Weekend Travels / WAZE app

[Vegas Teacher]

Hello all:

Due to a sport I am in I do a lot of traveling into California for the weekend. I normally leave at 3:00 a.m. on Saturday morning, for Delano, and return around 1:00 a.m. Sunday Morning to Vegas. Last weekend on 58 headed home we learned of a rig that had gone over the mountain side and was being picked up by cranes a piece at a time. I pulled into a Denny's / Flying J just off of Merced Ave, in Bakersfield California, I sat in a booth and was talking to my wife about alternate routes. I had one ear open and was listening to the two guys in the booth behind me. As the meal progressed I figured they were long haul drivers, so I asked them if they were. I asked them if they had heard what had happened and we talked about that for a while. Then we got to talking and I told them about my 780 and showed them pictures of it, with my trailer hooked up. One guy asked if I had a CDL and I told him where I was in the process. I told him I had passed my written and that I was going to school this summer to get the rest. The person I was talking to had about 20 years on me and I walked away with a few golden nuggets of information from him. Some of the things that really jumped out was how interested he and his friends were about the conversion from the commercial to private or RV. They loved the research I quoted to them from the site. Not one guy made a wise crack about "Do you think you have a big enough truck????" It was pretty much in agreement that the semi is the right tool for the job. I know I will never be a long haul driver any time soon, but there is always retirement. They were all really friendly and nice, not a single condescending remark from any of them. We got back on the road and by that time the road was clear.

Also does anybody use WAZE app. This app has nothing to do with pulling trailers or stuff like that but what it does is, it is a live app with its users tuned in and able to post on it. So just like google maps you type in where you are going and it sets up a route for you. If a user sees a car on the side of the road or a speed trap they record where they are and it goes out to all users who are logged in. If there is a wreck and a road closure, like we found out about above, it lets you know and automatically plans an alternative route for you, it also highlights the area of the road which is closed so you can see where it is and how to get around it. Members talk about alternative routes and once again it routes you around. By the time we got done eating I looked on the app and the road was open. I had not known about this until my CC teacher told me about it on Friday, I used it for the first time this weekend it was great. 

I am currently shopping for the Best GPS for the Big Rig, I want a large display, I am both near and far sighted. Which is the favorite for those of you on the forum. 

4 days of School left, bring on the adult beverages!!!!!!!

Later,

Vegas Teacher - Cory Ossana

[Dollytrolley]

9 minutes ago, Vegas Teacher said:

Hello all:

Due to a sport I am in I do a lot of traveling into California for the weekend. I normally leave at 3:00 a.m. on Saturday morning, for Delano, and return around 1:00 a.m. Sunday Morning to Vegas. Last weekend on 58 headed home we learned of a rig that had gone over the mountain side and was being picked up by cranes a piece at a time. I pulled into a Denny's / Flying J just off of Merced Ave, in Bakersfield California, I sat in a booth and was talking to my wife about alternate routes. I had one ear open and was listening to the two guys in the booth behind me. As the meal progressed I figured they were long haul drivers, so I asked them if they were. I asked them if they had heard what had happened and we talked about that for a while. Then we got to talking and I told them about my 780 and showed them pictures of it, with my trailer hooked up. One guy asked if I had a CDL and I told him where I was in the process. I told him I had passed my written and that I was going to school this summer to get the rest. The person I was talking to had about 20 years on me and I walked away with a few golden nuggets of information from him. Some of the things that really jumped out was how interested he and his friends were about the conversion from the commercial to private or RV. They loved the research I quoted to them from the site. Not one guy made a wise crack about "Do you think you have a big enough truck????" It was pretty much in agreement that the semi is the right tool for the job. I know I will never be a long haul driver any time soon, but there is always retirement. They were all really friendly and nice, not a single condescending remark from any of them. We got back on the road and by that time the road was clear.

Also does anybody use WAZE app. This app has nothing to do with pulling trailers or stuff like that but what it does is, it is a live app with its users tuned in and able to post on it. So just like google maps you type in where you are going and it sets up a route for you. If a user sees a car on the side of the road or a speed trap they record where they are and it goes out to all users who are logged in. If there is a wreck and a road closure, like we found out about above, it lets you know and automatically plans an alternative route for you, it also highlights the area of the road which is closed so you can see where it is and how to get around it. Members talk about alternative routes and once again it routes you around. By the time we got done eating I looked on the app and the road was open. I had not known about this until my CC teacher told me about it on Friday, I used it for the first time this weekend it was great. 

I am currently shopping for the Best GPS for the Big Rig, I want a large display, I am both near and far sighted. Which is the favorite for those of you on the forum. 

4 days of School left, bring on the adult beverages!!!!!!!

Later,

Vegas Teacher - Cory Ossana

Teach,

Tecopa Brewing is...........calling......calling..........

So you get a few two many brews in the belly and who knows...........you just might get silly enough to go over to the geezer pool at the Hot Springs and float around nakeeeed with the  O  L  D      G  e  e  e z e e r z...........heck of a biology lesson and who knows you just might find a new germ that you could name after yourself..........

Enjoy the summer........

We gotta head North before you invade the naked-geezeeer-pools........(way more fun than your co-ed-truck-stop-showerz)

 

Drive on..............(look twice..... both ways.........teach is about to go to driving skoole.......)

 

 

[Vegas Teacher]

2 minutes ago, Dollytrolley said:

Teach,

Tecopa Brewing is...........calling......calling..........

So you get a few two many brews in the belly and who knows...........you just might get silly enough to go over to the geezer pool at the Hot Springs and float around nakeeeed with the  O  L  D      G  e  e  e z e e r z...........heck of a biology lesson and who knows you just might find a new germ that you could name after yourself..........

Enjoy the summer........

We gotta head North before you invade the naked-geezeeer-pools........(way more fun than your co-ed-truck-stop-showerz)

 

Drive on..............(look twice..... both ways.........teach is about to go to driving skoole.......)

 

 

Dolley Trolley,

Man how are you and the rest of the "old farts" doing? Hey I just about made it over the hump this weekend, actually yesterday but did not feel like it. I got in at 1:30 and by the time I fed all of the dogs and did a round of "Potty" brakes I got to bed close to 2 a.m. I called John last Friday to get a meet up set up with you him, my wife, his wife and your wife at a local diner of some kind in the big city of Pahrump! I am picking up Kennel Pannels for my dog kennels at TSC and it seemed like a nice stopping point to relax for some R & R and then get to jab you a little bit. I assume you are a different person in front of your wife, I know I am. Anyway if we make an afternoon run would you like me to text you when I head over. I got a few "teknicle" questions for you anyway!

Later,

Cory O 

[Imurphy907]

I use Waze as an overlay on google maps(it's part of google maps now). It's great for seeing delays ahead and planning around them.

[Big5er]

49 minutes ago, Imurphy907 said:

I use Waze as an overlay on google maps(it's part of google maps now). It's great for seeing delays ahead and planning around them.

So that explains why I was gettingthe "speed trap" warnings the other day.

[jkoenig24]

There is NO "perfect" GPS system, ESPECIALLY for HDTs.

I've used Garmin dezl, Rand McNally, TomTom, Google and Apple maps and Copilot. My experience is that they ALL have shortcomings. I especially dislike the Rand McNally electronic products (but I expect you'll find other users who are happy with them).

Copilot HD Truck recently switched from a "one price with regular updates at no extra charge" to a subscription based product.  NO new updates are being issued for the "old" software. Other then Copilot "support" being a kludge (email ONLY), their navigation has, in my opinion, been very good. Copilot is available for iOS (iPhones & iPads) and, I believe Win OS. I don't believe Copilot has an Android version.

Of course, you should also have a "hard copy" solution at hand. Rand McNally's Motor Carrier's Atlas is hard to beat when you want / need to go "old school"

[adept99]

So if I'm understanding this correctly 5"er,  you have to pull yourself over and give yourself a ticket for speeding violations, overweights, etc

How much time is left???

 

[jenandjon]

I just use google maps and a truckers road atlas.

[Imurphy907]

16 hours ago, Big5er said:

So that explains why I was gettingthe "speed trap" warnings the other day.

I despise that term.

[Vegas Teacher]

14 hours ago, jkoenig24 said:

There is NO "perfect" GPS system, ESPECIALLY for HDTs.

I've used Garmin dezl, Rand McNally, TomTom, Google and Apple maps and Copilot. My experience is that they ALL have shortcomings. I especially dislike the Rand McNally electronic products (but I expect you'll find other users who are happy with them).

Copilot HD Truck recently switched from a "one price with regular updates at no extra charge" to a subscription based product.  NO new updates are being issued for the "old" software. Other then Copilot "support" being a kludge (email ONLY), their navigation has, in my opinion, been very good. Copilot is available for iOS (iPhones & iPads) and, I believe Win OS. I don't believe Copilot has an Android version.

Of course, you should also have a "hard copy" solution at hand. Rand McNally's Motor Carrier's Atlas is hard to beat when you want / need to go "old school"

I agree completely with the Old School, I bought the Motor Carriers Atlas in 2017 and I love it. It never hurts to see then entire route or the U.S. Laid out in front of you. Kids have no idea of how to read a map or plan a trip from point A to point B. I took Geology in College and we had to learn how to read all kinds of maps, including Topo maps we put on 3D glasses to see relief, it was awsome. Map reading is kind of a lost art. Anyway thanks for the advice!!

Later,

Cory O - Vegas Teacher - 1 hour and 5 minutes of this period plus 2 days of exams then Friday is Teacher Check out day.

 

 

[Big5er]

11 hours ago, adept99 said:

How much time is left???

3 more days this week and 4 more next week....although I am feeling a bit ill. I have 2 more sick days and I feel a case of anal glaucoma coming on for next Thursday and Friday, you know....... I just can't see my ass going to work those last two days.
I'll empty all of my stuff out of the Tahoe and drop it off Wednesday, turn in the old ID for the new "retired" one and that's it. 

[Big5er]

21 hours ago, jkoenig24 said:

I don't believe Copilot has an Android version.

Oh yes they do......hehe

[chiefneon]

Howdy!

 I used Co-pilot truck on my android tablet and iPad.

” Happy Trails “

Chiefneon

[GeorgiaHybrid]

We use copilot professional that came with our KW. Other than one wrong turn going eastbound from St Louis, is has been flawless.

[Jack Mayer]

I also use Co Pilot on an Android tablet The tablet is useful for many other things as well.

[CrazyCooter]

I own a Dezl 760 that I have never been all that impressed with. I have been moving away from standard gps units in favor of android tablets for navigation unless I need a water/dust proof solution.

[Jack Mayer]

One thing to note. No matter what electronic solution you use, it is not going to be perfect. Even the Co-pilot that I use is not perfect, and it is by far the best dedicated gps application I've used. SO we use multiple devices. Typically we run the CoPilot on the android tablet, then run Google Maps on my phone, which sits next to it. Danielle runs Google maps as well (cause she likes it) and uses a paper map. We also have a Garmin 760 RV model that we rarely use, mainly because it is a pain in the butt to program for a multi-stop trip. That is just what we do...it may not work for anyone else.

[GeorgiaHybrid]

Above all else, use the head that the good lord gave you and LOOK at the road signs, bridge heights, weight limits, construction zones and the traffic around you. We have caught several errors with GPS software and maps by paying attention to where we were going. The driver should do just that, drive. The other person in the cab should do the navigating.

We were almost run off the road a few weeks back by an idiot playing with his GPS and phone while trying to drive.

[Vegas Teacher]

26 minutes ago, GeorgiaHybrid said:

Above all else, use the head that the good lord gave you and LOOK at the road signs, bridge heights, weight limits, construction zones and the traffic around you. We have caught several errors with GPS software and maps by paying attention to where we were going. The driver should do just that, drive. The other person in the cab should do the navigating.

We were almost run off the road a few weeks back by an idiot playing with his GPS and phone while trying to drive.

"We were almost run off the road a few weeks back by an idiot playing with his GPS and phone while trying to drive."

We have a lot of those in Vegas, many with out of state tags. 

[cactus]

1 hour ago, Vegas Teacher said:

"We were almost run off the road a few weeks back by an idiot playing with his GPS and phone while trying to drive."

We have a lot of those in Vegas, many with out of state tags. 

Welcome to Utah!

[Dollytrolley]

14 hours ago, Jack Mayer said:

One thing to note. No matter what electronic solution you use, it is not going to be perfect. Even the Co-pilot that I use is not perfect, and it is by far the best dedicated gps application I've used. SO we use multiple devices. Typically we run the CoPilot on the android tablet, then run Google Maps on my phone, which sits next to it. Danielle runs Google maps as well (cause she likes it) and uses a paper map. We also have a Garmin 760 RV model that we rarely use, mainly because it is a pain in the butt to program for a multi-stop trip. That is just what we do...it may not work for anyone else.

Over the course of too many decades have used most modern and a few stone-age navigation sources with mixed results.

Electronic nav aids have been the rage in aviation from around the 1920's on and some pretty amazing stuff is installed in glass cockpits these days..........I get spoiled........and have to remind myself that I still need to practice non-electronic navigation........

Being a geezer I still pack a bunch of paper charts just in case..........but even paper can be fleeting at times.

Too many moons ago I had a relationship with a aviation group that provided air ambulance services to very remote locations in S. America.......they had a few modified Cessna 185 aircraft with modifications of Lyc. TSIO-540 350 Hp turbo intercooled engines for operations over and around the Andes........There was no GPS back then and the only remote electronic aids was an occasional NDB (Non Directional Beacon) that would run off a old 12 Vdc car battery IF the battery was charged and we would just home into the beacon with a ADF (Automatic Direction Finder) that was simply a AM radio with a compass dial that pointed at the tuned in beacon......sorta.........

It was late afternoon and a radio relay message came in that a young girl was badly burned in a gas can fire and it was vital that the girl need to be Med-vac to a hospital ASAP........Weather was marginal but flyable so a Dr and a nurse got aboard and off we flew into some fairly grim turbulence but we made fair time to the remote location and quickly loaded the patent and took off into a mountain pass that I knew would be a pretty wild ride but even though the wind was bad the clouds were broken and a full moon allowed good outline of the pass, cliffs and ridges that we would thread through ............When the high winds flow over high ridge lines and the winds forced over the peaks and ridges often for lenticular clouds (those clouds that often look like giant flying saucers) this is associated with a condition called the mountian wave. Associated with the mountian wave is another group of clouds just downwind from the lenticular clouds these downwind clouds are called rotor-clouds. Flying upwind of the lenticular cloud will result in a very smooooth and strong uplift climb and then as you pass over the midsection of the wave you will sink in the downwind section of the wave and then……….slow down and cinch the harness tight because the rotor is very rough as in overstress the aircraft rough if you fly too fast into the rotor……...I warned the Doc and nurse to strap in tight that we were about to hit rough air and sure enough it hit very hard and all was as expected until……...pilot side door window latch popped undone and the window flew wide open and pasted itself up against the bottom surface of the wing and ……….SUCKED every chart and approach plate paper right out of my knee board paper clamp……….in a split second…….poof…...GONE all of my local Navigation…...POOF……

Of course just getting the window closed as the old 185 bucked and flopped around was no easy task and by the time I get the window closed and glanced at the pale white Doc it looked like the Doctor was in need of a doctor…….

The only thing that was in our favor was that I had reviewed the charts fairly well and the weather at the destination airstrip was not too low a ceiling after we were able to let down through a couple thousand feet of clouds and I knew the NDB frequency by memory……..

Sometimes it's best to take a good gander at the charts ……..before you take off……..

Drive on………….(don't drive too fast with the window…….open)

P. S. it took a long time and a lot of care but the Doctors were able to recover the girl but it took a lot of skin grafts and more time but she has done well last I knew……...Last time I saw the Doctor some of his color had returned……..but he still does not like to fly…….hummmm