Tips for feeder driving in the snow...

[MaceFremonti]

Baptism by fire today...in the space of five minutes conditions went from no precipitation to white out/covered roads....parked for two hours until plows came through and made it somewhat manageable....going to be cutting it close to the 14 hour mark...

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[cachsux]

They can always pick you up.

 

[bill blutnach]

They can always pick you up.

Perhaps they will let him spend the night in a nice mountain chalet. The fleas and bedbugs should be less active in the cold weather..

 

[bill blutnach]

Checking the conditions along my run for tomorrow....looks like 500 miles of Ice Road Truckers....this happened close to my run today....
View attachment 10645

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wow. I am looking on internet for this accident. Was this in Wisconsin?

 

[cachsux]

Perhaps they will let him spend the night in a nice mountain chalet. The fleas and bedbugs should be less active in the cold weather..

Don't forget the complimentary sexual assault by mountain folk.

 

[oldngray]

Don't forget the complimentary sexual assault by mountain folk.

That could also be the mountain folk in Georgia - minus the snow.

 

[MaceFremonti]

Sorry guys no Deliverance action today made it back with .08 to spare...13.92. If worse ever comes to worse I plan on sleeping in my tractor!

 

[Conan04]

1) No engine brake when on snow or ice covered roads...ever!

2) Find a gear on downgrades where you can maintain 25 MPH with only light pressure on the brakes...don't red-line the engine but higher RPMs are fine for short periods.

3) Constantly watch for tire spray from your own vehicle and those around you...if you see it, the road is wet...if you don't, you're on ice.

4) Don't forget that bridges/overpasses freeze first...always navigate them with extra caution during wet winter conditions.

Hope that helps!

What is the difference between downshifting a passenger car and using the engine brake?

 

[Down The Stretch]

Conan: The problem lies with the trailer(s)...when the engine brake kicks in, the tractor is being slowed down but the trailers are still traveling at the same rate of speed...when on ice or snow, you'll feel a pushing sensation that will often cause the back end of the tractor to kick out to one side or the other. If you're chained up, it's really not that big of a deal...if not, you'll be screaming for your Mama while you try to regain control of the vehicle.

If you want to run an engine brake with your chains on, just make damn sure you turn it off after you take off the chains...I forgot once and only once. I never use it at all during snow storms now and that's the advice I give to all new drivers.

 

[over9five]

Like DTS said,
It's a bad thing in the snow because you have all that engine braking power going to one axle.

 

[ammigill]

Tips for driving in trucking are:
Get a grip in snow traction
Make sure you can see
Run the air-condition to clear the frost from the interior windows
check your lights
Remember the tough spots
watch carefully for black ice
Too much steering is bad

 

[brownclown]

My first winter in feeders so I appreciate all the tips. You learn from other's mistakes very quickly. I would like to add a tip sort of related to winter driving. This time of year we use leased trailers quite a bit. I swapped loads with a driver and he brought me a leased trailer. It "seemed" to check out on my pre-trip so I hit the road. It wasn't until a fellow driver pointed it out on the CB, that I learned that the turn signals on the trailer were reversed. I would signal left and the right signal on the trailer would flash and vice versa. I had to think backwards all the way back to the building. Bottom line is, don't assume your signals are working right just because the 4-ways are.

 

[VonDutch]

You checked them on pretrip, right?

 

[watdaflock?]

Really? Your better than that.

You're.

 

[Conan04]

I brought his trailer around and dropped it where he had room to hook up. By this time my tractor had arrived so I grabbed my backpack and proceeded to pretrip my tractor. Everything was good to go so I headed off to find my longbox. Driving by the contractor who was now hooked up something didn't look right....getting closer I figured it out...he had jumped the pin and the front of the trailer was up against the back of his day cab!

I stopped to see if he needed help but no he said he could handle it.....and quote "I've been doing this for twenty years and I know what I'm doing."

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By "jumping the pin" I presume that the pin on the trailer is closer to the front of the tractor than ideal.

 

[MaceFremonti]

Jumping the pin means that instead of the kingpin locking into the fifth wheel it slids up and over the fifth wheel and drops down in front of it. There is nothing to then stop your tractor from backing up until it hits the bulkhead of the trailer. Then the best part is you can't pull back out because the kingpin gets stuck on the front of the fifth wheel.

Before you couple to a trailer you have to make sure the trailer height is correct. Different tractors have their fifth wheels at different heights so trailers can end up being too high or too low for proper coupling.

 

[Almost]

If you have the option of going single in bad weather then leave the empty! Don't be afraid to. Some mgmt. may complain but so what. (most don't) If they do then cite safety concerns which is true. UPS can always move the empties in better weather.

 

[What'dyabringmetoday???]

I can hardly believe that someone pulled over for two hours. Not here.

 

[Dracula]

I can hardly believe that someone pulled over for two hours. Not here.

You need to learn to stand up for yourself. Guess what they ask you after you slide off a snowy road? "If it was so slick, why didn't you pull over?"

Seriously, if you willing to risk a crash because you are intimidated by threats to keep driving, you need to contact a member of your safety committee, or the feeder manager and ask him or her, exactly, what you should do if driving conditions give you the feeling that you may crash. Have this conversation with your union steward alongside you.

If you think they get mad when you show up for the sort two hours late, imagine how mad they will be when the loads arrive 24 hours late, after they needed to be off-loaded to new, undamaged trailers.

You are responsible for driving safe. If that means you need to pull over for two hours or more until it is safe, well, that is what they are paying you for.

 

[MoarTape]

Jumping the pin means that instead of the kingpin locking into the fifth wheel it slids up and over the fifth wheel and drops down in front of it. There is nothing to then stop your tractor from backing up until it hits the bulkhead of the trailer. Then the best part is you can't pull back out because the kingpin gets stuck on the front of the fifth wheel.

I carry a block of wood with me in case this happens. I just tilt the 5th wheel and prop it up with the wood. It may slide right out, or may have to still crank it up a little. Better than having to crank a trailer up 2-3 inches in low gear..