Bull haulers’ fifth annual reunion and hog roast

Photo: The bull hauler reunion had plenty of OOIDA members. Left to right, they are L.B. Blanchard, John Snyder, Glenn Hensley, Bryan Treible, Joel Snyder, Ed Snyder, Woody Everly, Tom Snyder, Mike Metzger and Bob Martin.Timing is everything. I was going to start out with “A little rain couldn’t dampen the spirits of this group” true, but I think that line has been pretty well used up.Anyway, I

In Atlanta, the fox guards the henhouse

Who’s guarding the henhouse in Georgia? Evidently, it’s a hungry fox.The people of Atlanta were assured years ago that tolls would be removed from the Georgia 400 once the bonds used to build the roadway were paid off.But the State Road and Tollway Authority voted on Friday, Sept. 24, to keep the tolls in place for an additional 20 years past the original sunset date in June 2011.Why would they

And you thought all the good ideas were taken

About this texting and driving thing – I’ll let the lawyers and lawmakers slug it out, but I would just like to suggest a penalty for anyone convicted of causing injury or worse while texting and driving, assuming they ban it. Personally, I would just as soon meet another driver who was too drunk to fish as one that was texting.Although I've never texted, it’s like Yogi Berra said, “You can

Part 4: Know your governors

The primary season draws to a close this week as states across the nation are finalizing their fall ballots. In the weeks ahead candidates will be ramping up their messages to likely voters in their pursuit of Election Day validation.In the lead-up to Nov. 2 it is worthwhile to take a look back at some noteworthy actions taken by governors who are once again vying for the spot atop their state

CA legislator: Can you hear me now?

One California Air Resources Board critic may have gotten some job protection – albeit temporary – from several state assembly members.California state Assemblyman Dan Logue, R-Marysville, and 20 other Republican lawmakers signed on to a letter to UCLA’s chancellor, asking Gene Block to “assure proper procedures have been followed by UCLA regarding the dismissal of Dr. Enstrom.”As Land Line has

Dodge downtime: Get a flu shot

You’ve probably heard the joke about the guy stranded on his roof by a flood who prays for God to rescue him. A fellow in a rowboat comes along, but the man sends him away, saying, “I have faith in the Lord; the Lord will save me.” He rows off, and later a speedboat comes by. The man on the roof again refuses, with the same words. Finally, a Coast Guard chopper flies over and gets ready to hoist

Where were you on September 11, 2001?

My only visit to the World Trade Center was June 10, 2001. It was a Sunday, and I dropped a trailer at the Cirque De Soleil site at Liberty National Monument Park in Jersey City, NJ, that morning. Then I stayed over until Monday and picked up a loaded trailer for the Cirque going to Chicago.It was a day off with a great site seeing opportunity, so I took a water taxi over to Manhattan. From there

Part 3: Know your governors

With the calendar flipping to September we are nearing the home stretch for the November election. For the next two months we will hear, see or read so many political ads we’ll be able to recite most of the messages.In some instances, candidates for various offices on your ballot will be complete unknowns. Others you will be quite familiar with.Maryland and Oregon voters are certainly familiar

How is it bad to save a buck?

This is some pretty simple math, but let me walk you through it.Let’s say that you buy a truck for $140,000. If you got a 10 percent savings on that, you’d keep $14,000.OOIDA and a number of other groups have proposed to provide a 10 percent credit on the purchase of new trucks meeting 2010 engine standards for anyone – individuals.Right now, this is just a proposal, so the details aren’t nailed

A powerful solution to the plastic jug?

In a Land Line magazine column I wrote in November 2005, I remarked on efforts to create a small urine-powered battery. In that column, my friend and ace gearjammer Rufus Sideswipe was quoted as follows:That is thinking way too small, says Rufus. “This battery idea could solve two of trucking’s most persistent problems – idling and piddling into those infamous jugs (or onto parking lots, the