Puget Sound. I saw downtown Seattle partially blocked by clouds then we made a sharp reverse "U" turn and flew south. I saw the Port of Seattle on final and we landed north to south. Taxi was 5 minutes and we arrived at gate C18 12 minutes early.

I had lunch at Anthony's Fish Bar and had Salmon and Chips then I went to gate D11 to wait for the next flight. I waited and saw no plane. Then I saw that departure was pushed back 30 minutes. I inquired where the plane was coming from and was told "the hanger" and they were trying to find someone to tow the plane to the gate. Later an announcement was made the flight was cancelled due to mechanical reasons and people were asked to get in line to be rebooked on other flights.

Alaska #363 SEA-GEG MD-80 Seat 15F Scheduled Departure 16h00 Scheduled Arrival 16h56 FLIGHT CANCELLED due to mechanical reasons

When it came my turn I was rebooked on the flight leaving at 17h00 and was told departure gate was C2K. I was also given a voucher good for $6.00 that I could use for food or printed material. That was a very nice gesture considering the delay was only one hour. The voucher was good only on the date issued and only at the airport issued so it was use it or lose it so I made a quick trip to gift shop and got a box of chocolates and a bottle of water.

Horizon #2436 SEA-GEG Bombardier Q-400 Seat 8A Cruising altitude 21,000 feet Estimated flying time 0:45, actual 0:40 Scheduled departure 17h00, actual 17h13 Scheduled arrival 17h55, actual 18h05

We boarded the plane via stairs. This was a turboprop with capacity of 74 all coach. The plane was full no doubt due to the earlier cancellation. My seat was right next to the propeller. Pushback was 13 minutes late. Taxi was 8 minutes followed by takeoff to south then immediate turn southeast. I saw lights of Seattle metro area and there were some bumps east of the Cascades. I saw the lights of what I thought was the Wenatchee area. There was a drink run at 0:17. I got water and a half ounce (14g) bag of Kettle Classics natural potato chips. I thought I felt descent begin at 0:25. I felt some light chop during descent. Seatbelt sign stayed on the entire flight. We made turns and gear went down at 0:37. We lined up east to west and I saw lights of Spokane including downtown and Interstate 90 on final. We landed east to west, taxi was 3 minutes and we arrived 10 minutes late. We deplaned via stairs and I got my bags 18-19 minutes after arrival. Then I took cab to the Ramada Limited in downtown Spokane where I spent the night. I did not have a very restful night since the hotel was located next to railroad tracks.

Seek Ye First

Sunday morning I was taken to Covenant of Grace Protestant Reformed Fellowship for morning service. Though I do not believe the Scriptures teach that you MUST attend church in order to get to heaven nevertheless it is important to attend church regularly to hear the preaching and teaching of God's Word. This was the first time I ever attended a Protestant Reformed service. The service was different from most of the churches I usually attend in that the order of worship is printed in the bulletin and songs are exclusively from the Psalter, which contains songs only based on the Psalms. There were many visitors from out of the area attending to commemorate the pastor's 25th anniversary in the ministry. The morning sermon was entitled "The Keys of the Kingdom".

After the service there was an excellent fellowship meal and I visited with some of the visitors. I was taken back to my hotel room where I rested most of the afternoon then back to church for evening service. There was a guest speaker for the evening service and the sermon was entitled "Glorying in the Cross Alone". There was a song service afterward then I had some dessert then it was back to the hotel for the night.

On Monday morning rain moved in before I was ready to go. The pastor of Covenant of Grace Protestant Reformed Fellowship was gracious enough to give me a ride to Latah so I could pick up the truck. As we progressed it got windier as Latah is on the north edge of the Palouse, an area of rolling prairies in southeast Washington as well as northern Idaho. There was a pretty good wind driven rain as I picked up the truck. I would like to see more of the Palouse when the weather is more favourable. I express my gratitude to the pastor of Covenant of Grace Protestant Reformed Fellowship for taking me to Latah and thus saving me a lot of money.

Trip: Origin: Latah, WA Original destination: St. Joseph, MO Destination changed to Orlando, FL and changed again to Aurora, CO 1,092 paid miles. Routes: Washington 27, Interstate 90, Interstate 25, Interstate 270, Interstate 70, Interstate 225. Maximum elevation 6,393 feet at Homestake Pass Continental Divide 10 miles east of Butte, MT on Interstate 90.

The truck was a large boom truck with a crane on the back. There was a wind-driven rain when I got started. The rain eased for a bit as I got into Idaho. I fueled up at the Flying J in Post Falls and diesel was $3.519 a gallon. I made it over Fourth of July Pass (elevation 3,069 feet) and the rain intensified. I elected to spend the night in Kellogg, ID as I felt it would be too risky and there was snow going over Lookout Pass into Montana. I had a good dinner of Idaho Rainbow Trout at the Silver Spoon Cafe. The only thing wrong was there were bones in the supposedly boneless fish.

On Tuesday there were a few snow showers going up Lookout Pass and into Montana. I weighed at the Port of Entry in Haugan, MT and was not pulled in as happend so often so I went inside to ask about a Trip Permit and was told one was no longer required for the state the Transporter Tag is located in. Approaching Missoula a hook came loose so I stopped at truckstop and bought some roap and secured what needed to be secured. Due to weather and road conditions I elected not to attempt to cross Homestake Pass. I decided to wait until the next day and shut down in the Butte area.

Wednesday was milder for the weather. It was 14F when I woke up in Butte but got up to 50F at Laurel, MT later in the day. I made it over Homestake Pass and it was wet on the road which is much better than snowpacked and icy as it was in spots the previous night. I progressed and when in Hardin, MT I got word the destination was changed to Orlando, FL. I stopped and replanned the trip. I ended up spending the night in Buffalo, WY.

Thursday morning I got word destination was changed again to Aurora, CO, an eastern suburb of Denver. The weather was milder, up to the 50s F. I fueled up at the Flying J in Casper, WY and diesel there was $3.439 per gallon. Up the road in Kaycee, WY diesel was $3.729 per gallon. I stopped in Cheyenne for a quick dinner then proceeded into Colorado.

Nasty Surprise

It was late Thursday evening as I rolled south on Interstate 25. I entered Ft. Collins and the weigh scale for trucks was open so I went in and as I crossed the scale I saw the message board change to "PARK LEFT". No big deal, I thought as it was quite common for me to get pulled at weigh scale when I am in Colorado. Normally it is a quick paperwork check and I am on my way. I was very surprised when I was asked for overweight permit and was told I was overweight. I was told the law in Colorado allows straight trucks only total 54,000 gross weight regardless of the number of axles. The truck I was driving was rated for 77,000 pounds. The truck grossed out at 58,820 pounds.

I was told that I had to shut down as an overweight permit was not obtainable until morning and I was not allowed to proceed in the truck. The truck was measured and I was given a citation with fine of $119 before I got a taxi to motel for the night.

Friday morning I got taxi back to the weigh scale and loaded my belongings back on the truck, got the overweight permit and got into the truck and after I got overweight permit I got rolling and encountered a lot of construction on Intestate 25.

I delivered the truck in Aurora on Friday morning. I reported the citation to the company I contracted with for this run and the person I talked with was surprised at what happened. I spent a substantial amount of time where I delivered the truck trying to get another trip. Finally I realised there were no suitable runs available from the companies I contract with. I booked a Southwest Rapid Rewards ticket to LAX with a stop in LAS. There was no availability for Rapid Rewards ticket going to SNA.

I got taxi to DEN and checked bags and checked at the skycap outside and got boarding pass that said B16. I cleared security in under 15 minutes though there was some wait. There was no secondary screening and no search of carry-ons then I had dinner and waited for the flight. This was my first experience with Southwest's new boarding procedure and I was happy I did not have to line up and wait an hour or more in order to get a good seat.

The new boarding procedure went something like this: First the "A" groups were to line up at the posts corresponding with the numbers on their boarding passes. Then A1-30 was called to board. A31-60 was called to board and the "B" groups were called to line up. B1-30 was called to board and I boarded and took seat
21F.

Southwest #2367 DEN-LAS B-737-300 Seat 21F Cruising altitude 34,000 feet Estimated flying time 1:24, actual 1:29 Scheduled departure 18h45, actual 18h50Scheduled arrival 19h40, actual 19h37 Ticket cost: Rapid Reward

Plane was full or nearly full. Pushback was 5 minutes late followed by taxi/hold of 13 minutes and takeoff to the north. I saw E-470 toll road and lights of some of the Denver suburbs and Interstate 76 before we headed west. I saw the Eisenhower Tunnel and made out Interstate 70 and we more or less followed that route through the Grand Junction area. There were some bumps during climb and announcement came from flight deck for attendants to stay seated until it smoothed out. I saw lights of towns of Vail, Eagle, Glenwood Springs, Rifle and Parachute. At 0:27 I saw the lights of the Grand Junction area.

At 0:40 seatbelt sign went off and there was a drink run and I got cup of soda. Wheat Thins and peanuts were served. Later I saw the lights of St. George, UT and I was able to make out the Utah-Arizona Ports of Entry on both northbound and southbound Interstate 15. Then I saw the lights of Mesquite, NV. Descent commenced at 1:11 and seatbelt sign went on at the same time. Announcement was made it was partly cloudy and 66F at LAS. I saw the lights of Overton, NV and darkness where Lake Mead should be and the lights of the Las Vegas metro area. Gear went down at 1:24 and we lined up and I saw the Strip on final and we landed east to west and taxi was 5 minutes and we arrived at gate 3 minutes early.

There were only a few through passengers and I changed my seat to 3F then boarding started for the next segment.

Southwest #2367 LAS-LAX B-737-300 Seat 3F Cruising altitude 28,000 feet Estimated flying time not given, actual 0:44 Scheduled departure 20h05, actual 20h08 Scheduled arrival 21h15, actual 21h12

This segment was not nearly as full and the middle seat in my row was empty and I saw other empty seats as well. Pushback was 3 minutes late followed by taxi/hold of 11 minutes and takeoff to the west. I saw the Strip during takeoff and immediately thereafter. Included in the view was the new Trump building. I saw the lights of the metro area and the 215 Beltway then we turned due south and I saw Interstate 15, Jean and Primm. Then we jogged a little more west and a little later I saw Baker, CA including the world's largest thermometer.

Announcement was made from flight deck seatbelt sign would stay on for entire flight and it was cloudy and 60's F at LAX. I saw northbound traffic was heavy on Interstate 15. Then I saw the lights of the Barstow area and descent commenced at 0:18 with Barstow still in view to west. There was a quick drink run and I got my cup of soda soon after descent started. Peanuts were offered and I declined. We jogged a little back to the southwest and I saw lights of the Victorville/Hesperia/Apple Valley areas with Lancaster/Palmdale to the distance. We flew over the San Bernardino mountains and made turn to west over Highland or San Bernardino.

I saw lights of San Bernardino, Rialto and Fontana and Devore to the distance where Interstates 15 and 215 come together/split apart depending on direction of traffic. Traffic again appeared heavy on northbound Interstate 15. I saw the Ontario Mills Mall and we flew almost directly over ONT. I made out the Montclair Plaza and then saw clouds around the Los Angeles/San Bernardino county line. There was a small break in the clouds and I saw eastbound California 60 was jammed in the Hacienda Heights area. Gear went down at 0:41 and we went into the low clouds and broke through underneath and I saw Interstate 405 moving well both directions. We landed east to west and taxi/hold was 8 minutes and we arrived 3 minutes early at gate 13. I got both bags 19 minutes after arrival then I took a shuttle home.

Sorry to hear about the fine

So, who has to pay in that situation - you or the company?

Also, I was wondering if you can explain this part in greater detail:

How do Trip Permits work? Do you need a different one for every state? Also curious what the "Transporter Tag" is in reference to?

I got word the company will take care of the fine.

As to trip permits it depends in what state you are in and what state the transporter tag (licence plate) is out of. Some of the Western states are more likely to require trip permits, especially AZ, NM, WY, ID, WA and SD. MT did require trip permit until recently.

Sorry to hear about your ticket... Straight trucks can be tricky to get propertly permitted, because different states have different legal limits so the registered weight in the state of registration is not going to be valid everyplace. The western states are a little easier for most permits because of the WAASHTO regional permit agreement, and more standardization across states than in the eastern half of the country.

But back to what I was going to ask... You took the load based on both the revenue available for the haul, as well as the known cost of getting there and home. You were sort of fortunate that you got routed to a major airport... but what if they had said "guess what, you get to go to Escanaba, Michigan now, too bad that only one airline flies out of there." Are you able to renegotiate your compensation in that type of situation?

I'll give you a primer at lunch some day.

LC,

Another great trip report. ^

Happy Thanksgiving.
dhammer

super report i really enjoyed reading it.