Have you ever seen a truck this big?

On one of my recent trips out to Florida I pulled into the Tiger Truck Stop in Gross Tete, LA to partake in their fine cuisine when I spotted one hell of a beast and I’m not referring to the tiger that makes his home at the truck stop. The beast I’m speaking of was a 600 inch wheel based Freightliner Coronado renegade,  a somewhat rare truck that was pulling Chris Rado’s scion racers. Check this amazing truck out!

Want to check out what these guys are hauling in the back of this beautiful rig? Check out Chris Rado in action

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I thought I was one tough trucker.

The American Trucker is often seen as the last American mountain man, a nomad of sorts traveling across America through some of the worst of conditions to deliver his freight. A way of life for most, a job for others but one thing is for certain.  We’re a tough as nails subculture who can  do more then tell you about what it takes to keep a nation running we can show you the bruises.

As I like to say “trucking is not for pussies“. I have seen men travel under some really bad conditions and when I say conditions I’m not talking about the weather in this case. Most people have the luxury to call out if they feel a cold coming on. Have you had the flu or a cold lately? did you call out of work?  When normal civilians can call their doctor and schedule a appointment to take care of their health that is often not a option for a trucker who could be thousands of miles away from his doctor, if he even has one.

I once had a medical emergency that was life threatening, So I drove myself to the ER in Pasadena CA they told me “you can’t park that big truck here!” I said “watch me #$@#$ I’m about to die!!”. Finding a legal place to park to seek medical attention is another huge problem in the trucking industry.

I have dealt with all kinds of medical conditions on the road before I could get home or to a qualified doctor to take care of myself such as: broken bones, abscessed teeth. pinched nerves etc.. No one should have to compromise their health, their safety and the life of everyone around them because no one is there to help in their time of need or they’re to stubborn to seek out help. When I first started driving I hated the idea of taking time of to take care of my health after many health problems and nearly loosing my life on several occasions I realized taking care of your health should be every drivers number one priority.

I digress, I want to share a story with you about one trucker who’s medical situation makes my “dealt with medical problems list”  look like a whiny excuse to write a article. Trucker Jason Ripley was cruising through Darlington, Co Durham when he hit a crash barrier. What is so strange about that, you say “it happens everyday” you say “stop wasting my fu#king time” you say.  Alright mother #$@$# I’ll get to it. What makes this different is not only that he was impaled by a 8ft pole but that he was conscious enough to call his boss and say “I’ve had a bit of an accident - I’m in a spot of bother sir.“  That is truly a tough trucker. Jason recovered and was back to work shortly after the accident.

A short video blog about part of the sacrifices truck drivers make to insure others are taken care of. Some understand and appreciate it (like the mad Greek in baker ca) some others don’t, Perhaps they will after watching this video.

Production notes: The workflow I’m using for these vlogs is lame, I’m editing the raw h.264 files on a dell studio laptop. I should neoscene the files so I could actually edit in real time as well as slight better color representation , not that it would help this cheap camera much. These videos are quick to cut together so I am not trying to spend to much time on them.

Camera: Flip Ultra HD
Edited: Sony Vegas pro 9.0
Colored: Sony Vegas pro 9.0

Shot hand held, no mounts, no sticks

Rendered at: Audio: 192 Kbps, 44,000 Hz, 16 Bit, Stereo, WMA
Video: 30 fps, 1280×720 Progressive, WMV, 6 Mbps
Pixel Aspect Ratio: 1.000

My goal with these video blogs is to show a real life look into what it is like trucking with Eskimo Sean and Trucker Steve. No professional equipment, just a cheap flip ultra HD camera and a little bit of creative editing. If you would rather me just make silly/sad videos let me know, I don’t want to waste my time with this if it is lame to you.

Production notes: The workflow I’m using for these vlogs is lame, I’m editing the raw h.264 files on a dell studio laptop. I should neoscene the files so I could actually edit in real time as well as slight better color representation , not that it would help this cheap camera much. These videos are quick to cut together so I am not trying to spend to much time on them.

Camera: Flip Ultra HD
Edited: Sony Vegas pro 9.0
Colored: Sony Vegas pro 9.0

Shot hand held, no mounts, no score

Rendered at: Audio: 192 Kbps, 44,000 Hz, 16 Bit, Stereo, WMA
Video: 30 fps, 1280×720 Progressive, WMV, 8 Mbps
Pixel Aspect Ratio: 1.000

stated by Sean on his description for the video:

Every trucker, with diesel in their veins, knows how hard the industry is. They also know, there’s nothing else they’d rather do. There is a time to step out of the truck, sometimes we may not heed the warning signs, but push that extra mile in. Eventually, it takes it’s toll.

The stresses of trucking lead to many health issues, From minor cases, that can change with habit or diet, to death. Most of you know John as Youtube user 18wheelsoffaith. 19 years on the road, countless miles under his belt. Each mile bringing him closer to today.

With past military stress, family issues, and everything that comes with driving, the stress has finally caught up. He is not a rare case. He is one of many drivers that crave the next mile. It’s what Trucking is all about.

All to often drivers in this situation are never noticed by the public. Another down fall of the ignorance towards Truckers and the industry.This video goes to all True Truckers, and by that, I don’t mean steering wheel holders you find in truck stops whining and complaining. I mean the ones who realize the lifestyle, the challenges, pitfalls, obstacles, hazards and still love the life.

But most of all, this video is for, and dedicated to John “big foot 18 wheeler” Blocker.
I thank him for his support, when I had to leave the lifestyle behind. Showing me from the other side what it’s like to move on.

Sean and I met up a couple of days ago to start principle photography on my next short film (Ice road trucker alex) While I was in route to meet with Sean he gave me a call and said “hows about given me a ride to the west coast.”

Of course both of us being into film we decided we should document our travels. I will be capturing video every day with a flip ultra hd camera, So expect more videos. If you would comment below and tell me if you think I should add  a new page to our blog here where these daily videos could be viewed in a player?

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