2 RV's to IL, 1 to Rockford, 1 to Huntly (delivered)
... spending the night at Dubuque IA
This is being posted a day late because somehow the host for this website is blocking this hotel or network or something. If I hot spot my phone, I can still see the website, but I don’t want to hotspot it that long.
A good reminder to keep more current on transferring these pages to my personal website.
Breakfast – is open like it was 2 years ago. Hot eggs, potatoes, biscuits and gravy. But only peach yogurt so none of that. Did have juice.
We get out of the hotel by 7:30. Frost. BB tries scraping it and then uses the wiper fluid.
1st stop across the side street at the Kwik Star/Kwik Trip for fuel. BB puts in 10 gallons, I put in 12.
2nd stop is just before Dubuque in Peosta, we both decide we don’t need more fuel yet so this is just a restroom break. I should have about 20 miles to spare in getting to the next stop and our range should be going up.
My local company had called while I was driving and I called back once we got stopped. But by the time I called back they had the run covered. Just as well, I am not in town.
3rd stop was for fuel at the Road Ranger in Winnebago IL. That is when it clicked why BB’s RV is going to a place called Winnebago … it is the name of the town. I told BB I was going to put in four more gallons but ended up putting in five more in case we needed to do some running to find a car or motel.
4th stop is BB’s drop. In and out in less than a half hour.
5th stop. Then a few miles down the road to the Loves for food at the Hardees.
Before we get to Loves, we stop at a Mobil station. All there is is the fuel pumps, and an air pump. This pump is free and you set the pounds pressure you want to pump. 70# is as high as it will go, my front tires need 70#’s but my back tires need 80#’s.
My low air tire pressure dash light has been on since I started this morning. It was not on yesterday so I thought the light would go off once the tires got warm. It hasn’t and I can’t deliver with the light on. So I finally checked and 3 of the 4 tires are low.
When we get to Loves, they do have an air pump also. This one is not free. And I do not get in figured out right away so we end up having to start it twice. But finally all the tires are at the recommended pressure and the dash light goes out. Whewww.
And to make phone calls. BB had been calling but was always kept in the hold cycle without talking to anyone.
Finally she got someone at the airport where we have a car reserved for today. Same story as yesterday … “We are sold out until next week.”
So she calls the place we have a car reserved for tomorrow at. No cars today, but we can still get one tomorrow … or call back at 4:30.
At some point we finally started looking at other options, other locations. No cars today. Tomorrow one company has a car for $350 for the day, instead of $150.
Then we realized there was a 3rd rental car place where we had the other two reserved. I called them. (BB was done making calls.)
This guy is helpful. No cars, but we talked and he said he would go out and do a car count and call me back.
We had nothing to loose and it was getting late so we headed to where he was located. It is also where the better hotels were located if we didn’t get a car.
6th stop, the rental car place.
We had pegged 3 PM as our cut off, leaving much later and I would not make delivery and then we would have a car while the clock was ticking.
We get to his location and there is a line … so we got in it. He hadn’t called back and we could see why. When he got to us, we said enough so he knew who we were, he apologized for not calling back. Yes, he would have a car and asked what we be OK.
We don’t care, as long as it is today and runs As soon as we were sure that he was sure, I left BB and headed to my drop.
That was a long couple of hours, making calls, not wanting to call dispatch to say we missed a delivery.
7th stop was for final fuel, then a half mile back and …
8th stop is my drop. I pull into the service area where employees are standing. One walks over and tells me where I should park. I get parked and as I am taking a picture of my mileage, the inspector walks over and asks for the paperwork.
Because I left BB without a car yet, I had all the luggage for both of us. I had to get that out of the way so that the guy could do his inspection. I set it to the ground and then carry it to the curb. He is done and heading in to make copies.
I still have to get my plate and placards off so I am a couple of minutes behind him. When I get inside, he asks for the fuel level and mileage, both which I can show him on my phone so we don’t have to go back out.
I am there less than 15 minutes and I am clear to go.
But no BB. Last I got was a text a few minutes after I left the rental car place telling me that she is still waiting.
But within 10 minutes she is there, we get everything loaded and we are ready to go.
We are barely back on the road and I get a call from dispatch. With my local company. 2nd call today. No, I can not take a mixer to Nebraska, I am in Chicago (same as when I talked to this one yesterday)
8th stop is the Belvidere oasis, again.
9th stop is Winnebago, again. But this time at Culvers for food.
Sometime during the day today I got an email saying my package had been signed for. I’m glad. Then I don’t have to write a nasty gram to my company and the shipper.
The package is my reward for being with the company five years. It is some ‘trinket’ that is likely worth five dollars. It is because I am a driver. Drivers are usually not home during the day when packages are delivered. And it required a signature.
The other par that doesn’t make sense is the value of the package is likely <> $5. Last week I received a laptop that did not require a signature. That laptop was worth closer to $2,000.
The scenery.
Ridge, the road between Rockford and Dubuque is on a ridge. One area is called Eagles Ridge, other area’s are named also. Nice view but not a road I want to take in the winter. On some of the two land, and some of the four lane also, the grass or drop off is up to the white line. –0- shoulder.
10th and final stop is the Best Western in Dubuque. BB looked at the reviews of the others and tonight was worth it. It had been a long stressful day not knowing if we were stuck in town or not.
And we are not.
Now we have most of a days drive to do tomorrow but we should be back in my town soon enough to make an appointment. Then Saturday I think I am going to go and play in the dirt.
Load board
US – 538
IA – 223
MN – 9
WI – 11
There is really nothing more we can do about all the runs on the load board so I haven’t been looking at most of the details. BB did look at IN tonight and there is one going to northern MN again. I would have loved to take it. If it had been there yesterday AM, it would have been mine.
The only way it would have worked now, is to have left from my drop tonight and gotten to the pickup about 8 PM. Then driven to my house on Friday and parked the ½ million dollar RV in my yard for the weekend … and we have road restrictions.
Then Monday we would have had to drop it in MN and somehow gotten to IA to head out late for the Reno run. With our car already in IA.
This trip did work, it did pay. Not having a car even when you have reserved one is always in the back of our minds.