As Bob slammed on the brakes about halfway toward the spot I had identified, the look on his face indicated that my confidence was no longer warranted – not even a little bit.
“This is a big truck,” said Bob, clearly annoyed. “I couldn’t event get one of our regular trucks in there.”
At this point, the truck was past the point of no return – backing up was the only option. Bob jumped out of the truck to survey my fiasco and then motioned me to come around.
“OK,” he said. “I’m going to back up and get parallel to that truck over there. You get behind me and make sure I don’t run into him or the fence. If I get close, make sure you let me know…can you do that?”
Bob did a masterful job overcoming my rookie mistake and backing the truck into the specific spot he was looking for. And I did a terrible job indicating how close the back of the truck was to other stationary objects. In the end, Bob took me aside and showed me how to properly indicate how much space is left at the back of the truck so the driver can see you in the rear-view mirrors and step on the brake in time to avoid an accident.
A tractor-trailer is a massive object. Perhaps you’ve gathered this by now, but calculating the swing of the truck and the trailer around corners, keeping the tires and fenders away from tall curbs and generally planning your exit from wherever you park is something that comes with a lot of experience.
Clearly, the same concerns apply to parking near a customer’s house and why information regarding potential shuttles is so important to discover before the driver ever shows up.
Tomorrow, we’re loading our customer’s shipment onto a shuttle truck to deliver it on Wednesday to residence – more to come!
On the Road with A.J. is a blog series written by Executive Vice President of Wheaton World Wide Moving, A.J. Schneider as he travels across the country with truck driver Bob Krumpols of Preferred Movers of Nashville, Tenn. He will be experiencing life on the road while assisting with everyday interstate moves. Follow A.J.’s journey on the Wheaton World Wide Moving blog, Facebook page and Twitter page.
