Stories From the Road: What Darkness Lurks in the Heart of Droopy?

[Droopy]

I've told you guys about the time I got arrested down in Georgia for basically being a drunken fool. I've told you about my mental illness numerous times. But I have a secret that I'm deeply ashamed of, even more so than the drunken fool incident. It goes to the heart of my pride in being a reliable, safe truck driver. It's time for an episode of truck cab confessional.

It was January of 1999. I owned my own rig at the time, including the trailer, and I was leased to an expediter outfit headquartered in the Detroit area. I hauled emergency automotive freight for the big three. My operating area was the midwest and the northeast as well as Quebec and Ontario up in Canada. The freight rate was excellent, but the loads weren't consistent and I ended up sitting a lot. I was up near Port Huron, Michigan where I had been sitting for about 24 hours, empty and waiting for a load. I had just gotten up and I could see that there had been a big snow while I was asleep. My beeper went off and it was dispatch's number.

They offered me a load going from Flint, Michigan over to Elgin, Illinois. It was sort of a long haul for that company and I wasn't offered too many of them. So I took it, despite the snow covered roads and my empty trailer.

I had been driving for two years at that point and I remember what they told me in orientation for my first trucking gig. They said that they usually didn't see too many bad accidents from rookie drivers. They happened, but they were more likely to back into another vehicle or cut a corner too sharp and flatten a stop sign. They said that they saw more severe accidents from drivers who had been driving for about 2 years. We're talking roll-overs and jack-knifes. The reason? They said that rookies tend to be more scared and paranoid about driving a big rig than experienced drivers. Since they are always on edge, they don't take anything for granted. Now the two-year driver, he has made it through a couple of winters and has driven all over the country in all kinds of weather conditions. That's good, right? Well, according to the instructors, the two-year driver might get a little cocky and take more chances- especially in bad weather.

So I hopped up on I-96. The roads looked like they were in typical condition for snow-packed roads. I figured I could run at about 45 mph. I'd done it lots of times, even with an empty trailer. So I'm cruising down the road. I'd say I was about 2 miles from the truck stop I'd been staying at and I was coming up on an overpass. Right as I was underneath the overpass, the truck spun out to the right. It happened so quickly that I didn't even have time to try to control the vehicle. The cab swung around and nailed my trailer. I then was pointed the opposite direction and slid off the road into the ditch on the right hand side.

The cops were there surprisingly quick. The ass end of my trailer was still on the road blocking the right lane. A snow plow came along and pulled it completely off the road so traffic could get by safely. Then a tow truck showed up and righted my truck which was still running, amazingly. As I sat in the cop car, the officer asked how fast I was going. I told him the truth. He said something along the lines of, "Jesus, those guys can barely walk on that road out there and you think you can do 45 mph on it?" I told him I had wrecked because my trailer was empty. He told me that if I would have had a load I would have flipped over instead of sliding off the road. Those roads were ice covered, not snow covered.

I was cited for driving too fast for road conditions causing an accident.

After the cop was done with me, I hopped into my wrecked truck. There was a rest area about 2 miles down the road and the cop followed me to it. I went in and parked my truck. I called dispatch and informed them that I could no longer take that Elgin load. I felt like a lost little boy and my next phone call was to my mother. She told me to come home and I did.

The truck had $10,000 worth of damage done to it. The trailer was just scuffed from where my truck had hit it. It looked bad, but there was no damage to the trailer aside from cosmetics.

I am fortunate on two counts. I did not get hurt and I did not hurt anyone else. I seriously considered giving up trucking while my truck was in the shop. But, like the fool that I am, I hopped back into that truck. It's been ten years and I haven't had an accident since then.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

1. My dear Droopy...

Well, that was some story! Don't you hate it when you exactly fit the "typical" model for your age group?

Well told! I could just feel that damn truck sliding out from under...:scared:

I'm glad you weren't hurt, nor anyone else, and that the only damage was cosmetic...

You did sustain some damage to your psyche, but there was no way to avoid that, considering what happened...

Thanks for sharing, sweetie!

:hug:

[Droopy]

2. Thanks, Peggy

There's not a whole lot that's typical about me, but on that day I guess there was. Typical cocky whippersnapper. :D

[Droopy]

3. kick

[LeftyFingerPop]

4. Droopy, I'm not sure if you are, or if you plan on writing a book...

but you really should.

You are such an outstanding writer. There is something about your style that conveys a sense of honesty that pulls me into your stories.

This sounds like quite a hairy experience, and I'm sorry you had to go through it.

[Droopy]

5. I'm going to put all of the stories together one day and do just that

I didn't have that intention when I first started writing these, but as the stories began to pile up, I started thinking about what I'd like to do with them besides entertain myself and my fellow DUers. I've saved them all to my computer and I have 32 of them and nearly 25,000 words total.

I contacted the admin the other day to ask them about DU and copyright since all of these stories have appeared on DU, and they said I was cool, the stories are 100% mine. So, yeah, one day I'm going to have something to pass on to my friends and family.

[Dystopian]

6. You are a great writer...

I had a poem published many years ago, and have three copies of the book, one for each of my children.
The heartwarming part about your story was that you called your mother. No matter how old, calling one's mother brings that security...And of course, glad that you were okay...

Within the story...much to be said about your character, also...

Keep writing, we're here..:hug:

peace~

[Droopy]

9. Thank you very much

:hug:

[Tangerine LaBamba]

15. Not bad.........

With 25K words, you've got about one-quarter of a medium-sized book - that's a bit under 300 pages.

I'm in the writing business, and one of the most important qualities (in my opinion) is for a writer to be able to convey to his reader the sense that he, the writer, was having fun as he told the story. Doesn't matter if it's a happy or sad story - just that the reader is able to glean the utter joy the writer took in writing it.

You've got that attribute. Now, quit being ten feet tall and bulletproof and be careful..................

[Droopy]

16. Thanks

Yeah, I heard from a writing instructor I used to have that fiction novelists should shoot for 100,000 words for their novels. I assume the it's same for non-fiction.

Yes, I do enjoy writing these stories and I think it's because I have an immediate audience here at DU. They aren't as fun to write if no one is going to see them for a while.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

17. That's what separates

the amateurs from the pros.

Again, just my opinion, but the people who are truly driven to write are the ones who put the words to paper without any thought given to whether or not anyone will ever see them. Once you start considering - or needing - an audience, you've collapsed some of the walls that keep you safe.

I once asked my agent - as we were speeding down a highway in Westchester, trying to get me to my flight on time, top down, each of us with a beer - why I wrote.

She answered immediately. "To ease your pain," she said. And I write funny stuff.

She was right.

It's a hard calling when you do it just because you are compelled to do it. I'm glad you're able to sustain yourself with the reaction you get here. Sounds like you've nailed it.

Good luck.

[Droopy]

18. Well, I'm a trucker and I will probably always be a trucker

I've been reading about Stephen King, who is my favorite fiction writer, and he says that you should write at least 2000 words a day every day if you want to have a shot at writing for a living. I simply do not have that kind of talent and I probably don't have the time, either.

When I have enough of these stories together to make into a book I will see about shopping them around, but what will probably end up happening is that I will self-publish them and give copies to my friends and family.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

19. Don't listen to King,

don't believe him. You write according to your own urges, not anyone else's. That's nonsense - just because he can write 2000 words a day doesn't mean they're 2000 words worth reading (and I loved his early stuff, "Salem's Lot," for instance, but, his later stuff has been crap, in my opinion - the guy never had a thought he doesn't put on paper). It's not "talent" to put 2000 words on paper - it's just a kind of self-involved discipline.

The trick is to write GOOD words, not voluminous ones. You have your rhythm, you do it because it pleases you and it's fun, and you are the one who decides how to work.

You may be right about self-publishing, since it's gotten just about impossible to break into the world of publishing. Sounds like you've got a nice grip on that particular reality. But, who knows what might happen? I had my first novel published - after never taking a writing course, let alone even reading a book about writing - when an agent fell in love with a story I'd written just to relax at the end of some long days working as a lawyer. So, see? Strange things can and do happen.

But, as to that King idea - don't listen to him. Don't listen to anyone - you know your work habits best, and you've got a fine talent that doesn't need to be fussed with. Don't listen to anyone, including me.

Best of luck to you, and thanks again for a sweet read.

[littlebit]

7. Damn Droopy

I bet you slow it down in bad weather now don't you?

[Droopy]

8. Hahahahaha!

Yeah, buddy. When that snow and ice hit the pavement you won't find me in any hurry now days. My main deal now is running up and down I-75 in Ohio and I see all kinds of truck crashes in the winter. I hate to see them, but it does help keep me from driving foolishly.

[Droopy]

10. I should note an error

It was I-69 that I had the accident on, not I-96. It's too late for me to edit now.

[Lethe]

11. cool!

i'd be interested in hearing your stories. Truck drivers are salt of the earth types, but we rarely hear anything about them in fiction.

[Droopy]

12. Just do a search for "Stories From the Road" if you'd like to read more

I have posted 32 stories or so in the lounge over the last few years. These stories are non-fiction.

[Richard Steele]

13. Thanks for sharing that story, Droopy.

I come from a long line of OTR drivers;
Dick Steele Sr. is still hauling lumber
down the East Coast, and hauling whatever
he can get back up it.

I'm kinda a 'punkass wannabe' in my family- I only have a Class "B" CDL,
and that's just a leftover relic from one of my past lives,
when I did power-line construction back in the early '90s.


I never had an accident with any of the large vehicles.
Not because I was a great driver, but for the reason you mentioned:
I was never completely comfortable in that big seat, so I was
CAREFUL to the point of paranoia every time I rolled out of the yard
in one of the big trucks.

I did my share of damage to those Suburbans we ran back then,
oh yes I did...but I NEVER so much as scraped a fender on one
of the Line Trucks.

Because I drove those Suburbans like a typical 25-year-old,
but I drove the Line Trucks like an old lady.

[Droopy]

14. You're welcome

Thanks for reading. :) I sometimes wish that I hadn't gotten my CDL and had taken up a different trade. But I do have these stories to show for my adventures as a trucker and that goes a little ways to making it ok.