11 Degrees

2009-03-26T17:40:00.000-07:00

WELLLL ... we had went through what could have been a very disasterous situation last week! Coming back from Whitehorse with an empty trailer we were travelling along the Alaska Highway between Summit Lake & Steamboat in northern BC when, while rounding a curve we hit a patch of ice, the drive wheels kicked out and the nose of the truck headed for the ditch. We caught the snowbank, spun around, the trailer crunched the cab knocking it off the frame rails, the tractor came to rest backwards in the ditch and the trailer spun around 180 degrees and came to rest in the ditch as well! We are all right, no injuries at all ... yes, we were very lucky. This is the truck in the snowbank.

We waited almost 2 hours for another vehicle to come by ... it is a bit isolated up there. No cell phone service either and we called out for help on our VHF radio. Oddly enough, our pals, Darby & Leigh were just coming north over Steamboat Pass and heard us and within a few minutes stopped to pick us up! They were on their way to Whitehorse. They dropped us off at the Liard Hotsprings Lodge which is almost 200 klicks north! Like I said, it is a bit isolated up there. We spent the next 2 nights in this beautiful log lodge with the very friendly people who run it. We also walked over to the hotsprings to check 'em out ... definitely gonna stop back there!

Darby & Leigh picked us up on their return from Whitehorse and took us to Fort Nelson 3 hours away. From there we had to find somebody to look after our little poodle, Truffles and the folks in the Fas Gas station put us in touch with a great fellow named Rueben who took Truffles while we got on the Greyhound bus for a 30 hour ride to Vancouver. Here's a couple of pics after the truck got pulled out and towed to Fort Nelson.

We made it to Delta, picked up our pick-up truck and went to the new Challenger yard in Aldergrove. We went through the accident review process with the Safety Co-ordinator and then up to Whistler to await the company's decision on our future.

Well, we heard from the company today and they still wants us to work for them and continue the Yukon run which is great news for us. There is some disciplinary action involved and we'll get through that too and do the best job that we can. Lesson learned ... slow down, take longer strides!

Speaking of our company, Challenger Motor Freight, whoever we talked to there, without exception, first asked how we were. There was never any accusing comments just genuine concern ... very heartwarming from good people. Jo & I have always said that Challenger is a good place to be. They give us good equipment to use, pay us well and treat us great. Can't beat that ... we're happy to be here.

2009-03-23T22:21:00.000-07:00

Check out our new truck pic, eh! This is our Yukon truck and JoJo likes to keep a clean windshield. It is a 2007 Volvo VN 660, moose bumper, moose lights with a Cummins ISX 450 HP engine and an Eaton 10 speed automated transmission. It has a nice, comfy, smooth and quiet ride. It has a great compression brake too, the Cummins Intebrake, that holds the whole truck back on serious downgrades without using the air brakes. We were stuck in Whitehorse for almost a week with a faulty sensor on the tailshaft of the transmission. It did get replaced and we were on our merry way. Our friends, Darby and Leigh, the other Yukon team, have an identical truck that had the same, identical sensor failure a week after ours!

We also posted a really great video featuring JoJo flirting with "her boys", the Norquist Bison Herd! These are truly magnificent animals, who show no fear and will waltz across the highway right in front of you. They really "own" the highway. Check it out.

Gots to get on the way. We are resolving a few work issues with info to follow.

2009-03-17T18:46:00.000-07:00

Geeeez ... It's Tuesday evening and we've been stuck in Whitehorse since Friday night with a broke truck! Seems the Vehicle Speed Sensor gave up the ghost! Without this sensor operative the truck won't exceed 1200RPM and the automated transmission won't shift gears. And of course the part has to be flown in and the dealership (that seems to keep banker hours) didn't get it today so hopefully it'll be here tomorrow.

JoJo & I cabbed it into downtown Whitehorse on Saturday and had seen all there is to see there by 6PM. We have learned the Yukon Brewery makes a pretty good draught beer and it's become a favourite of ours! Time for dinner and maybe a couple more brewskis!

Back on the road tomorrow ... Fingers and other appendages crossed!

2009-03-09T20:46:00.000-07:00

2009-03-02T18:27:00.000-08:00

Well Hello There......

Billy Boy is having a nap as we are heading out tonight to Calgary, so I thought I would add my two cents worth while he is having sweet dreams. We are having a great time with these runs and enjoying the scenery, and with each trip are finding out more neat things and places to visit.

Apparently in northern British Columbia, there are hotsprings at Liard River that are located near the Highway and have parking space for trucks. It's just a short 10 minute walk into the park area from the road. After looking at the website for the hotsprings, there is a warning sign that they close the springs when bears are too active in the area ... yikes! We really do have to try the springs though just for the fun of it. The other team, Darby & Leigh, that do the Friday night run to the Yukon stopped for a dip and told us that the water temperature was quite hot. It definitely is on the "bucket list". I will take some photo's of Bill in his "speedo" and post them in the blog when he's not looking.

I must say that the Vancouver weather is a real bonus. Bill and I did a little exploring the last time we had our 2 days off and ended up in White Rock along the boardwalk where there were a lot of little shops and bars. Here it was the middle of February and we were sitting outside, along the boardwalk watching all the old classic cars cruise by on the sunny Sunday afternoon. Next week we are going to explore Granville Island where there are little shops and boutiques to enjoy.

The time seems to be flying by as we're having fun and before you know it, it will be December when we are planning to return home. But before that we are looking forward to the girls coming out in June to visit and we will take the week off and enjoy. I have already warned them that the Zipline in Whistler is a "Must Do" so prepare themselves for the thrilling ride. Victoria Island will also be on the itinerary.

Well, this is just a short message. I need to go out to the truck and wake my babe up and cook dinner. George Foreman is going to help me cook some chicken breasts. Ciao for now!

2009-02-23T18:15:00.000-08:00

Here it is ... a rainy night in Vancouver and we're getting ready to head off to Calgary on a Canada Post run. From there to Edmonton and back to Delta to pick up a Yukon load leaving Wednesday night. We have a new, unblemished windshield and hopefully it will stay that way for a long while. On the roads here they used gravel rather than sand and the stones get flying pretty easily.

We had lunch today with my son, the constable (Christopher). He's doing real well and is moving this Sunday to a new place in Vancouver with a couple army buddies. He still has his place in Whistler and I've told him he can never sell that place. His cousin, Erin, has come out from Ontario and is staying at his condo while she tries to get a new life started in Whistler.

On our last trip to the Yukon, JoJo took some great pics of the bison there. I've been looking them up on the web and it's very interesting learning about them. There used to be about 30 million of them in North America in the 1800's but rampant hunting nearly decimated them. In the late '70s populations of wood bison were introduced into northwestern Canada and some of the herds have flourished. In efforts to keep them off the roads, various methods have been used including helicopter hazing but the bisons just wait in the woods for the choppers to go away and then come out. We come across the Norquist Herd along highway 97 in BC around the Muncho Lake area. They truly are a magnificent looking animal as you can see here. Imagine running into one of these fellows in the night!

Truffles got out in Whitehorse and tore up some real estate running around the parking lot of the truck stop in her "cold weather gear". She has a blast running around in her booties! I guess it is all of her pent up energy that she blows off from being cooped up in the truck.

Also on our way back on our last trip we had a "Level 1" Vehicle Inspection done at the scale in Prince George. This when they check EVERYTHING on the truck including all the documentation as well. We fared pretty well with just our cracked windshield and our rear licence plate was dangling at the back of the tractor! We've had those items fixed and should pass any other inspections with ease! Hmmm ... I'm amazed I can type with my fingers crossed!!

Time to have a snooze as I'm piloting our rig at 23:00 hours when we leave for Calgary. See ya!

2009-02-11T15:31:00.000-08:00

With all the turmoil going on in the world it's no wonder that all of the so-called role models are falling off their pedestals. What ever happened to the everyday hero anyway? When you think about it, a woman having a baby might seem commonplace but in reality childbirth is frought with danger and the possibility of so many things that can go wrong. Now think of the woman who, later in life, decides to have a child and those risks just multiply. I know of a woman who took that risk at the age of 39 and gave birth just past her 40th birthday. A brave lady to say the least ... right? Now, this lady did this in 1950 and in giving birth in 1951, she instantly became my hero! I call her "Mom"! Mom passed on in 2000 but left our family with a lifetime of measures we try to live up to. She passed on her nutty sense of humour to me and I have passed it on to my children as well. I try to spread a good dose of it around everyday ... it seems that this is my mission.

JoJo & I are leaving tonight on another Yukon run. Today is our 5th wedding anniversary and I told her that I'm gonna take her to see the Northern Lights for our anniversary. I am so happy that we met and got married. There has never been a person in my life quite like her. What an amazing, wonderful person she is. She has a nutty sense of humour too ... how lucky can I get, eh? I truly am the richest man on earth.

February in southern British Columbia is a very beautiful time. The city crews in Delta were laying sod today as we came in from Edmonton! It is a delightful +9C here in Delta with the sun shining and just a few clouds. Our little poodle, Truffles, got out for a nice walk today and got to sniff a myriad of telephone poles, posts, bushes, trees and other dogs' poop. She musta been in heaven ... LOL

2009-02-04T14:43:00.000-08:00

We arrived home late Sunday night ... well really it was early Monday morning. Our flight out of San Diego was delayed a couple of hours so, of course, we missed our connection in Washington!

It really was a great vacation. Lots of sun, sand, surf, food, booze and adventure! We went sailing on a 75 foot catamaran in Ixtapa (the Picante) and snorkelling there as well. I swallowed quite a bit of ocean and didn't even need a salted rim on my margaritas for the rest of the day! Cap'n Tony & I bonded and he let me help his crew hoist the mainsail and jib for the return voyage. I think he was taking advantage of my kind heart as it almost exploded from the work of hauling a sail up an 80 foot mast! But he was a pretty cool dude and we had a great time out there with him.

Here's Jo and Jody snorkelling in the bay. They were having a good time and we're very proud of Jodene for travelling so far out of her comfort zone. This whole trip has been quite an experience for her. First time on a plane ... all alone ... changing planes ... cruising on a big ship ... sailing on a not so big ship ... snorkelling, etc. Jodene was always telling us how grateful she is to us for taking her on her dream vacation and I have to say that for Jo-Anne & I it was a dream vacation too. As a parent you always want to do something like this for your child. It was a dream come true for us too. A great feeling for a parent.

We are just about finished packing for our western adventure. Tomorrow I have to pack the pick-up and off we go. Dennis is all geared up for taking care of our cat and his 2 bedroom apartment. Our cat also has a cleaning lady coming in once a month to clean his 2 bedroom apartment too!! How sick is that ... LOL

I have our route planned out and just have to sit with Tom-Tom and get him up to speed. I changed the oil in the pick-up today and put in a new air filter. Fill the tank and a spare tank as well and off we go. Truffles, our little poodle, knows something is going on but can't quite put her paw on it just yet. We got out a pair of her booties to show her so she has kinda figgered it's gonna be a tad on the chilly side for the next little while.

Our route planning software tells us that it'll take 38 hours of driving to get to Delta, BC taking a route through the northern US states. Looks good to me! I checked the weather and highway forecasts for our travel area and it looks real good except for maybe a few flurries through Washington state. The Snoqualmie Pass in Washington can always be quite unpredictable so hopefully it won't get closed. We'll be checking in with the Challenger BC office to confirm our arrival in time to take the Canada Post run to Calgary & Edmonton. After that we return to Delta and leave for the Yukon on Wednesday evening. Should be in Whitehorse Friday morning if all goes as planned. Hahaha ... we'll just have to see, won't we!

Stay tuned, eh!

2009-01-22T08:52:00.000-08:00

WELLLL ... we finally arrived in San Diego late Monday evening and fortunately found a great little neighbourhood bar to have dinner in. Our room, or should I say "bungalow" is great. It might be a tad small but right on the beach on Mission Bay. Here is the view from our doorway. Weather is a little cool for the area ... low 60's to low 70's and just a little bit of sun. But it sure beats 50 below in the Yukon! hahaha

Jo dragged me kicking and screaming yesterday to do some shopping but I survived and went through some therapy with the proper medication as you can see. Medical therapy will probably continue for the rest of the week. We had a nice afternoon on Wednesday walking the "boardwalk" and lo & behold found anther great bar to have lunch in. Jo's daughter, Jodene, arrived last night and will be accompanying us on the cruise. So we'll have to visit our favourite beachside bar again for lunch today. It's a tuff life, I know but we'll muddle through with your support!

2009-01-16T07:42:00.000-08:00

Well, we made it home to Kitchener after switching loads at the Manitoba/Ontario border and only about 7 hours behind our schedule, due to the switch. It's amazing how much a little bit of time matters when you have been on the road for 6 weeks and really want to get home. AND, when we finally get back to the yard, our pick-up wouldn't start! Seems that sitting around for 6 weeks in really cold weather freezes your gas line and significantly weakens your battery! After wandering around looking for gas-line antifreeze, 2 visits by CAA and having to spend another night in the truck we finally did get home!

Jo's glass of wine was actually screaming at her by now! Kovu, our cat, was happy to see us and our poodle, Truffles, was very happy to be home. No, we don't leave our cat outside, it's just a good picture of him. Actually, we say that our tenant, Dennis, who lives in the upstairs apartment has a cat that has its own 2 bedroom apartment!

It has been very cold here in southern Ontario with lots of snow while we have been gone. Dennis has been pulling yeoman duty keeping the sidewalks and driveway clear. Well, he has had the assistance our next door neighbours' boy, Josh, to help out as well. Speaking of our neighbours, I noticed that Jason has a new gas grill ... hmmmm ... I must go over and inspect it!

This morning is no exception to the cold and I have to go back to the Challenger yard and finish emptying our truck out. We are driving our pick-up back out to BC for the Yukon dedicated run and will be using the Yukon-fitted truck out there. This truck has special snow tires, cleated tire chains and the proper permits for the Yukon.

We still have a lot of work to do getting ready for our southern vacation. I have to see if I'm going to fit into any of my summer type clothes ... should be fun.

'til later ...

2009-01-11T13:51:00.000-08:00

Can't let Billyboy have all the fun, so I have kicked him out of the author's chair, stole his favorite pen and have taken control of this blog.

We are just getting close to finishing our Yukon run and have a load already preplanned in the Delta yard to take us back to Ontario. (Major thanks to Byron in the Delta office for making sure we get home for Jan. 14). Just have to switch trucks and be on our way. I've even checked the weather channel on our BlackBerry and the long range forecast for the trip home appears to be good except for some anticipated snow in Regina. Let's keep all fingers and toes crossed.

Home here we come! There is a glass of wine calling my name, I can hear it already. MAJOR "girlification" is also in order for this trucker Momma. You have no idea just how ugly you can get after 6 weeks in a truck ... :).

Soooo, just why the heck did I sign up for this gig? It's definitely not rated on the top of the "girly girl" so called bucket list. I think that "safety and security" has never been one of my strong points.

Approximately 10 years ago I was office manager in a corporate office of a group of 36 stores. Sitting at my desk I noticed a transport truck trying to back up into a small mall and my car was quite close. I stuck my head out the door and motioned to the driver that I could move my car to help. He shook his head no, so I just stood and watched while in one fluid motion he backed his rig up into this difficult spot. When he got out of the truck, I stuck my head out the door and told him, "When I grow up, I want to be a truck driver just like you!"

Wooda thunk that it would happen. Life behind a desk had become mundane and I was always so jealous when Bill would call me at work and say, "I'm off to California". It was only a matter of time before I would toss my perfectly organized desk items out the window and jump into a lifestyle that simply has no boundaries. This Yukon run has only stretched that boundary to a new dimension.

There is a saying...."Once the mind has stretched to accept a new idea, it never goes back to the original size."

During one night's drive at 3 am while Billyboy was sleeping, I saw the northern lights. It was not just a slight glimmer, rather the whole horizon was lit up. It was like daylight with all the colors of the rainbow dancing across the sky. It's difficult to put into words just how moving the experience was.

I'm glad I've taken this leap. Our new adventure will have it's good moments, and its not so good moments, but, it is guaranteed to be an adventure.

Enjoy the ride as we keep you up to date.

Hopefully our holidays will have Billyboy's feet warmed enough so that he can take over his writing of the blog and fill you in on our Mexican cruise that we will be taking before we return to BC on Feb. 8 to start the Yukon run full time.

Ciao baby!

2009-01-09T17:15:00.000-08:00

We left Delta, BC Wednesday night, in the rain, with a good head start. It was +9C and very damp.

By the time we got to Williams Lake the rain was just a drizzle but the temperature had fallen to -1C. Not a nice combination for road conditions as we ended up rollerskating on greased glass ... well it felt like that anyway! We pulled over and waited for the salt shakers.

By 6:00am, Friday we had arrived in Watson Lake amidst -36C temps, a brisk breeze and some snow to finish the mix.

The dock in Watson Lake is outdoors and part of the contract is that we unload the freight there so we got to do some more rollerskating but this time with a forklift! Finally we got the necessary freight off and trundled off to Whitehorse.

The roads were in pretty good shape & so were the caribou! We saw a small herd enroute with a huge bull moose watching over them. What was that about, eh?

We switched trailers in Whitehorse, fueled up and had a bowl of soup and a sandwich. At the Trails North Truckstop in Whitehorse they do the fuelling for you. Nice touch in -33C weather.

JoJo is piloting now so I'm gonna saw some logs ... zzzzz

Please excuse the boredon in this post as I am just getting the feeling back into my feet ... not that it should have anything to do with it but when my feet get cold I just don't function too well. Many might say that my functioning doesn't have anything to do with cold feet! Add to that I am posting this from our BlackBerry and I have had enough challenges for one day!

2009-01-07T10:27:00.000-08:00

Today we are getting ready to depart on another Yukon run. I hope that we don't run into temperatures like the last run. The picture here is from our dash screen showing -43C!

We had a "moose bumper" installed on our new truck the other day and it looks pretty good and should fend off any encounters with wildlife up north. The other folks doing this run (they leave on Fridays) told me last night that they almost ran over a herd of caribou on their way back!

Jo has been rearranging the cab interior and has most of our stuff neatly stored and easily accessible. She's very thrilled with her new "kitchen" in the truck. We are "roughing it" with a microwave, slow cooker, George Foreman grill, a couple of electric coolers and all sorts of small & sundry utensils! She makes a great chilli. One of our favourites is the beef short ribs that she does in the slow cooker. We better warn this guy to stay out of our way or he may end up in the pot!

2009-01-02T08:49:00.001-08:00

Today we are in our company's Delta, BC office. We have acquired our necessary permits and licences for our new truck and are going to do a bit of shopping for groceries and other supplies related to our new adventure.

Last night we talked with the other couple that are doing this run also and got a few pointers on fueling and eating stops as well as where to find a bathroom in the middle of the night along the 1000 kilometres of nothingness from Whitehorse to Fort Nelson. The latter being very valuable information for Jo ... as the world is my urinal!

The Vancouver area has been getting blasted with winter this year and there is still a great deal of snow and ice around. It makes it kinda hard for our little poodle to find some green area to do her business but she is a real trooper. Once she gets outfitted in her booties and winter coats, there's no stopping her.

This past week Jo-Anne & I clued our children in to what we are going to be doing for the next 9 months. Jo's daughter, Jodene, was pretty excited but a bit sad that her Mom won't be just a short hour's drive away. But she is very happy for us on the whole. My daughter, Caroline, is very upset that her Dad is going to be so far away but hopefully she will come around and see the big picture the way we are looking at it.

This particular dedicated run is paying a bit of a premium in wages and represents a more relaxed style of driving ... if you can call driving throughout the Rockies in all types of weather relaxing! But the roads we are driving are in very good condition, very well maintained, very little traffic or congestion and with a network of support available as well. The extra bucks will sure come in handy as well and may lead to an early retirement for yours truly!! Now THAT, I can handle.

Time to get a move on ... there's stickers to stick and permits to file.

2008-12-24T19:45:00.001-08:00

In 2003, things started to turn around for this single dad. My job was going well, I got the car of my dreams and even better ... the gal of my dreams came into my life!

I was making just a few bucks more at work, the car was a 2000 Pontiac Grand Prix GTP ... 2 door, silver gray, supercharged engine, leather interior, and the gal is beautiful, amazing, sexy and allowed me to wrap myself around her little finger where I safely reside to this day. Jo-Anne and I met in July 2003 and were married 7 months later in February 2004.

The job is long gone, the car is kinda feeble now but the gal!! She's more beautiful and loving than ever. We now are together 24/7 as our careers have melded together. I went back to driving a truck and Jo went to truck driving school, acheived her class A status and we are now team partners with Challenger Motor Freight out of Cambridge, Ontario.

We have been on the road for quite a few adventures including hauling the Mobil 1 display for the Canadian Grand Prix to Circuit Gilles Villenueve in Montreal, Quebec. We even got to do a "hot lap" in our big truck around the track and parked and slept in pit lane for the night. We also hauled Madonna's stage set from BC Place in Vancouver to Oakland, California. While at BC Place, we got to park our big rig right inside the stadium, had backstage passes and enjoyed the show. Our latest adventure had us running LTL (less than truck load) freight from Delta, BC to Watson Lake and Whitehorse in the Yukon.

While Delta is just above the 49th parallel and Whitehorse is just above the 60th parallel ... hence the name of this blog ... 11 degrees ... well, do the math then. We will be doing this dedicated run for the next 9 months or so and will probably renew then. Our first run took us through temperatures as low as -47 celcius in Watson Lake where the reefer trailer conked out and I spent about an hour outside trying to get it started again. We had perishable plants on board and I fear that they suffered greatly until we got them unloaded in Whitehorse where it was a balmy -41C!

Despite all that we witnessed incredible scenery and wildlife. Did you know that there are wild buffalo herds up there and they like to hang out by the highway? Next run I'm going to try feeding the moose that are on the road the celery sticks that Jo tries to make me eat!

OK, This is how it all started!

2008-12-24T19:20:00.000-08:00