Member of The Month! - Page 24

Witchdoctor · #**231** 02-02-2011

Strap on the chains and go after it, I have a friend who owns a small excavating company and has the same opinion of snow........

Bones · #**232** 02-02-2011

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr.Scott

I don't know about "life on the line" but, I'm a construction heavy equipment operator/mechanic. That includes the big trucks too. Of course that's during the "green" season up here. We also have a "white" season, as I live in the Great lakes snowbelt region. So in the "white" season, we do snow and ice management. Not driveways either, I mean full size malls and the like, along with subbing out to the county for a lot of lesser roads and highways. I'm a three county supervisor, although you couldn't tell. I"m a "hands on" kinda guy, and along with my supervisory tasks, I'll still climb into a tri-axel Mack with front, left, and right blades and a 25 ton saltbox on the back and take care of a few hundred miles of highway, or run a Cat 500 wheel loader with a 20 foot snow pusher and clear a couple thousand acre shopping mall. It makes no difference to me. I'm fully capable of doing either and everything in between. "Life on the line" would be more like what Kal does.

I'm thinking about all the idiots you've undoubtedly ran across (hopefully not into) doing your job.

Some jobs really are as stated and I used to risk my well being everyday with what I was doing once, namely operating a 769C Caterpillar truck in a Limestone quarry on a mountaintop.

Between the numerous caves we uncovered (Sometimes the cave's roof was the road we had been driving on until it collapsed!), high explosives we were around, heavy amounts of lime dust everywhere, steep grades (Fun when wet - You'll SLIDE down with 40 tons of rock loaded on your ass =

) and the conditions in general, it's a wonder we didn't have anyone killed and I did have some close calls on a few occasions myself.

In my case, what I did didn't affect folks directly but your job does. I know Kal's does too and it's even riskier than what the both of us do but it's for the good and benefit of us all.

Without guys like Kal around willing to risk it all, I don't know how we'd come out.

Kal-EL · #**233** 02-02-2011

I wish I could share half the shit I've been thru with you guys, but with attorneys lurking everyone, I can't risk talking about some of the god awful crazy shit that make for THE BEST STORIES EVER! over a couple a cases of beer of course

Whatever it is that you do for a living, just be safe, adrenaline junkie or not, your family needs you.

Chuchnit · #**234** 02-02-2011

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bones

Some jobs really are as stated and I used to risk my well being everyday with what I was doing once, namely operating a 769C Caterpillar truck in a Limestone quarry on a mountaintop.

Sweet Jeebus Bones you are old!! Hell 777C/D was old news back in the 90's. I went away for a few years and now the 992G (electronic control) is old. Lemme guess... hmmm 769C..... that was late 70's early early 80's (or longer)??

Bones · #**235** 02-02-2011

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chuchnit

Sweet Jeebus Bones you are old!! Hell 777C/D was old news back in the 90's. I went away for a few years and now the 992G (electronic control) is old. Lemme guess... hmmm 769C..... that was late 70's early early 80's (or longer)??

Actually many of those are newer than you'd think but the model was produced for a number of years.
Drove these in 93-94 and they were still in production at the time under that model name, we had one that was almost new when I started working there.

No, I'm not that old but old enough.

Hondacity · #**236** 02-02-2011

don't worry 57yo isn't that old.....

Bones · #**237** 02-02-2011

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hondacity

don't worry 57yo isn't that old.....

Nah, not that old man. (44)

Hondacity · #**238** 02-02-2011

im gonna kick someone's ass for calling you old...coz you ain't old @ (**)

Chuchnit · #**239** 02-02-2011

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bones

Actually many of those are newer than you'd think but the model was produced for a number of years.
Drove these in 93-94 and they were still in production at the time under that model name, we had one that was almost new when I started working there.

No, I'm not that old but old enough.

Ya I know. Was just bustin ya balls a lil. I remember they were still making "new" 777C models not too many years ago. Now it is what... D model? Here in the coal industry bigger means newer though. When CAT makes a newer bigger model the smaller ones are old news. There are some areas that still run 773/777 trucks just because of the size of the job. Anything smaller than 773 the cool thing to use is swivel trucks now. Heck a D9R/D10R are too small and for reclamation now. Its either D11R's or Komatsu 575's for the pits.

Neuromancer · #**240** 02-02-2011

I never drove anything larger than a common license would allow. Which in PA is quite a lot, but no HM. CDLs needed for that.

BackHoes/Front loaders, BobCats, flatbed Harvester and a triax Drywall truck. (that was fun tooling down the highway looking DOWN at the OTR guys). Nothing on your scale though. On one hand it must be a lot of fun, on the other hand... snow is awesome and your winter job is to remove awesome. Must suck.