2 Rv's to SC, one to Greer (delivered,) one to Myrtle Beach (delivered)

... spending the night at Gastonia NC

No alarm today. Breakfast was scrambled eggs. (no toast) And a muffin or a breakfast bar. BB took the muffin and scowled at the breakfast bar I took, until she looked at the calories.

We finally got going about 10:30 local time. It was about 15 miles to the airport where I dropped BB off to pick up our car. I stopped in front of the arrival area and it took BB a minute or two to collect her stuff. By then security was walking up to the RV. She didn't notice them but I had been watching. There were two standing outside the airport and no one stopped in the loading un-loading area.

1st stop is for my final fuel at the Speedway. My paperwork says there is two stations in this area. A Wilco and a Hess. Sorry, that is two names for the same place. They were bought out by Speedway who sold or partnered with Pilot on the truck stops. Now Speedway has been bought by 7-Eleven. Not change of the signs yet.

2nd stop, two doors down. My drop. I go in the main building first and then to the service area. Within a couple of minutes they find the inspector so I hand over my paperwork and wait. Takes about a half hour today and I get a clear inspection.

We had talked about walking the boardwalk or something near the beach. We are about two miles from the beach but it was already 80 degrees at 10 AM when we were heading out. 85 and humid by the time we were ready to walk. Also we had no idea how wide this boardwalk was or how many people would be wearing masks outside.

So we headed inland. About an hour in we crossed the freeway. Stopped going south. There was a Pilot on one side of the freeway and a Flyin J on the other side.

3rd stop at the Pilot for Wendys. First we looked to see what Dunkin Donuts had, but it was just the express version, no sandwiches. Then we went to Wendy's, after we got our food we walked past the DQ and I saw that they now have a caramel apple pie blizzard. I got one and they put whipped cream ?? on it. We have new tap credit cards and I am trying to use it that way. I tapped and couldn't tell if it took, waited for my malt and then asked the person. No it hadn't, it wouldn't take the tap, or the chip, or the swipe. Finally I tried to pay with points, it wouldn't take. Finally another person behind the counter got it to work. But by now my over full cup of ice cream was running down the sides of the cup. So I had to eat that first before my sandwich or driving.

Cross country. I think we have been this way before.

4th stop was somewhere near Bennettsville. BB saw a trip on the board from near Myrtle Beach going to California. I wanted to know if we wanted to go that far solo and she was looking up different details. Finally we stopped and I called. Someone had already put the order on hold. I can call back in 15 minutes so we back track to a better parking spot and wait. The other driver took it. About a 2,500 mile trip. They don't get much longer than that. Something we should have talked about before we saw something on the load board. We should always call ASAP and put it on hold to talk about it. So we continue on our way.

There had also been a truck going to Selina KS that we had been looking at. As long as I was talking to dispatch I asked them about it. They had all the pay numbers but when I asked about the truck the more or less said. 'We don't ask, they want a truck moved, we move it.' Sorry. I don't work that way. I won't blindly take a truck. If they can't tell me what it is, no thanks. If I really want the truck I have gotten the phone number and called the shipper myself. On the truck going to CA, they had listed it as a strait truck, a truck with a box on the back.

Not too long after those calls I stop and call the dispatcher that has most of the trucks out of NC and SC. They told me they usually get those orders later in the afternoon.

5th stop was near Rockingham. The Carolina dispatcher started putting loads on the board. The first few were not good enough, three to FL, we don't want to go that way yet. And then their were two to Milwaukee. CDL so we will only take one. I just looked now after 5 PM and the other one is still on the board and so are the FL.

So now we back track again today. We had gotten about two miles past where we needed to turn when the orders came in. We took the narrow back roads. Our other choice was to back track 10 miles instead of two.

We are heading to Shelby NC. We have picked up a few trucks here, we know the routine.

Traffic is backed up a little by the Charlotte airport but mostly slow and go.

6th and final stop is the Comfort Inn in Gastonia. We check in and then walk a few blocks to the Cracker Barrel. If there had been something with outside seating we would have done that instead. We didn't look to hard. There was also a Honey Baked that closed shortly after we got here. And a Texas Roadhouse on the way to the Cracker Barrel.

I was able to get my paperwork for the next truck printed so we are set for the AM. BB called and got the rental car drop changed. It will still cost us 80 miles but keeps us off the toll roads.

Now we have three days to go 800 miles. Shouldn't be having to push it too hard. And now we are watching to see where we go next. CA is most likely out. We would have wanted to leave Monday to go to CA and now we can't until Tuesday. Lots of options once we are back up to 200+ on the load board.

Load board

US - 225

IA - 35

MN - 8

WI - 1