Monday, December 13, 2010
VOLVO TRUCKS
I bought an `07 Volvo VN 780 in `08. That was the biggest mistake of my life. For the full story see my website - http://www.leespage.ca/h/trucking/volvo.html
Friday, December 03, 2010
NOISY TRUCKS ARE SAFER
For those of you who read road side signs, this of course does not include lady drivers with tunnel vision who never see road side signs let alone read them, you have probably seen the signs that say, `USE OF ENGINE BRAKES ILLEGAL, CITY BYLAW #’, and wonder why you still hear those noisy trucks.
Fear not, your tax dollar that paid for the city council to debate, for hours, and even weeks, on how to word the sign, and for the crew to install the signs, have not been wasted.
Truckers do read those signs and they do comply.
Let me explain how.
You probably think that truckers run around with engine brakes turned on and when they see such signs they turn their; Jacob’s, Jake, Cummins, Mack, Pacbrake, or engine brakes off.
Actually, just the opposite is true.
A city or sign can not legally tell a trucker, or any other driver to operate a vehicle in an unsafe manner. Nothing could be more unsafe than telling a driver to turn off his brakes.
An engine brake, called Jake or Jacob’s brakes were originally manufactured by a company called Jacobs. When they were invented they were quickly adapted to be used on busses. Don’t think that every commercial bus that you see on the highway isn’t equipped with them, and I’ll tell you why
One day, foolishly, and anyone who knows me will tell you I often do foolish things, I, in accordance with a city bylaw, turned my engine brakes off. (Not Jake, as I have a Volvo motor in my big highway rig.) A car stopped, unexpectedly, in front of me. I quickly pulled my foot off the throttle (gas pedal) and slammed it down on the brake pedal. I have, without a word of a lie, one of the fastest reaction times of all drivers. (How fast can you remove your foot from a depressed position on the gas to a depressed position on the brake?)
I managed to stop without doing any damage to the car but I did bump it. If I had had my Jake brake turned on I would not have hit her at all.
The reason is, the instant you take your foot of f the throttle, the computer, if the switch is in the on position, turns the engine brake on and by the time your foot travels, only a split second, from the gas pedal to the brake pedal, and pushes the pedal, the engine brake has already reduced the speed of the truck by many miles per hour.
An exact opposite situation occurred one day when I was South bound through the s curve, where Clark Dr. becomes Victoria Dr. As I came through the last part of the curve the light ahead of me turned green and as the lane ahead of me was empty I stepped on the throttle. As I did so a car pulled out of a side street in front of me. The young lady never slowed down for the crosswalk let alone stop for the red light. She never at anytime looked to left or right.
Instantly I transferred my foot from the gas to the brake. My truck stopped with my bumper, about 1 inch from her back bumper as she sped across in front of me.
If my engine brake had not been in the on position I would have hit her in the driver’s door and she would not be alive today. (With the way she drives she may not be as this was some months ago.)
I get a laugh out of the sign on Boundary Rd. on the steep hill going down to the intersection at Marine Way, `USE ENGINE BRAKES ONLY IN THE EVENT OF AN EMERGENCY’. If it is an emergency it is much too late to be reaching around the dash looking for the switch to turn on the engine brakes. By the time you find it the emergency will be over.
People complain about the noise of the Jake brakes, but believe me the noise would be a lot louder if a truck, not using its engine brakes, was to be unable to stop and hit a truck full of fuel. The resultant explosion would be heard for miles.
So, why do you hear Jake brakes when there is a sign that says `no engine brakes allowed’?
Because professional drivers know that such signs are general placed at the top of a hill and at the bottom of a hill there is inevitably a stop sign or a red light. By using their engine brakes to hold back that heavy load down the hill they keep their main brakes cool enough to be able to stop at the bottom.
To a trucker, all those signs read, `DANGER, HILL, OR CONGESTED AREA, AHEAD. PLEASE, SAVE A LIFE, USE YOUR ENGINE BRAKES.’ Remember the child in that school bus may be yours.
However, for those of you who, like me, abhor noise pollution, peace is on its way. New trucks, for the past five or more years, have developed exhaust systems that curtail the noise of the engine, and the engine brakes. The newest rigs, including mine which is 3 years old, are so quiet, when the jakes are on, that you, standing by the road, would not know they were on.
Fear not, your tax dollar that paid for the city council to debate, for hours, and even weeks, on how to word the sign, and for the crew to install the signs, have not been wasted.
Truckers do read those signs and they do comply.
Let me explain how.
You probably think that truckers run around with engine brakes turned on and when they see such signs they turn their; Jacob’s, Jake, Cummins, Mack, Pacbrake, or engine brakes off.
Actually, just the opposite is true.
A city or sign can not legally tell a trucker, or any other driver to operate a vehicle in an unsafe manner. Nothing could be more unsafe than telling a driver to turn off his brakes.
An engine brake, called Jake or Jacob’s brakes were originally manufactured by a company called Jacobs. When they were invented they were quickly adapted to be used on busses. Don’t think that every commercial bus that you see on the highway isn’t equipped with them, and I’ll tell you why
One day, foolishly, and anyone who knows me will tell you I often do foolish things, I, in accordance with a city bylaw, turned my engine brakes off. (Not Jake, as I have a Volvo motor in my big highway rig.) A car stopped, unexpectedly, in front of me. I quickly pulled my foot off the throttle (gas pedal) and slammed it down on the brake pedal. I have, without a word of a lie, one of the fastest reaction times of all drivers. (How fast can you remove your foot from a depressed position on the gas to a depressed position on the brake?)
I managed to stop without doing any damage to the car but I did bump it. If I had had my Jake brake turned on I would not have hit her at all.
The reason is, the instant you take your foot of f the throttle, the computer, if the switch is in the on position, turns the engine brake on and by the time your foot travels, only a split second, from the gas pedal to the brake pedal, and pushes the pedal, the engine brake has already reduced the speed of the truck by many miles per hour.
An exact opposite situation occurred one day when I was South bound through the s curve, where Clark Dr. becomes Victoria Dr. As I came through the last part of the curve the light ahead of me turned green and as the lane ahead of me was empty I stepped on the throttle. As I did so a car pulled out of a side street in front of me. The young lady never slowed down for the crosswalk let alone stop for the red light. She never at anytime looked to left or right.
Instantly I transferred my foot from the gas to the brake. My truck stopped with my bumper, about 1 inch from her back bumper as she sped across in front of me.
If my engine brake had not been in the on position I would have hit her in the driver’s door and she would not be alive today. (With the way she drives she may not be as this was some months ago.)
I get a laugh out of the sign on Boundary Rd. on the steep hill going down to the intersection at Marine Way, `USE ENGINE BRAKES ONLY IN THE EVENT OF AN EMERGENCY’. If it is an emergency it is much too late to be reaching around the dash looking for the switch to turn on the engine brakes. By the time you find it the emergency will be over.
People complain about the noise of the Jake brakes, but believe me the noise would be a lot louder if a truck, not using its engine brakes, was to be unable to stop and hit a truck full of fuel. The resultant explosion would be heard for miles.
So, why do you hear Jake brakes when there is a sign that says `no engine brakes allowed’?
Because professional drivers know that such signs are general placed at the top of a hill and at the bottom of a hill there is inevitably a stop sign or a red light. By using their engine brakes to hold back that heavy load down the hill they keep their main brakes cool enough to be able to stop at the bottom.
To a trucker, all those signs read, `DANGER, HILL, OR CONGESTED AREA, AHEAD. PLEASE, SAVE A LIFE, USE YOUR ENGINE BRAKES.’ Remember the child in that school bus may be yours.
However, for those of you who, like me, abhor noise pollution, peace is on its way. New trucks, for the past five or more years, have developed exhaust systems that curtail the noise of the engine, and the engine brakes. The newest rigs, including mine which is 3 years old, are so quiet, when the jakes are on, that you, standing by the road, would not know they were on.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
DAYS OFF
I look out the window and see the wind and the raIn and I am happy that I have the day off. I could certainly use the money and I don't need the sleep, I have already been off for 4 days, but I would just as soon not be outside in this weather. And I am sure Super Natural is getting along fine without me.
I don't work when they are in studio, I think they will be out on location tomorrow, which could mean they will call me, later today, for a move tonight, so that gives me most of today to sit inside where it is warm and dry. And I do need the time to update; my BLOG, my TWITTER, and my ZAZZLE.
I have spent a lot of time over the last few days working on my PHOTOGRAPHS. I have made changes to some and added a few more on the PHOTO section of my website - `LEE'S PAGE'.
`Speak of the devil' my boss just called me to come in for a move today and work for the rest of the week. (First two days of the next episode and then they are closed for the week of (the American) thanksgiving. [In Canada we only close for 1 day (in October).] So it looks like aI might get wet after all. However with this wind the storm could have blown away by then.
The wife had agreed to go to the Dominican Republic for next week, if we could find some cheap price tickets. BUT we didn't find any really good prices and with the fear of hurricanes, (She was followIng `THOMAS' on the news) we are not going. So I will probably book in on a different show.
Now, where was I before I was so rudely interrupted?
Oh, yeah, Zazzle.
Over the last while I have been uploading my latest photo work to Zazzel but when I click on the link I only get my previous postings. All my latest postings are there if I log in but that doesn't let you see them so I have to go in and figure that out.
So I better drop this, finish brekky, and get into Zazzle.
Later - Bear
PS: Did I mention that I have finally, after all these years of chasing agents, and publishers, managed to get my novel `FERO' published? It is available on AMAZON. Be the second to post a review.
I don't work when they are in studio, I think they will be out on location tomorrow, which could mean they will call me, later today, for a move tonight, so that gives me most of today to sit inside where it is warm and dry. And I do need the time to update; my BLOG, my TWITTER, and my ZAZZLE.
I have spent a lot of time over the last few days working on my PHOTOGRAPHS. I have made changes to some and added a few more on the PHOTO section of my website - `LEE'S PAGE'.
`Speak of the devil' my boss just called me to come in for a move today and work for the rest of the week. (First two days of the next episode and then they are closed for the week of (the American) thanksgiving. [In Canada we only close for 1 day (in October).] So it looks like aI might get wet after all. However with this wind the storm could have blown away by then.
The wife had agreed to go to the Dominican Republic for next week, if we could find some cheap price tickets. BUT we didn't find any really good prices and with the fear of hurricanes, (She was followIng `THOMAS' on the news) we are not going. So I will probably book in on a different show.
Now, where was I before I was so rudely interrupted?
Oh, yeah, Zazzle.
Over the last while I have been uploading my latest photo work to Zazzel but when I click on the link I only get my previous postings. All my latest postings are there if I log in but that doesn't let you see them so I have to go in and figure that out.
So I better drop this, finish brekky, and get into Zazzle.
Later - Bear
PS: Did I mention that I have finally, after all these years of chasing agents, and publishers, managed to get my novel `FERO' published? It is available on AMAZON. Be the second to post a review.
Friday, November 12, 2010
SUPER NATURAL CAR WRECK
The light turns green. Two cars, followed by a bus, go through an intersection. A car is about to follow the bus but slams on its brakes as it is crossing the crosswalk, narrowly missing a car that has jumped a red light.
The speeding car swerves to its right and T-bones a vehicle parked too close to the intersection. Demolishing the station wagon the car pushes it up over the curb and across the sidewalk, burying a crash box.
The very expensive camera inside the crash box, now hidden by the wrecked station wagon, survives, undamaged, and has recorded its version of the event.
Other cameras; overhead, on the street, around the corner, and in the vehicles, have also recorded, successfully, a mock accident, on a mock street, in a Warner Brs. back lot, which exceeded the expectations of; director, and crew, on an episode of Supernatural.
And `no’ I didn’t get a picture of it - cameras are not allowed on set.
The speeding car swerves to its right and T-bones a vehicle parked too close to the intersection. Demolishing the station wagon the car pushes it up over the curb and across the sidewalk, burying a crash box.
The very expensive camera inside the crash box, now hidden by the wrecked station wagon, survives, undamaged, and has recorded its version of the event.
Other cameras; overhead, on the street, around the corner, and in the vehicles, have also recorded, successfully, a mock accident, on a mock street, in a Warner Brs. back lot, which exceeded the expectations of; director, and crew, on an episode of Supernatural.
And `no’ I didn’t get a picture of it - cameras are not allowed on set.
PHOTOGRAPHY
I am almost finished compiling a catalogue of 80 of my favourite photographs. The catalogue will be available for perusal at Smart Frames in the Metrotown Mall.
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