Dave brings to you 38 years of valuable experience in transportation, management, business and compliance. Dave has driven in every condition across North America and overseas as military, police, company driver to owner operator to now Publisher Editor of Canadian Trucking Magazine.
Here we go making records for the Worlds Largest Convoy for the Special Olympics! On September 15th if you are in Winnipeg or Paris ON there is a Convoy somewhere close to you. You could break world records, help and have a good day. Inspired by the powerful impact Special Olympics has had on his life through his participation in the Law Enforcement Torch Run, and combined with his family's involvement with the trucking industry, Norm Schneiderhan, a Corporal with the Orange County (Florida) Sheriff's Department, founded the World's Largest Truck Convoy in 2001. The Truck Convoy originally began as a local fundraiser for Special Olympics Florida, but has grown into a national movement with participation from over 37 states and provinces over the years. The Manitoba convoy event will take place this year on Saturday, September 15, 2012. Participants will
depart from Oak Bluff at 11am and will travel counterclockwise around the Perimeter Highway (Hwy#101). Upon their return to Oak Bluff, the participants will be welcomed by Special Olympics athletes, family, friends, colleagues and law enforcement personnel for lunch. A short program including Special Olympics athletes will follow. In 2011, our Manitoba convoy involved 114 trucks - a Canadian record! Let's do it again in 2012! Our goal this year is to make the convoy the LARGEST in North America and we can’t do it without your help so, please consider taking part in the 2012 Largest Truck Convoy and help us reach our goal. continued on page 4
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Well folks, Fergus is done for another year and on to the 4 more trucking events across Canada. My report on Fergus is actually a great one! Although negative people were saying this is not like 5 years ago! I took a walk around all the trucks and campers that were there. And it was a long hot walk. What I found was HUNDREDS of truckers with thier families and pets camping at Fergus and having a blast. Tell me where else in Canada do we have a truck show with as many of us getting together, camping there and having 3 days of fun, tenting, BBQs and wobbly pops. Is Fergus as big as it was 5 years ago, not hardly, but who in trucking is. It is us my friends that can bring greatness back to shows like Fergus by our attendance and support. The vendors need to support the shows and we need to support them. Venders like CTM, LOL, had to toss that in. Below is a shot of Keith, Crystal and I at my booth. These Directors of the show like the dozens of thier staff are all volunteers working tirelessly before and after the show to make this happen for us.
As we pack up and head home to rest, they clean up the mess and start organizing for next year. My hat really goes off to these volunteers! I have to give big thanks to thesource.ca for the great prizes I had to give away at the CTM booth again this year. If you did not win something at Fergus, drop by and see me at Truxpo or Dryden for another chance to win. For great pictures at Fergus and more stories, go to our Face Book Page, like the page and have a chance for a gift card from the Source. Watch for the special prices the source has each month in CTM for you. Order on line and have it delivered to your home, terminal or fav truck stop.
Congrats to Bill Anderson know to most as Grumpy! Winner of the Fergus Truck Show BFG! Grumpy an avid reader of CTM has been entering this draw for 4 years and this year takes home the Grand Prize. That shows determination. Now with his Moron Masher on he feels the difference going down the road worry free!
You all be safe out there, I would rather hear from you than about you!
HAPPY TRAILS........ Dave
Pictur of the
red here left to right is Marc (BFG), Grumpy (CTM winner e BFG with his truck) Peter (TransX) Dave (CTM).
CBP Makes Cocaine Bust
On August 8, 2012, a Winnipeg, Manitoba man, Dorion Larry Ozykowski, 67, received a three-year prison sentence following a smuggling incident at the port of Sprague in December 2011. On December 20, 2011, the Ontario resident arrived at the port of Sprague , transiting to Winnipeg . When asked by CBSA officers if he had any firearms, Ozykowski declared that he had none. Officers began a secondary examination of his vehicle, where they discovered a prohibited 9mm handgun and a prohibited magazine clip, along with ammunition. On August 7, 2012 in Winnipeg Provincial Court , Ozykowski pled guilty to one Criminal Code offence and one Customs Act offence. The CBSA reminds all travellers that they are required to answer all questions truthfully and declare all goods, including firearms and weapons, in their possession. Failure to declare goods (including firearms) and other Customs Act contraventions may lead to prosecution in a court of law. Recently in Sarnia, a Brampton trucker, Antarpal Singh was convicted Wednesday of importing $6 million worth of cocaine across the U.S./Canada border. Following a eight-day trial, Justice Joseph Donohue said he was satisfied beyond a reasonable doubt that Singh, 29, was guilty of possessing cocaine and possessing it for the purpose of trafficking on Dec. 4, 2009, at the Blue Water Bridge . He posted a $20,000 cash bail and additional money has been pledged by Singh and two family members. The maximum sentence is life in prison, but three truckers convicted of similar offences in the past three years received sentences of seven and eight years in prison. Donohue said he was satisfied Singh knew the 50 kilograms of cocaine was in the truck he drove across the Blue Water Bridge from Michigan into Canada. An X-ray scan of the truck’s trailer indicated two boxes filled with one-kilogram bricks of cocaine were different from the rest of the cargo -- cartons of video-game accessories.
By: Dawn Truell, President, Cross Border Services
Singh took far too long for a standard shipment from Michigan into Canada, over four hours for 120 kilometer trip, indicator! In his testimony, Singh said he spent hours at a truck stop outside Port Huron , Michigan awaiting customs clearance. His lawyer suggested Singh was an innocent dupe of those who loaded the cocaine at the truck stop or warehouse. There was a strong financial motive for Singh’s involvement, as indicated by a past court case in which a courier was paid $28,000 to smuggle 120 kilograms of cocaine into Canada. Singh had bought a $427,000 home while supporting a wife, child and his parents, hmm. A numbered metal seal on the trailer was the critically important evidence which determined Singh’s fate. The numbers from the seal put on the trailer by a warehouse worker did not match the numbers on the seal found in the trailer after
Singh had removed it to allow the cargo inspection by a CBSA officer, they always verify! Singh testified he threw the seal on the ground, although he knew it was important. Singh faces possible life in prison, drug smuggling is not worth it!
For further information please contact Dawn Truell, President, Cross Border Services, at: www.crossborderservices.org, crossborderservices@cogeco.net.
Note from Dave here, if you see suspicious activity, persons asking you for a ride acrosss the border in your truck, a loose lipped driver talking about smuggling loads of drugs or weapons, do us all a favour and contact authorities. Try to get as much information as possible without becoming involved and shut these bad guys down!
SIZE MATTERS
By Sandy Long
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Have you ever seen those 20-30+ axle double and triple trailer rigs carrying some huge piece of machinery going down the road? They are awesome aren’t they. I saw a really long beam running along the road once that had an extra driver on the rear of the rig to navigate the tail around curves. Those sights are fun to see but don’t come along often. More commonly seen are over dimension loads of machinery, beams, pipe and double wide halves that may be only 100’ long or so and perhaps 12-16‘ wide. Over dimension drivers are a hardy breed. They often have to have escorts, special permits, are limited to their routes and speed that they can run, times they can run and have to deal with obstacles that normal sized trucks take in stride. If you listen to the cb when an over sized is around, you will hear the driver communicating with his escorts as to what is coming up behind to pass and what is up ahead that might require a lane adjustment. Sharing the road with over sized loads requires some extra dexterity and courtesy on the part of other drivers. One of the main complaints I have heard from over sized load drivers is that people won’t just get on around them… they hang next to them stopping them from being able to adjust for obstacles ahead.
Here are some things that over sized drivers have to watch for ahead: broken down or emergency vehicles on the shoulder, road construction narrowing the lanes, low/narrow bridges and overpasses, curves, debris on the shoulder, merging traffic, sign and light posts and pedestrians. All this in addition to the normal things like exits for their routes. Following is how I drive around over dimensional loads and I think it works fairly well for all involved. When I am coming up on an OD load, I look to see how it is over sized, length is not the issue that width is. I slow down after entering the left lane to check ahead for any obstacles, if it is clear, I will ask the driver if it is convenient for me to come around identifying myself as an 18 wheeler, he/she may be able to see more than me. Upon the drivers ok, I get on around the OD load giving the rig as much room as safely can be done, staying in the left lane longer to give the OD driver more space between us so he/she can see farther ahead. I never get between an OD driver and his/her escorts.
If the driver says it is not ok to pass right then or if I see obstacles ahead, I just go in behind the escort or truck, stay slow and wait. The way I was trained many years ago was that size and weight have the right of way. In the rare case that the OD driver is not on the cb, it is my responsibility to make sure that I will not endanger him/her or myself so I will look ahead to make sure the road is straight, fully wide and there are no obstacles that the OD driver will have to avoid. Again, I follow the ‘get around as quickly and safely’ as I can rule. Driving around OD loads takes some common sense and patience. The few minutes you lose by slowing down and waiting for it to be safe to pass should not make you late for anything and being observant of obstacles is part of your job as a truck driver. Showing another driver courtesy is always good and shows that you are a professional. Remember that in sharing the road with over dimensional loads, size does matter.
Ya’ll be safe and I wish you peace and some serenity in your busy lives
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Do not cuss a trucker or a farmer with your mouth full!
Street Smarts: A Guide to a Truck Driver's Personal Safety Arriving Alive: personal safety, driving and sharing the road with semis tips Just a Lady Driver blog Sandy Long's Faire personal website Sandy Long @ Facebook TrailerTruckinTech Life member OOIDA Women In Trucking Association
So Proud to be standing with the first women truckdriver to haul cars acrosss BC. Thea Wagner. Reader of CTM I met at the RoadKing Calgary!