Highway thru hell

[B MACK]

I enjoy watching the heavy rescue show on The Weather Channel.   I have never been to that part of B.C. , Canada.   I can't really believe that it is that important to not close that highway,  especially for the safety of the tow truck/recovery crews.    I have never driven past a big truck accident  when they are doing the uprighting   of the truck or trailer.  The road is most always closed down during that.   And yes I know they do get nasty heavy wet snow there.  The Sierra's , Cascades and Rockies get heavy snow also. And highways in those areas sometimes get closed for weather reasons. Seems to me ,if the BC hwy dept. would close that road sometimes it could save a lot of problems.  Just the other day here in northwest Montana, both U,S, hwy's 2 & 89 were closed.  Once  I  had to hold up  at Boomtown in Verdi, Nv. because I-80 was closed over Donner pass, or I-84 along the Columbia river or I-90 over Snoquailmi  in Wa. .  I have driven in snow, I've hauled logs out of the mountains needing two sets of spike three railers and drag chains on the trailer, but that is in the woods where if shit goes bad I'm the only one involved, or to blame.   Seems to me that sometimes "closure is a good option" .   Does anybody know, is that the way it is in western B.C.  or is it made up a bit for TV? 

[other dog]

I don't know about that, but it is a good show. Seems to me to be a "real" reality show where there is no b.s. about it! The only bad thing about it is I watch it and then i'm too scared to get in the truck and get up the road!

[Maddog13407]

seems they might close the road but who knows. we rarely close I90 here in Ny when we upright a truck unless we absolutely have to and then its only a short while and usually only one lane. I remember last year when we had the surprise spring storm here we were on I90 in stages at the toll booths and u turns on stand by. we towed countless cars and tractor trailers out and it took hours to drive miles and it was a white out. had me wondering why the state just didn't close the thruway. about the only ones out there after a while were us and the jersey maggot wagons passing us like we were standing still in white out conditions. seems even the plows went home. I like highway thru hell but I know some of it has to be far fetched. I mean seriously who uses a little tow truck with a car dolly for the other set of wheels anymore when a flatbed gets you in or out or the fact that Jamie is downsizin? is he really downsizing so far that they went from a billion dollar fleet to Jamie the boss driving an old converterd IH tandem road tractor or the green single axle Ih with the Holmes 600 on it without even a hydraulic wheel lift?? I do get it equipment is money but a few seasons ago they couldn't tow a Prius out without the rotator, and they had what 8 or so Western Stars?

[Ezrider]

i can't say iv watched a lot of that show but the episodes i have seen were entertaining. many times i feel the us shuts down highways that still remain perfectly passable. there has been a couple times i re-routed on 2 lanes because the big roads were shut down had no problem getting from a-b. but of course you always have some idiot that has never seen a snowflake (or at least drives like they haven't) that will try to set out in a blizzard and cause problems for themselves and everyone else. sometimes experience can be a bad thing too. there is times ill be driving along and think to myself why am i so comfortable with this, i probably shouldn't be. complacency can get people in trouble some times as well. 

[Hobert62]

I've watched a few times and figured its tv.   They have to make it look good to keep there ratings.    My biggest problem is I want to watch the weather channel to see weather!    Seams like they keep showing less of that.   

[fjh]

3 hours ago, Maddog13407 said:

seems they might close the road but who knows. we rarely close I90 here in Ny when we upright a truck unless we absolutely have to and then its only a short while and usually only one lane. I remember last year when we had the surprise spring storm here we were on I90 in stages at the toll booths and u turns on stand by. we towed countless cars and tractor trailers out and it took hours to drive miles and it was a white out. had me wondering why the state just didn't close the thruway. about the only ones out there after a while were us and the jersey maggot wagons passing us like we were standing still in white out conditions. seems even the plows went home. I like highway thru hell but I know some of it has to be far fetched. I mean seriously who uses a little tow truck with a car dolly for the other set of wheels anymore when a flatbed gets you in or out or the fact that Jamie is downsizin? is he really downsizing so far that they went from a billion dollar fleet to Jamie the boss driving an old converterd IH tandem road tractor or the green single axle Ih with the Holmes 600 on it without even a hydraulic wheel lift?? I do get it equipment is money but a few seasons ago they couldn't tow a Prius out without the rotator, and they had what 8 or so Western Stars?

I believe that several contributing factors have caused the down size of Jamie's operation MONEY Yes . however  he was setting hims self up to do the job right he was buying the right equipment to do the job( Eyes bigger than stomach  however ) there is the competition thing to consider, the police Can't be perceived to be playing favorites   so set up right or not they have to share the work or everyone else will snivel Quiring and the others have there place on the hill as well,so set up right or not they are there!   As for new equipment U can't count on it!!  you can rest assured the job will get finished with the older equipment for the most part , With the new stuff (Not so much) Trucks equipped with DEF are quite vulnerable to the environment you get halfway to the job and the def freezes the your now compromised to finish the job So in my opinion JDavis has made  a decent move Monetarily And logically. Unfortunately He really needed the Rotator on the hill  its a shame however there are older units out there he can likely have a rotator built install on a dependable unit.

Just an opinion!

1

[Truck Shop]

                                Having worked major recovery for one repair and towing company and owning my own towing recovery truck---I haven't watched very much of that show.

                                The show is built around major drama and silliness. There are times when rotator trucks can be used but most major wrecks are totals. So throw some 

                                 chokers on it and winch it up the hill and load the scrap on a low bed and get it over with. And I had seen several incidents where it would take only

                                 one recovery rig to get the job done-but it pays better with two or three. That's called spiking the job. And insurance companies most of the time write

                                 off the load because of liability.         Plus I use to run that road in the winter in my own rig on trips to Kamloops, BC. And Lolo pass on hwy 12 from

                                 Lewiston Id to Missoula  Mt is way worse in my book-you better be on your A game.

 

                                   Truck Shop

 

                                

 

                                 Truck Shop

Edited January 7, 2018 by Truck Shop

[fjh]

DRAMA yup agree with that!  silliness  Yup agree with that too!  But also when it gets too bad on the road ,the gates come down and guess what ! Closure is the the option! they wouldn't have the show with out the drama!

Edited January 7, 2018 by fjh

[HeavyGunner]

4 hours ago, Truck Shop said:

                                Having worked major recovery for one repair and towing company and owning my own towing recovery truck---I haven't watched very much of that show.

                                The show is built around major drama and silliness. There are times when rotator trucks can be used but most major wrecks are totals. So throw some 

                                 chokers on it and winch it up the hill and load the scrap on a low bed and get it over with. And I had seen several incidents where it would take only

                                 one recovery rig to get the job done-but it pays better with two or three. That's called spiking the job. And insurance companies most of the time write

                                 off the load because of liability.         Plus I use to run that road in the winter in my own rig on trips to Kamloops, BC. And Lolo pass on hwy 12 from

                                 Lewiston Id to Missoula  Mt is way worse in my book-you better be on your A game.

 

                                   Truck Shop

 

                                

 

                                 Truck Shop

Most shows are very over dramatic, I've got a family member who once told me after watching one of the logging "reality" shows "If logging was that damned dramatic I'd of quit years ago". Ive been across Lolo pass a number of times and it can cerianly keep you on your toes, so can that little stretch that goes to Grangeville.  As long as you use good judgment, throw chains on when you should and don't drive too fast with the exception of other drivers (you can't control that factor) there aren't too many times that you can't go safely down the road. Oh and blinding blizzards and freezing fog are a couple more reasons maybe a driver should stay put. 

[Truck Shop]

1 hour ago, HeavyGunner said:

Most shows are very over dramatic, I've got a family member who once told me after watching one of the logging "reality" shows "If logging was that damned dramatic I'd of quit years ago". Ive been across Lolo pass a number of times and it can cerianly keep you on your toes, so can that little stretch that goes to Grangeville.  As long as you use good judgment, throw chains on when you should and don't drive too fast with the exception of other drivers (you can't control that factor) there aren't too many times that you can't go safely down the road. Oh and blinding blizzards and freezing fog are a couple more reasons maybe a driver should stay put. 

  

That little stretch into Grangeville is called White Bird, remember my first trip down that in 78.

 

Truck Shop

[carlotpilot]

1 hour ago, Truck Shop said:

  

That little stretch into Grangeville is called White Bird, remember my first trip down that in 78.

 

Truck Shop

had a little run in with white bird my self  about the same year you did

[ws721]

My 8 yr old Son watches that show. Its his favorite show.  I like Jamie Davis & some of his crew. However, if I were up there and needed help you bet id be calling Al Quirring. From an O/O standpoint he seems much more reasonable.

[BC Mack]

I live in that region and what you see on TV of a bad day on 'the coke' is truly bad for driving, mother nature at her worse in bad terrain.... the highway is a major route of commerce now that Vancouver has become a hub port, unfortunately while there are many qualified professional senior drivers the race to the bottom for price has put lesser skilled steering wheel holders in charge of 140,000lb super B's, you know, the ones with flip flops and wraparound stetsons, and the show is very careful so as not to accent them.

the alternate routes in bad weather are mostly two lane highways resembling in places mere goat tracks, the Coquihalla highway had its pundits when built in the early 80's, it was built in a well known bad snow region but it went ahead anyway. Truckers avoided it when new, there was a toll and one really steep hill that wore out brake linings, they preferred the old flatter winding route on Hwy 1....

all in all the TV show is one of the better presentations of "reality", what you see of the stars is pretty much what they are, Jamie can be a dickhead, his brother is far smarter and Al can tow me anytime, the business of towing doesn't attract those with academic backgrounds as it takes a different type of smarts to do that work....

I remember they also had a TV show about another towing operation, on the Donner Pass IIRC... but as B Mack stated, the Snoqualmie can be a bad place too... 

BC Mack

 

[carlotpilot]

used to know a guy in the tow-repair bus whose motto was   stick`em hard and deep the first time  they may not come back  most did not` he lasted about 2 yrs.

[B MACK]

That "new" breed driver is every where any more. All they know is go fast.  They really crack me up when I see, I mean when I hear them starting out empty,,, They mash on it and shift as fast as they can , hitting every single gear.    I've done this since the early 80's,  I don't like to shift anymore. I skip gears when I can..       And we turn these "drivers" loose with 80,000 to 140,000 lbs.    That's what scares me.  The other guy..

[mackey58]

Never had to use chains except  on a front wheel drive  car in California in Donner pass once. I would have thought that if chain control is in effect  and you don't chain up the dot would tell you to park it or chain it.am I wrong  just wondering

[mackey58]

Lol " new breed" swest pants black socks sandals  either driving fast or poking  along texting  updating  there Facebook page or following directions from there navigation system. Maybe a dedicated nav  system  for a truck is good.I can't watch a screen and look at the idiots  trying  to cut me off for that extra  5 foot of lane for there suv

[mackey58]

Bc mack where is that bottom  pic of those mountain s

[BC Mack]

4 hours ago, mackey58 said:

Bc mack where is that bottom  pic of those mountain s

I put that there to show our regional topography, that's Mt Robson, a bit east of the coke, all I had for big mountains in my personal photo files..

you've gotta come west to see real hills..!!!!

BC Mack

[mackey58]

He'll yeah I thought the syskious on the ca -oregon border were  tall man

[HeavyGunner]

8 hours ago, mackey58 said:

Never had to use chains except  on a front wheel drive  car in California in Donner pass once. I would have thought that if chain control is in effect  and you don't chain up the dot would tell you to park it or chain it.am I wrong  just wondering

I’m thinking you’d be shut down and fined if caught disobeying the chain lay. I would suspect they take it seriously and would venture to guess you’d get your license revoked for a short while. On the other hand we’ve been chaining up nearly every day here since all the snow dumped here in a week. Plows couldn’t keep up so now many of the secondary roads we have to use that have big hills are ice and chains are a must to make it. I went into Warrick last week and needed chains to get in and get out. It’s some really steep winding roads that are only 1.5 lanes wide. Lots of 10-20mph driving though that stuff. I’ve found it’s easier to put chains on when you choose (on flat ground) rather than chain up when you’re in a pinch. Spinning chains on or chaining up after spinning out on a hill is no fun at all. 

[other dog]

2 hours ago, HeavyGunner said:

I’m thinking you’d be shut down and fined if caught disobeying the chain lay. I would suspect they take it seriously and would venture to guess you’d get your license revoked for a short while. On the other hand we’ve been chaining up nearly every day here since all the snow dumped here in a week. Plows couldn’t keep up so now many of the secondary roads we have to use that have big hills are ice and chains are a must to make it. I went into Warrick last week and needed chains to get in and get out. It’s some really steep winding roads that are only 1.5 lanes wide. Lots of 10-20mph driving though that stuff. I’ve found it’s easier to put chains on when you choose (on flat ground) rather than chain up when you’re in a pinch. Spinning chains on or chaining up after spinning out on a hill is no fun at all. 

I was one set of chains short of the minimum required in Washington once, and the nice gentleman at the port of entry told me that if the DOT were to check me and found I was one short, the fine would be "pretty substantial".

[mackey58]

Oh I bet it would be 

[other dog]

5 hours ago, BC Mack said:

I put that there to show our regional topography, that's Mt Robson, a bit east of the coke, all I had for big mountains in my personal photo files..

you've gotta come west to see real hills..!!!!

BC Mack

That's a beautiful picture, I had that picture as my screen saver for a long time.

[Truck Shop]

18 minutes ago, other dog said:

I was one set of chains short of the minimum required in Washington once, and the nice gentleman at the port of entry told me that if the DOT were to check me and found I was one short, the fine would be "pretty substantial".

                               The fine for not chaining is basically reckless driving which will net you a $275.00 ticket. Not enough chains is $200.00. Running a chain up sign in Washington or Oregon

                               is a great way to bring the DOT your way.

 

                                Truck Shop