BIG mistake, but got a good dumb driver pic.

[jon f mn]

Got this pic today and had to contemplate the call this towtruck driver made to his boss trying to explain how his truck got in the ditch on the wrong side of the road. Mighta went something like this. "uhm, ah, hello? Boss? Uhm, I ah, sorta like went in the ditch. Ah, uhm, well see, this here old lady in a wheelchair came right out in front of me and like I didn't want to run her over so I took the ditch instead. Saved her life too, but she just took off and didn't even thank me er nuttin". LOL.

Now I know your askin yourself, "Jon, Dude, what ya doin with your big truck on such a goat path?" Well see, it's like this see, I got up this morning. Yep, that's it, all I need to do to get in a bind is get up in the morning. LOL. What actually happened was about 1 mile after I hit the road I started daydreaming and instead of going north on I57 from Effingham Il. I went east on I70. I didn't even notice my first mistake til I saw the sign welcoming me to In. and I thought "Hey, 57 doesn't cross into In". So I get out my trusty, laminated, professional driver Rand McNally and check out my options. And there it is, In. state hywy 75, a nearly straight shot north to Frankfort In. What it doesn't show on my no longer "trusty" Rand McNally is that state rd 75 in In. is a goat path with narrow lanes, no shoulders and a couple dozen 15 mph corners and is not on In. priority list for snowplowing. That little mistake probly cost me 2 hours for about 40 miles. LOL Oh well, such is the life of a PROfessional truck driver. Guess I'll just hit the road again and hope the rest of the day is not as bad.

 

[Adirondack case guy]

Well, at least his truck has a winch to pull himself out. HeHe.
Loren

 

[rrlund]

Coulda been worse. We've both been on those roads in the Appalachians that make that one look like the Ohio turnpike haven't we? lol

 

[Bob Bancroft]

So what happened? Did the snow plow pull him out?
Reminds me of once, on a road with similar conditions, I was in unfamiliar territory picking up a tractor on a roll back. Came upon a right angle bend in the road I couldn't quite negotiate. Ended up in the ditch, not bad, but truck was helpless. I wasn't so bad but what I was able to off load the tractor. But it was a little tractor, and on the packed snow, I still couldn't get the truck out alone. I was able to drive the tractor back to a neighboring farm, the boss had told me about, and "borrowed" a bigger tractor. Ford 8000 I think it was. Must have cranked that thing for five minutes before it finally fired off! I don't remember exactly how I got the truck out, but I did. Sure seemed like it took me a long time to get back to the shop that day, but no one else seemed to notice!

 

[jon f mn]

Don't know, I left, but it looked like that was what they were going to do.

 

[jon f mn]

This WAS like that. That's why I was surprised, didn't expect that in In. Those 15 mph corners my truck took the whole road. It is a truck route but there is no way it is safe for semis.

 

[Spook]

A long story short, I had a geo metro that slid into a ditch early one morning. Tow truck driver came out hooked up my geo, stood beside his truck, hit the winch lever. His truck went sideways into the ditch. 2nd tow truck driver came out, wouldn't pull him out until he pulled mine out. Really made the 1st guy howl!!

 

[retired farmer]

Too much vacation time will do that to a person, pretty soon you can't remember where you are.

 

[Anonymous-0]

you"d be suprised how many do that on both sides of Effingham on the 70/57 exits

 

[massey333]

You needed to drive old US68 in KY.,5 mph was too fast on some of those curves.(Turns)

 

[Anonymous-0]

Reminds me of a true story the owner of a small trucking co. told. They were coming out of Minn. into Iowa and stopped for a break. The owner went to the truck first and crawled up into the sleeper. The driver came out a little later and took off. About 20 minutes later the owner said he heard the driver say, "----" , welcome to Minn. You had to know the driver to really appreciate the story, but still funny.

 

[jon f mn]

Did that in AR one time. Was one of those gray fall days and no sun or anything. I stopped for a bit and got in the truck and took off. Never realised I was going south rather than north til I hit the freeway I left about 40 minutes earlier. Got a gps the next day. lol

 

[jon f mn]

Your right, but I expect that in those states. Never expected it in In where it's all flat.

 

[waltdavies]

Blowed to pic up and he is wrapped around the power pole. No doubt hung over the anchor cable. He's got trouble. Needs to call the power company and then get another truck to pull him back on the raid hoping all is right under the truck for driving it.
Walt

 

[ShadetreeRet]

Gimme 40 acres and I'll turn this truck around!

 

[JayinNY]

I don't think so, that poles in the background. The wire isent touching the truck, the anchor wire I mean.

 

[john in la]

We were going up 81 threw Va to visit my son in Md.
Got tired so let the wife drive while I catch a nap in the back seat. Tell her the GPS is on but all you have to do is stay on I 81.

After a couple of hours she stops on side of road and wakes me up.
Says something is wrong with the GPS. It keeps telling me to get off the exit.
After getting my bearing from just wakening up I realize we are about 40 miles east of I81 on I64.

She had gotten off 81 on to 64 east and the GPS was telling her to get off the exit so she could turn around and get back on 81.
If not for the GPS we would have been in Richmond before she realized we were on the wrong road.

 

[T in NE]

Pull your atlas out and bring up Ohio. East of Fort Wayne, there is a highway that is highlighted as a truck route, think it runs into Kalida. I took it one day. It's paved about a half lane wide, with broad grass shoulders. Glad it wasn't winter. And it was a straight shot into Kalida.

You'd have been better off taking 231 up through Crawfordsville to 28 if Frankfort was your destination. That's a good road. Used to run all over from route 28 north, and 65 east, delivering to wally's-mart stores.
if you need to take 31 north out of Indy sometime, keep it 5 under the speed limit and let me know what happens when you come to the lights.

 

[MT RON]

Sounds to me like 2 dumb drivers met right there.

 

[Traditional Farmer]

Goat path? Thats an Interstate in central PA.

 

[Traditional Farmer]

In her defense thats a pretty easy mistake to make at that exit if you're not familar with it.

 

[T in NE]

One thing I noticed, no one's mentioned the cross road just past the stuck truck. He probably made a right turn off it, and when the steers started sliding locked up the brakes, sliding right into the snowbank.
Or, someone made a left turn in front of hiim and he ended up there avoiding helping someone commit "suicide by big truck".

 

[Back Forty Bob.]

I haul frac sand to gas wells, it is a mandatory practice that
at least every mile to call out location and direction over radio.
This is so that one truck can find a wide spot to let the orher truck by. It is not uncommon to take the whole road from ditch to ditch. This is with a 270inch pete with a 42ft trailer. Some of the places we go to they pull you up the hill with a dozer.