Finding Solutions
Pointing out problems is easier than finding solutions. Finding solutions is more productive. I would rather find solutions. Most of the people that I surround myself are the same way. There have been a lot of people pointing out the problems with the new HOS. The House of Representatives recently broadcast a hearing on the new HOS. I have taken some grief because I won’t spend the time to listen to the hearing. My belief is that it was a bunch of Representatives gathered to pontificate in front of a camera. If they really were interested in being involved in the debate they should have acted sooner.
My friends know that I enjoy carpentry. I am not very good at it. I can picture it and get it done. It takes me about 3 or 4 times as long as it would take a professional carpenter. My projects usually work out OK. Wide moldings help a lot. When I wanted to build a deck on the river the government said no. It had to be 75 feet beyond the ordinary high water mark. I ended up building it 78 feet from the water mark. That presented a problem. It was in the middle of the hill and was impossible to access for my mom.
The solution was to build a deck on the bottom of the house and a bridge between decks.. The new de
ck was 36 feet from the house. It was also 34 inches lower than the house deck. My mom could access the deck from the house. The solution has other benefits. Access to indoor plumbing is much easier. The coolest thing is the downhill aspect makes for a great big wheel drag strip for the grandchildren. They have a blast flying down the bridge and hitting the brakes at the bottom.
My wife is a teachers’ aide and an EMT/IV tech. She is also an amateur quilter. Roxanne is a better quilter than I am a carpenter. My latest carpentry project is a log bar. Roxanne noticed that her knees and back were aching after her pinning sessions. Then she thought about using MY BAR as a pinning station. It worked perfectly. It was her solution.
My biggest problem with the new HOS is the 30 minute break. I like to get going and burn my 11 as quickly as possible. Burning my 11 before my 14 makes me feel as if I am gaining time. My lunch break is often at the KFC at the 215 mile marker on I65 in Indiana. It has truck parking and a buffet. I have noticed that lunch takes about 22 minutes. My plan is to spend that extra 8 minutes checking email. The other issue is when you take your 30 minute break. On paper it takes about 5 hours to get there from Green Bay. Taking your 30 minute break before 6 hours can lead to taking a second break. But doing a pre trip inspection, then picking up a loaded trailer takes at least 30 minutes. And occasionally Chicago traffic holds me up. It holds me up more often now that I have electronic logs.
There are more than a dozen places to eat with truck parking between Gary, IN and Remington, IN. That is a 75 mile stretch. That makes it as convenient as possible to get in a 30 minute break. The 75 mile spread ensures that I will be able to avoid needing to have to take a second break. Good trip planning, with flexibility has always helped us optimize our time. I am sure that you will handle this too.