Vegas Teacher

Thanks for the link I will go to it later tonight and read it!!!

Thanks I looked it up and read it all!!! help greatly appreciated. Cory O

Chad, Thanks, I was wondering the same thing as I read through the responses. Then again I teach high school students and I am used to kids not reading instructions. What ever happened with your wreck, you can private message me if instead of putting it on the forum. Later, Cory O

Shark, Hey thanks, I couldn't remember what our state reg's were. Cory O

No problem Jay, I am a high school teacher and I am used to kids not reading instructions. No harm, no foul you get used to it after 25 years of teaching. Later, Cory O

Thanks!!!!

Howdy All, O.K. Dumb question.......... If I pull a 17,000 pound 5th wheel behind my 780, do I need a Class A noncommercial DL? Later, Cory O

Just outside of Zion is Zion River RV resort, I stayed there and loved it. This was 10 years ago, and I saw my first HDT pulling a 5th wheel and started wondering even back then what it would be like to pull with a semi. Watchman campground is to crowded and you won't be able to get your rig in there without jumping through hoops. As you come off of 15 onto 9 there is a nice travel plaza. I think it is a pilot, but don't quote me on that as I could be wrong on the franchise. I can't remember the name but, just outside of Bryce is a nice RV park. Bryce is beautiful but you have to go to tropical and look up at Bryce instead of down, the view from tropical Utah is pretty neat. Bryce the original farmer when asked about what he thought of the beauty of the canyon said only, "Damn fine place to lose a cow!" While at Zion, if you have the time, go up to Kolob reservoir and take a drive around the 150 acre lake. If you have a jeep with you even better, I don't think our HDT's would make one of the hair pin turns, I am talking a complete U Turn going up grade or down grade on your way back. Those of you who have been there and are reading this know the one of which I speak. However I am not an expert but just saying I would not attempt it in mine and going down hill it is even more daunting. On the other hand the drive up to 8500 feet is beautiful. The drive up kind of, on a small scale, reminds me of my trip in Yellowstone. Around each turn and as you climb in altitude you encounter changes in the ecosystem, as a biology teacher I love it. If you have a lot of time, go see the lake, then dri e over the top of the mountain from Kolob to Cedar city, nice little town that does different plays for the Shakespeare festival. I went to my first C-A-L Ranch store there. That is about it. Have a great trip! Later, Cory O

Thanks, I try to keep a positive tone. In this world we have plenty of people who are negative. Happy 4th of July weekend! Don't miss the good prices at Harbor Freight. That was the other thing I learned from the mechanics, buy expensive tools you need to do the heavy lifting, buy cheap when the tools made for that application are going to break anyway. Later, Cory O

Well Hello All!!! First of all, I want to say thanks for those who took time to read my posting about the first trip across country. As you could all tell we had a great trip making it to Kansas. I typed up the posting I did right when I got into Pittsburg Kansas. My time at home was great, I got to see family and friends. I also got to eat at Chicken Mary's and the Mall Deli, I know all of you out there are saying who cares LOL!!! While I was at home I gave rides to all of my family and friends in the semi around Pittsburg and up to Arma Ks and back. So the reason for the trip home was to take my Semi to Jack Mayer at RVH Lifestyles in Dennis Kansas. Dennis it about 8 miles west of Parson's Kansas. For those of you who to the rally in October you are only about 2 hours from there, you are just west of that area. So I loaded up my nephew, my wife and mother followed behind for a 45 minute ride over to Dennis. Any I have to say above all else Jack Mayer is one of the nicest people I have ever worked with! I took my semi onto his property and he showed me where to park. We got parked and all of us unloaded. Jack took everybody on a tour of his facility, he showed us trucks in different stages of repair. I was really worried about taking my truck over. In pictures, from 20 to 50 feet my truck doesn't look bad however, when you get between 15 to inches from the truck she starts to show her age and 961,598 miles of battle scars. So Jack jumps in it looks around and tells me what he can fix and what he can do for me. He told me my truck was in great shape for what I paid and that I got the truck right. By the time he was done telling me about trucks he had fixed up, I felt really good. Jack's facility is awesome. If you are thinking about doing a bed, singling or anything on the inside of your truck you should talk to him or if you have time go see his facility. One of the things I found very impressive was he is extremely patient. I went to see Jack in the summer of 2020 for the first time and visit with him, I went back again last year in the summer of 2021 to visit and introduce him to my mom and dad. I also wanted them to see what I wanted done with my truck, they were impressed when they spoke with him last summer. This year I dropped my truck off. For him to stick with me for 3 years I think is impressive. All I know is I felt like a million dollars when I left. I will pick my truck up next summer and if you are a member of HDT - Heavy duty trucks for RVing on face book you will see his posts. I will also post on the forum, but face book is so much easier to put pictures on, yes I have posted on here but face book is a breeze compared to this. Trip to Utah - Zion National Park - Kolob Reservoir We went up to the Saint George area, Zion National Park and Kolob Reservoir, that is 8500 feet above Zion. Once again this is after we got back to Vegas and our Semi is in Kansas. We had to take our Toyota Tundra, this is a full size 4 door truck, 4 wheel drive and power for days to run the highway but guzzles gas like no tomorrow. It was over 200.00 in gas alone for a day trip. We ate breakfast at the Black Bear Cafe in Washington, a suburb of Saint George. I had the most awesome Blackberry Bear Claw French toast. I think I still have sugar left over from it in my body. The day trip was great and it was fun to see Kolob again. I had not been up there for 10 years. The big thing I wanted to tell all of you about this is when we got home we got out of the truck (FULL SIZE 4 Door 8 FOOT BED) and my wife says that truck it to small and I feel worn out & cramped. She missed the semi. I couldn't agree more. After traveling also 1400 miles in the semi over the course of several days, weigh stations and truck stops the vote was unanimous, nothing beats that semi. When I first pulled in from Florida with Vegas Flyer, at 11:00 p.m. on a Monday night her comment was DAMN THAT IS !@#$ing HUGE. Then back in April of that same year it stranded us on the side of the road on the other side of Hoover Dam, she was not happy, then it cost us money to fix, tires were not cheap and I thought at one point the wife was going to tell me to sell it. However when we got out of the TUNDRA after having been bounced up and down all day and cramped into a front seat, even with her being able to recline, her words were we are never getting rid of that semi, ever it is ours to keep. I can't tell you how happy that made me. LIFE AS A DIESEL MECHANIC Well last week I worked as a diesel mechanic, shadowing the people who have done all of the work on my truck at True Blue here in Las Vegas. I was able to learn how to lube all of the joints or zerts and then add grease to the hubs. I also learned how to do an oil change and adjust a clutch on a dump truck. Most of all it taught me little things to look for and how to deal with things should I be on the side of the road. I made a huge list of things to remember and items to add to my truck, plus things to look for each time I went out to drive the truck. They also explained things that would make it easier for them to diagnose problems should I have to take it back in. Steve was really good to me and made sure to explain every detail of what they did to me. Well that is about it! Have a great 4th of July! Later, Cory Ossana - Vegas Teacher - 4 Weeks of Summer Vacation left!

I agree 100% with your logic was pretty much the same as mine.

Phil, Thanks for the information, I have always trusted what you have written and advice given. I will follow that from here on out. Later, Cory O

Dave, First of all great to hear from you and thanks for looking out for me and always giving me great advice! I have my mechanic do a complete service inspection each year and he puts a plate on the side saying the truck passed a mechanic inspection that is on par for the D.O.T. should any questions get asked. If you read my posting, about the trip, you will see I was an excellent Ambassador for our group and all of the officers liked me. Later, Cory O

I stopped because the lights flashed for me to stop and I was told inside if I didn't stop I would have been chased down after leaving by the highway patrol and would have had to go over the same questions on the side of the road.

Thanks for the great tip! You never know when you might need someone to help. I travel I40 each way twice a year. Cory O

So if you follow my posts and my trip, just got into Kansas yesterday from Vegas, here is what I can tell you. Every time I stopped the officials commented on the fact that I had the DOT plate on my truck and inspection papers in proper order. This helped me out at each stop, and was more like a show of good faith. Kind of that old saying a pound of prevention is better than an ounce of the cure. No I am not using my truck as commercial at all, I just do it for piece of mind, plus if you look at the paper it is nice to see everything they look at and go over. It cost 125.00 in Vegas and worth every penny. My phone number is 702 672 7990. Call me if you have questions. Later, Cory O

You are so correct. My aunt and uncle came over last night to see the semi. I took them for a ride and played C.W. Macall's song Convoy for them as we pulled out. They laughed and enjoyed the ride.

Every time I went in to a check point I thought of what you just said. I thought you know I could be a jerk and use a different tone and be a little bit more assertive, but then I also thought well I am in their office and my truck is parked on their lot. They also have a uniformed highway patrol in the office, so I have the choice of being here for 30 minutes and getting back on the road or half a day while the take my truck apart. The other thing I thought is, if I am friendly and tell them the story of what I am doin, plus the safety features of the HDT over a pickup, I am being a good representative of the group overall. I figured if I am friendly, it makes it easier for the next person in our group. Thanks for your kind words, thoughts and reply. Later, Cory O

I about soiled my pants when I saw it flapping in the wind....

Thank you! 24 years of teaching has taught me two things always be organized and prepared. I could not have set up a good binder without the help of the people on the forum. Cory O Thanks!

From Vegas to Pittsburg Kansas. I drove I 40 to 44 and 44 to 400, 400 to 126 and 126 to 69 into Pittsburg Kansas. We were in Winslow on Monday (Drove through the fire in Flagstaff) Tuesday We stopped in Tucumcari. Wednesday we were in Oklahoma City and arrived in Pittsburg Kansas today. You can see more details in my post. Later, Cory O

Howdy everybody!!!! Here is a breakdown of my first big trip day by day. I am in Pittsburg Kansas now, until June 22nd but I am dropping off my Truck with Jack Mayer for work to be done. We are flying back to Vegas. Before I start this post and get into any of the details I have to give all kinds of credit to my wife, she was the best copilot ever and help me with navigation and issues that came up on the trip more than once. She was always there to support me and reassure me as we traveled down the highway. Sunday, June 12, at 5:00 p.m. I went to get my Volvo. We cleaned loaded and organized the entire truck Sunday, and kept in our neighbor hood, much to the dismay of the HOA, overnight. I set an alarm for 4:00 a.m. so we could beat rush hour traffic out of town. Running Bobtail and I do not have a commercial 5th or Glad hands on my truck...... (2012 Volvo 780 I shift tandem) Monday June 13, 2022 Las Vegas to Winslow AZ: We got on the road just before 5:00 a.m. leaving Vegas was uneventful and went smoothly. We got out onto the open road and it was pretty windy average wind speed was around 25 miles per hour, not sure what the gusts were???? We got to Kingman Arizona and hit the first weigh station. The people there were professional, and extremely nice!! I told them the story about what I was doing and why. The officials in the window asked a few questions then asked if I had a CDL, I said no and they let me go on my way, told me to have a nice day and to keep safe. We then stopped at the Petro truck stop for breakfast. After a fill of great food we traveled on I - 40 eastward toward Williams where I planned on getting out to take a break and get a cold drink. At the Loves, as I was walking out, a trucker told me to look toward Flagstaff to see what was going on. Pam and I looked up at the Mountain and noticed it was rolling with smoke. I got in my truck and we got out of there as fast as we could. As we got closer to Flagstaff we noticed that there was a lot of smoke and got down off the mountain before they could decide to shut down I 40 east. I don't think that happened but did not want to get caught in anything like that anyway. We made it into Winslow AZ. about 1:30. We found a park in the back of the lot, went in to use the RR and then back out to the truck for a nap. I slept in the top bunk, Pam got the bigger more cushy bed on the bottom bunk. We took a 2 hour nap and then went in to eat dinner. Went back out the truck to clean and organize. Next we went back in to take a shower and clean up for the evening. Talked to some truckers, upon ending our conversation they told us to have a safe trip and to "keep it rubber side down." I thought that was nice. Tuesday June 14, Winslow to Tucumcari NM: Got up a lot later, about 8:00 a.m. and hit the road. At the weigh station near Gallup I had to go into the office and show them the notebook with all of the documentation. They were nice and told me to have a nice day. We drove across New Mexico and spent the evening at a Flying J in Tucumcari. Pretty uneventful day. My heart was in my throat when I was told I had to go into the office for a review of my documents but the young person inside was really nice. Sometimes I think we all have to remember everybody had a job to do. I always try to be as friendly as possible with out being fake. Wednesday June 15, Tucumcari to Oklahoma City: I woke up kind of early, around 3:00 a.m. and went back to sleep until 5:30 then the sound of the truck around me kept me up. We got just down the road, hit half a dozen pot holes and a gust of wind comes up, Pam hears the passenger side fairing pop mostly off and sees it flapping in the mirror and gets me to stop. I keep my head on a swivel looking from mirror to mirror and down at my gauges and I had just looked at the passenger side when it happened. Like I said she was an excellent copilot and is also vigilant. We went only as far is it took to safely stop the truck and get pulled over. So on the side of the I put the rear fairing clips back on the rail and zip tie the bottom back on in the slot were screws or plastic fasteners should be but they are stripped out. We stop in Amarillo for lunch and to put in some fuel. Back on the road. The weigh station just outside of Shamrock Texas was closed. Just across the Oklahoma state line in Sayer, I was called in again to go over documentation. It was much the same as in Gallup. The officer went over my book, then took it to the back room to talk to his boss. He came back out and told me that the information / document book was nice and made it easier for them. He recommended that I put my registration in as page 1. We drove on into Oklahoma City last night at about 5:00 p.m. The checkpoint in Yukon was closed. We stayed once more at a Flying J and had dinner across the street at Braums. Today, Thursday June 16, Oklahoma City to Pittsburg Kansas: I did not want to deal with the traffic in Oklahoma city at rush hour so we woke up at 3:45 a.m. and hit the road by 4:15 or 4:30 made it through O.K.C. in about 20 minutes and it was smooth sailing into Pittsburg Kansas. I got in about 9:30 with stops at the glass house and Down Stream Casino, just off of 44. I have asked a lot of questions over time on here. I had read about how to organize the notebook / binder. I would like to that everybody who has given me advice, Vegas Flyer to teaching me how to drive on the initial trip back from Florida and there are so many of you out there that sent me positive vibes and prayers. I can't begin to that everybody on this forum enough. Last but not least I heard over and over from the officials / officers at the check point about how nice the binder / notebook was. I think it saved me on each occasion. I had everything in it and even had the Nevada license requirements and rigs broken down by weight. Plus I had all of my yearly inspections and records of all repairs and of course insurance information. I asked at each stop what they though of the book and what I could change and once again the only thing I heard was put the vehicle registration in the front page. Last but not least thanks again to my wife. She had a lot of fun this trip and I think she is now firmly sold on this truck and our decision to buy it. Hope to hear back from you all!! Later, Vegas Teacher - Cory Ossana

My dad went back to work after getting rapid infusion shots. My mom is not showing signs or symptoms. My dad is really worn out but recovering. Wel it is kind of neat, I will be with my dad now on Father's Day! So our new time table is leave on Monday June 13, fly back to Vegas on June 22. Thanks to all that sent me good messages and thoughts. My dad us going to make it through! Later, Cory Ossana

O.K.......... So you won't believe this, those of you who have been following my posts as of late...... Well my plans were to leave tomorrow morning, Tuesday May 31, at about 5:00 a.m. I would have gone and picked up my semi, from storage, about 2 hours ago and been cleaning it and packing right now. This morning, Monday May 30, I got a call from my mom. She was in tears, my 72 year old dad, came down with Covid, over the weekend. So I am not going to leave Vegas and get Covid myself. I told my mom not to worry and we would post pone the trip for a couple of weeks. My dad is getting something from the hospital called rapid infusion treatment. They have both had 2 covid shots plus one booster and were up for booster number 2 or covid shot #4 this week. They had appointments to go get them. My mom is asymptomatic right now. I told her to get tested every day and if on her scheduled appointment she does not have and + reports to get the shot but to avoid my dad if she could. That shouldn't be hard in a 3500 SQ FT house with three full bathrooms and 4 bedrooms and of course no kids living there now. Part of my trip home was to see Jack Mayer over in Dennis Kansas at RVH lifestyles to have him do my bed on the 780. I called him after getting off of the phone with my mom and he said it was not a problem at all and we would go over everything when I got here. I have to give him so much credit, he is a great guy and wished my family the best of luck in getting better, not sure how many business men would do the same? I am one of those people who think everything happens for a reason. There is probably a reason I am not getting on the road on Tuesday morning. I know Thunderstorms are forecasted along my route on I40, I44 and 69 into Pittsburg Kansas. Maybe somebody up above is looking out for me. With school being out this gives me time to get behind the wheel of the truck again for some more seat time. I had my injector cups worked on, fuses replaced for the fuel gauges (now it have an accurate reading on how much gas I have in the tank) and my coolant reservoir flushed with new coolant added. My biggest concern is that my father gets well. This covid stuff really scares me for older people. Hope I see you all at a Rally some day, I would like to meet all of the good people on the forum! Later, Cory Ossana - Vegas Teacher

Copy that, thanks.