“So, where you want me to load it?”
“In my truck right there.”
The guy gives it a dubious look, but I’m not worried. I’ve gotten a yard of compost before in Felton and it just barely fits so I figure he’s worried about the volume.
“Whatever will fit”, I say.
My first indication that he didn’t mean what I thought he meant is how the bed bounces on the springs as the soil cascades from the loader. It’s wet, sticks together and falls in clumps.
Hmm…I’ve never seen my truck bounce like that.
The guy running the loader manipulates his controls to shake more soil loose.
Oh, wow…how low is the bed going to sink?
I see the last of the soil fall into the bed and give the guy a thumbs up to indicate that it’s all in there. I flash a grin that I hope hides my inner concern.
Man…I hope this doesn’t break my truck.
Then, an irrational thought.
Hey, if the truck does break, maybe I can get that new one I’ve been eyeing!
He parks the loader then comes over to give me a hand leveling the dirt in the bed.
“Heavier than I thought it’d be”
With a chuckle, “Yeah.”
I get the load covered with a tarp and walk around the truck to check it all.
Oh…that tire’s a lot lower than I realized. I wonder how much this stuff weighs?
There’s normally a good 4-5 inches between the the tire and the wheel well. Now there’s an inch. Maybe.
I gingerly get in, start the truck and put it in gear. I creep slowly over the rutted yard and speed bumps and ease my way onto the road. Every rough spot makes me wince and hope I’m not going to feel a spring give way or tire blow out. Fortunately it’s all back roads to get home - no freeway driving required.
I made it home and got the truck unloaded without any problems, but I sure learned a few things:
- Next time, get a third of a yard, not a full yard
- Maybe there is a reason to get a
more manlyheavier duty truck next time - Soil is heavier than compost
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February 16th, 2006 at 8:48 am
I just had to giggle when I read this as this exact thing happened to Steve and I a few weeks ago with our ‘big truck’ and a yard of river rock. Steve had gotten a 1/2 a yard earlier in the day and had no problem. Then we went back and got a yard. Bad idea. We drove a low rider home.
Valerie
February 16th, 2006 at 9:22 am
A more manly truck! LOL It makes me think of how little your truck looked when parked next to all the behemoths at Bob’s office.
Valerie - a yard and a half of river rock - wow! Where are you guys putting it?
February 16th, 2006 at 10:28 am
The way the horse run-in is situated, the rain in the winter creates a muddy mess that we have to walk through in order to feed. We dug out a ditch and added all the rock. So far so good.
Val
February 17th, 2006 at 6:06 am
Oh yeah. We bought a little half-ton 2wd pickup when we bought the Forever House. Something to abuse with the renovation work. It has a long bed, and we forget that it’s a little guy (just tall for his age, you know).
Anyway, I had one of those rides home, in the dark, in the rain, with the bed fully loaded w/ mold resistant sheetrock (which is heavier than it looks) and several big tubs of joint compound. Had to squat down to get into it. Of course, I was so panicky that I missed my turn and caught the interstate about 30 miles north of where I was supposed to! Yep, just some bawling white chick in a low rider out for a late night cruise!
It’s amazing what these little trucks will tolerate, isn’t it?
Dy