Vol. 20 No 3 - 31 May, 2016

Truck selfie!  Our reflection in a tanker.

Sunday, 1 May we left Daytona Beach with the Genie boom lift and delivered it Monday morning at United Rentals in Pooler, Georgia – an inter company exchange.

Daytona Beach, Florida to Pooler, Georgia.

Leaving Daytona Beach, north bound on Interstate 95.

Loaded nearby in Pooler at Keen Transport – two JCB forklifts for Sunbelt Rentals agents.

Pooler, Georgia for deliveries in Perth Amboy, New Jersey and West Seneca, New York.

A quick trip north to Perth Amboy, New Jersey and delivered the small one on the back.  Found an LTL (Partial) 40 kms south in Windsor, New Jersey – International Process Plants, and loaded a small tank.  It was marked ‘fragile’, though it was obviously steel.  It had a glass cylinder inside it!

LTL from Windsor, New Jersey to Scottsville, New York.

Delivered it the next morning to Sabin Metals Corp. in Scottsville, New York.  The tank was unloaded with a group of safety bosses supervising, as it required special handling.

The facility recovers and refines precious metals – platinum, palladium, ruthenium, rhodium, rhenium, gold and silver.  I was told as an example, old computer motherboards are put in the tank with chemicals and the metals are extracted/separated.

Then to Buffalo, New York and delivered the forklift to Sunbelt Rentals in West Seneca.

A swing by Empire Truck and Trailer Service to check a couple of things on the truck and get parts ordered for when we take the truck in there for maintenance in June.  Art and Ann Marie picked us up from there and we had a nice lunch and catch up with them.

Out to Joe and Michele’s for the night, got to see Michele and Baillie (Joe was out trucking), and a visit to Jim’s mother.

Jim is doing a motorcycle swap – two old moto guzzi’s for a 2000 moto guzzi Jackal. Logistics are - one old bike in New York, one old bike in Florida – both to be taken to Austin, Texas for the swap.  He unloaded the moto guzzi Le Mans off the truck and left it in Joe’s garage - loaded the 1976 moto guzzi Convert behind the cab where the Le Mans was.

Loaded and tarped in North Tonawanda (north side of Buffalo) on Thursday afternoon at Armstrong Pump – half a trailer of pumps.  The next morning, Friday, we loaded and tarped at Steel of West Virginia in Huntington, WV - 4 bundles of “I” beams.

"I" beams from Huntington, West Virginia before tarp.

Arrived at Daytona Beach early afternoon on Saturday, 7 May.  Jimmy was in town, caught up with him and a couple of his friends that evening.  We all attended his church picnic / “Italian Festival”.  It is a three-day event, and lots to entertainment.   A dozen or more carnival rides and games.  Dinner for us was Italian sausage sandwich.  We all had a ride around on the bumper cars – for laughs!

Jimmy wanted a stuffed eagle that was a prize at the dart/balloon game – he and I made a combined effort and won that!

Italian Festival at Our Lady of Lourdes Church, Daytona Beach.

Some of the carnival rides.

On Sunday morning, Jimmy and Jim loaded the 1984 moto guzzi V65c on the trailer.  We had to work our way to Austin, Texas to make the moto guzzi swap.

Sunday afternoon, Jim and I went for a bike ride north to Flagler Beach. A store called The Kite Warehouse has opened on A1A and had a kite display on the beach – it was spectacular!  Had leisurely drink at Finns bar, then headed back to the house.

Kites at Flagler Beach, Florida.

A space shuttle kite in the centre of the photo.

Up early Monday, 9 May – a busy day ahead.  Loaded a bobcat at Bobcat of Orlando on the north side of Orlando.

Three LTL shipments for Florida, and one moto guzzi for Texas.

Next delivered the “I” beams to Knapheike Truck Bodies on south side of Orlando.  South to Fort Myers to deliver the bobcat to a Synergy Rental; then delivered the pumps to a warehouse.  Spent several hours looking for a load to Texas to deliver the motorbikes, but nothing, so headed to the house.

Most of Tuesday was spent looking for a load to Texas, ended up with one to Illinois, and try to get to Texas from there.

Wednesday, we loaded at Cape Canaveral Air Force Base at a SpaceX hangar.  It takes longer to get through security than it takes to get loaded!  We picked up two sets of scales, then tarped them, then north to Peoria, Illinois.  That was all we could put on the trailer because they paid for exclusive use of the whole trailer.  Nice light load!

Cape Canaveral, Florida to East  Peoria, Illinois.

Jim went to get a tarp, and noticed one was missing; the one we took off when we delivered in Fort Myers - we left there!

Both of us got sidetracked; I took photos of our delivered shipment because the load required tarping and to be kept dry in transit.  Then it was unloaded and left outside.  There were cardboard cartons with it, so I needed evidence that the shipment was delivered dry, in case an insurance claim is lodged against us that it was not properly tarped.  Somehow, the tarp was not stored right away, but it is clearly beside the truck in the photos!

Fort Myers delivery - the tarp on the ground was left behind! The cab and trailer were not straight, so it could not be seen in the mirrors.

We headed north and late Thursday afternoon and stopped at Tri-City Canvas Products in Granite City, just east of St. Louis and bought three new tarps; two steel tarps, and a new coil tarp as well. We had planned on replacing these tarps this year anyway.

Delivered the scales to Walz Scale in East Peoria, Illinois on Friday morning.

Over to Keystone Steel & Wire to load coils of steel wire, referred to as ‘slinkies’.  It was heavy and required the whole trailer - we had the extra weight of one more motorcycle and tarps.  Managed to fit it all on and weight distributed to scale it legally. 

Peoria, Illinois to Fort Worth, Texas.

Saturday afternoon we went 60 miles south of our delivery in Fort Worth, and stopped at the truckstop at Hillsboro early afternoon.  Caught up on some things around the truck and we unloaded the convert off the truck.

Sunday morning was the rendezvous to swap the two for one moto guzzi’s.  They new owners drove north from Austin with a pick up truck and a trailer. Took a bit more time and effort to get the V65c off the front of the trailer, but all turned out good.

The 'new to us' 2000 Moto Guzzi Jackal.

The 2000 Jackal is in great condition, 47,000 miles on it.  Not the original exhaust, mirrors or indicators, but Jim will try to get original ones for it.  The large side bags and rear top bag (not in photo) will be great for extra storage. It had a Texas license plate and the inspection sticker was good until July, so we took it for a trip around the area!

Went into Hillsboro town – it has numerous buildings listed on the Register of Historic Buildings. I especially wanted to see the Hill County Courthouse, built in 1890.

It was damaged by an electrical fire in 1993 – all that remained were the four limestone walls.  It was rebuilt by donations, including two concerts sponsored by Hill County native Willie Nelson.
The courthouse is eight miles from where Willie Nelson grew up, in Abbott, TX.

Hill County Court House, Hillsboro, Texas, built in 1890.

Old Rock Saloon in Hillsboro, TX

A Theatre in Hillsboro, TX

Old building in Hillsboro, TX

After cruising the downtown area of Hillsboro, we went to Abbott, through some small towns.

Post Office in Irene, TX

Then to Italy.  A moto guzzi rally was held there for years, but no longer and we had never attended it.  A small town, but interesting.

Italy, Texas.

Had a look at the historic downtown of Waxahatchie - areas we don’t get to in the truck!

Another beautiful Court House (Ellis County) in the centre square.

Completed in 1897, it is designated number eight on the list of ‘outstanding architectural achievements in Texas’.  I would love to look inside!

Ellis County Court House in Waxahatchie, Texas.

Internet:  Courthouse History:  Texas has more historic courthouses (225) than any other state.  Of these, 86 are on the National Register and 78 are Texas Historic Landmarks.  Courthouses have always been a symbol of self-government, power and civic pride.  Collectively, the courthouses were viewed as a sign of progress.  They served as the heart of the community and the hub of social activity.

Waxahatchie, TX

We wandered around a bit, though rain was forecast for late afternoon, so we worked our way back to Hillsboro and had dinner at Up In Smoke BBQ.

The bike ran well, Jim is happy with the transaction.  

We loaded the bike in the space behind the cab where the le mans usually goes.  After taking off the luggage, it fitted easily.  We will take it to Daytona Beach for now.

Putting the Jackal on the truck.

Monday morning, 16 May, we delivered the wire coils to ATCO in Fort Worth, then south to Mansfield and loaded five 20ft trailers at Interstate Trailers.

Had a 4 foot overhang off the back of the trailer. 

Trailers from Mansfield, Texas to Erie, Pennsylvania and Voorhees, New Jersey.

Stopped in Nashville, Tennessee and met Joe at the truckstop for a late lunch.  He headed south, we headed north.

Met with Joe for lunch in Nashville, Tennessee, he parked opposite us.

Technically we had a full load on, we had a 4 foot overhang, but there was empty space under the trailers!  Found “1 tube” to be shipped out of Louisville, Kentucky - that was on the way, 20ft long and 9 ¾ inches in diameter.  We picked it up Wednesday morning at FIBA Technologies, one cylinder that tests pressure – almost pays for the fuel north.

LTL - one cylinder from Louisville, Kentucky to East Greenville, Pennsylvania. 

Delivered one trailer in Erie, Pennsylvania late Wednesday afternoon at an equipment company.  The next morning delivered the cylinder (LTL) in East Greenville, Pennsylvania to another FIBA Technologies company; then in the afternoon delivered the four trailers to Hale Trailers in Voorhees, New Jersey.

Friday morning, 20^th, we loaded one large reel of wire rope and tarped it at Bridon American in Exeter, Pennsylvania. An easy run over to Indiana ready to deliver on Monday morning.

Wire rope at Bridon American, Exeter, Pennsylvania.

Tarped - Exeter, Pennsylvania to Oakland City, Indiana.

Got to the Flying J Truckstop at Haubstadt, near Evansville, Indiana early Saturday afternoon, and unloaded the motorbike.  We had not previously had an opportunity to explore Evansville, though we had loaded there several years ago.

Evansville, Indiana: Situated on an oxbow in the Ohio River, the city is often referred to as the “Crescent Valley” or “River City”.  The city was a major stop for steamboats along the Ohio River, it was the home port for a number of companies engaged in trade via the river.  Coal mining, manufacturing, and hardwood lumber were major sources of economic activity.

By 1900, Evansville was one of the largest hardwood furniture centres in the world, with 41 factories.  Throughout this period, the major ethnic groups consisted of Germans fleeing Europe, Protestant Scotch-Irish from the South, Catholic Irish coming for canal or railroad work, New England businessmen, and newly freed slaves from Western Kentucky.

An interesting city!

Our first stop was to visit a craft brewery in the old section of Evansville – The Tin Man.  A great micro-brewery, they had a nice assortment of beer.  We had the five beer ‘flight’ taste test, and chose a glass of the Irish Red Ale.

Tin Man Brewery, Franklin Street, Evansville, Indiana.

64oz growler of Rivet - Irish Red Ale. 

From the Tin Man website.

Saturday is their $5 refill on 64 oz growlers.  What a deal!

We bought a 64 oz growler for $4, then $5 to fill it with Irish Red Ale – approximately 6 ½ 10oz glasses for $9 ($12.50 AU).

We decided on the Gerst Haus in the historic district for dinner – for the German influence.

The Gerst Haus, Evansville, Indiana.

Website:  Since 1999 the Gerst Haus has been an Evansville favourite, providing the best in German and American food.  (Gerst beer is brewed in Nashville, there is another Gerst Haus there.)  We pride ourselves on a fun and authentic German atmosphere.

A wedding party stopped on for photos.

It is a beautiful old building, and we enjoyed a bratwurst sandwich and a beer.  Then back to the truck to start on the 64 oz bottle of beer!

Back at the truckstop to relax.

Jim selected an interesting ride for Sunday, through Linnville, then east to Boonville for breakfast - followed along the Lincoln Heritage Trail through Santa Claus (yes, that is the name of the town!). Wound through Hoosier National Forest, south to Rome and the Ohio River.

I saw several of these fibreglass Santas around the town!

Hoosier National Park, Indiana.

Rome, Indiana - the road ends at a boat ramp going into the Ohio River!

We watched the movement of fifteen barge containers along the Ohio River - five long, three wide. Also, we saw barges going through a couple of locks on the river.

A barge on the Ohio River.

Found more county court houses in southern Indiana.  The one in Rome, the Old Perry Courthouse is described as “dignified simplicity”.

Internet: Built in 1819, the Old Perry County Courthouse in Rome lost its government role in 1859 when the county seat moved to Cannelton.  After the county government departed, the Rome courthouse transitioned to use as a school, remaining the centerpiece of a dwindling community.  Finally, the school closed too.  Today, recast as a community centre, the courthouse presides over a once bustling Ohio River town that has lost population and buildings.

Old Perry County Courthouse in Rome, Indiana - built in 1819.

Rode back along the Ohio River Scenic Byway - had look at Cannelton and Tell City.  Tell City has a levee that protects the town from flooding - is interesting.

Street beside the levee.

Mural depicting historic River events.

On our way back we went to the historic district of Evansville again and had dinner at a sports bar there - again a beautiful old building.

This is the Vanderburgh County Court House in Evansville.

Vanderburgh County Court House in Evansville, Indiana.

Back to the truck – loaded the bike, did laundry, had showers, relaxed.

Delivered the reel of wire Monday morning to Bridon American in Oakland City, Indiana, then south to Sebree, Kentucky and loaded aluminum billets at Century Aluminum going to Florida.

Aluminum billets - Sebree, Kentucky to Rockledge, Florida.

Stopped by the house on the way for Tuesday night, caught up with Jimmy for dinner.

Delivered to SAPA Precision Tubing in Rockledge, Florida on Wednesday morning.

Website:  SAPA Precision Tubing provides aluminium solutions for heat transfer applications.

The last weekend in May is Memorial long weekend – this year is the inaugural Country 500 Country Music Festival.  Held at the Daytona International Speedway complex.

38 artists / bands were schedules, starting at 2pm each day.  There was camping for the three nights in the infield, and two stages set up.  I bought our tickets for the three days on the first day they were available last November.

A few days before I was looking at the Facebook page for the Country 500, and saw a post from March from a young lady in Brisbane, Australia asking for some information because she was attending the Festival.  I messaged her and after some messages back and forth – on the Thursday, Jim and I met Centaine at the bus depot in Daytona Beach, and after taking her to the racetrack and organizing a phone, we took her to beachside, Daytona Beach so she could see more of the area other than the International Speedway.

There was a SpaceX rocket scheduled to launch that afternoon, so we walked to the Bandshell, and Boardwalk and out the Main Street Pier to The Roof bar and restaurant for the best location to watch the launch from Daytona Beach.  Cape Canaveral is approximately 100 km (60 miles) south, and the launch can be seen from Daytona Beach.  We had a drink and snacks, and waited…  Then found out a problem had been discovered and the launch postponed until the next day.

Lesley and Centaine at The Roof bar, Daytona Breach.

We walked Main Street, and took Centaine to the famous biker bar - the Boot Hill Saloon, so that was some local culture for her!

Centaine camped at the Speedway for Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights and attended the Festival each day, we caught up briefly a few times as we tried to see all the acts we wanted to.

Website:  Country 500 will take place on the infield of the world-famous Daytona International Speedway, a historic first mega-music festival inside the hallowed grounds of one of the most iconic motorsports venues in America.

Friday afternoon and evening the 27^th Jim and I stayed mostly at the Bluebird Theatre, we saw Eric Pasley, Jamey Johnson, Dwight Yoakam and Trace Adkins.  All great entertainment.  Then Jason Aldean headlined at the Country 500 Stage.

Dwight Yoakam!

Temperatures for the weekend were hot and humid! The worst part of the weekend, but we coped!  Attendance was in the thousands!

Saturday was busier – we got there earlier to see Joe Diffie at Bluebird, then I walked to Country 500 Stage to see Sara Evans, then back to Bluebird for the last part of Cassadee Pope, then back to 500 to see Montgomery Gentry, then back to Bluebird for Marty Stuart & His Fabulous Superlatives, and Willie Nelson (absolute legend).  The nights headliner was back to Country 500 Stage for Florida Georgia Line.

Cassadee Pope, the first female winner of  "The Voice" USA in December 2012.

It was a lot of walking in the heat between two stages, but had to be done to see the ones I wanted to see, Jim stayed in the shade of Bluebird Theatre.

Sunday morning, Jim and I picked up Joe’s moto guzzi that he left at Jimmy’s in March after Bike Week.  We left the (new) Jackal at the house in Daytona, and loaded Joe’s bike on our truck.  We had quite the motorcycle shuffle this month!

Early afternoon we collected Centaine’s gear from the campgrounds and took it to our place.  She had to be at the bus depot at 6.30am Monday morning, so it was easier to be packed and ready the day before and stay Sunday night with us after the close of the Festival.

Sunday afternoon at the Festival, we picked a spot on the outer edge of the Country 500 Stage and watched Jennifer Nettles, Little Big Town, Lady Antebellum. 

Storms threatened and we could see lightning and rain in the distance, but only experienced a few drops.

Little Big Town on the Country 500 Stage.

Lady Antebellum.

The headliner and final performance was Luke Bryan - a huge finale, great performance, great artist and extremely entertaining!  It was a long day, and we got to the house about 1am.

Sunday morning, Centaine and I got up early and headed to the bus depot.  She headed to Orlando for a couple of days, then back to Australia. A busy ten days for her, filled with experiences and memories that will infiltrate her thoughts and conversations for a lifetime.  As well as whetting her appetite for future adventures and travel.

We caught up on a few jobs, Monday being the public holiday for Memorial Day.  We had to get ready to go back to work on Tuesday.