The Wind

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So there is a Texas oilman who wants to put up thousands of wind turbines along a corridor in the mid south to convert wind power into electricity. If today was any indication, he'll do well in his endeavor.

I was told my load in Crete, Nebraska was ready to go as soon as I got there so I left around dawn and arrived in Crete around 0800. The Nestle/Purina pet food factory is undergoing a lot of construction so finding the right spot to report in at was a challenge. Once I found the right door I sidled up to the shipping lady and told her I was there for my preloaded trailer. She laughed at me. Without any further explanation, she punched some buttons on her computer and told me my trailer was being loaded "for its 11 AM departure" and I should drop off my empty trailer at the approved spot then hook up to the one being loaded.

About two hours later I was loaded, sealed, scaled and departing.

Most readers of this blog and my previous one are aware I prefer to take interstate highways when possible. However, this load is going to Phoenix, Arizona and there isn't an interstate route that doesn't include 100+ miles of out of route mileage which I have to pay for out of my own pocket. Thus, almost half of the miles for this trip will be along state highways in Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas and New Mexico.

The wind during my entire trip down to Dalhart, Texas was gale force. Since I fueled at our Omaha yard before departing, I also reset my MPG counter and was pleased that I arrived in Crete at 8.2 MPG with an empty trailer. By the time I arrived in Texas and shut down for the night, I was staring at 5.7 MPG and I had driven cautiously the entire way. The 44,000 pounds of dog chow in the back hurts my MPG a lot more going uphill than it helps going downhill.