[Inkytruck]

W00t W00t!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! arty:

Bring on the stories- I'm all caught up!

[Doctor Who]

The Monarch Butterfly Invasion

Yes, another Chemical Brothers tale.

In the last century around spring of '94 or '95 the brothers were dispatched on a load to Tracy, California. The ride out was mostly a non event until we crossed into Arizona. That is where we began hearing a lot of discontent on the radio about bug residue on all the "pretty trucks" rolling east. One driver had said something about butterflies but the rest was lost to laughter and hetrodynes caused by more voices than any radio should be allowed to handle.

After switching drivers in Flagstaff I drove down the big hill aiming the nose of the Freightliner FLD 120 towards Barstow all the time wondering when or, where I was going to run into the mass of bugs the east bound drivers were complaining about. About an hour or so later I found the "invasion" I woke the brother up to have him witness the dark cloud crossing I-40. Yes indeed, dozens upon dozens of Monarch Butterflies were crossing 40 and it looked as if they were heading for Mexico.

All I could say was "Damn, that's a lot of butterflies!"
My brother had a few choice words which I dare not repeat.

The invasion didn't last long but the amount of dead bugs on the windshield, radiator and front of the tank were enough to proclaim that we had met the invasion and were a bit worse for the wear...

The ride back from Tracy was just as much fun as the ride there. The tank was washed out in Barstow, since we had to load in Houston plus, the truck was washed, I guess the brother felt a bit safer in a clean, butterfly clear truck, still not too sure though.

As fate or, Mr. Murphy, would have it the butterflies were still on their mad dash to the border as he drove into Arizona. I could hear select words while I was trying to sleep.

When we arrived at the Houston terminal to pick up the next load my brother climbed up on the tank and let out a loud "OH SHIT!!!"
I asked him what the problem was and he told me he had left the dome lid open so the tank could dry out quicker and he did forget to tell me. He didn't have to explain any further, the bottom of the tank was lined with very dead Monarchs and it was too late to get the tank rewashed due to the late hour.
I just looked at him and told him since he thought he was the captain of, this now, rapidly sinking ship he was on his own.

Until now no one in dispatch, the chemical plant or the receiver knew anything about the GREAT MONARCH BUTTERFLY INVASION

It has been quite some time since I've been out that far on I 40 and not sure if the migration still happens or was that a once in a life time thing...

[Twilight Flyer]

It's an annual migration, Doc. Every year, Monarchs head south to Mexico to breed, go to tea parties, and generally consort frivolously with one another. Then they come back up here and lay their eggs on milkweed plants, if they can escape getting run into by trucks.

Yellow and black butterflies everywhere, a huge cloud of them swarming across I-40 in the western part of Arizona. An invasion perhaps, an evil plot to make the Arizona desert a happier place or, just a nightmare induced by lack of sleep...

BTW, Monarchs are orange and black. The big yellow and black ones are tiger swallowtails and are loners, ie. they don't group together to migrate.

This message brought to you by Twilight Flyer, your friendly neighborhood entomologist. Missed my calling in life, I tell ya.

[Doctor Who]

BTW, Monarchs are orange and black. The big yellow and black ones are tiger swallowtails and are loners, ie. they don't group together to migrate.

Did I forget to mention that I do battle with colour blindness?

Maybe they were ORANGE but still made a HUGE mess when splattered on glass, metal and fiberglass...

[Doctor Who]

Hauling gas is not for the faint of heart...

Imagine pulling 8800 gallons of potential KA--BOOM and having a trailer tyre blow out..

With that image in mind now picture sitting along side the interstate with lots of cars and trucks whizzing by and not one local, county or highway patrol LEO. So much for Homeland Security.

Called the mechanic people and was assured help was on the way. Yeah help did arrive the tyre person lifted the wheel off the ground wrestled the blown tyre off the rim wrestled the new tyre on and could not get the tyre to set on the rim after 45 minutes of cussing, kicking and other odd movements, this person decided to use ether to fix the problem. I asked if that was such a wise idea and was told he did it all the time.
"Not with my truck you don't!!" I told him and quickly called the company mechanic back.

After about 4 hours the decision was made to use grease as an agent for setting the tyre on the rim. It worked but when the tyre dude set the compressor on the tyre grease flew everywhere.

After all that still no LEO.

It made for such a fun evening...

More to come

[beaner]

DOCTOR WHO did you hear about the truck that was hualing 35,500 lbs of explosives and put a 80' crater in the road there seen it on the news but cant find anymore on it

[yoopr]

I'll have to go look at the Trucking "Bible" but I don't think you're ALLOWED to haul 35,000 #s of Explosives.

[beaner]

was on the news to nite
page 42

[Doctor Who]

It's right here.

Another unnerving type driving job

Actually would have been better posted in the Current Events section.

[yoopr]

ok-you're right but I didn't think you could haul that much explosives at once but then again I'm not a DOT regulator.
Saw it on my Dish Network last nite on KTLA in Los Angeles-Man-that was one MASSIVE hole in the ground.