(By Greg Rourke) – Thinking about a career in trucking? Want to get an idea of what it’s like? Yeah well, look elsewhere, this ain’t it.
Here we have an educational film made in the 1950s about a day in the life of a truck driver. Back when a trucker’s cap wasn’t a foam snap back. When drivers wore a uniform with a tie. Yard drivers did all the yard driving, dock hands did all the freight handling. A fuel island attendant filled the tanks with gasoline, I guess diesels were just a fad yet. Now our driver can hit the road.
We are informed he has a hot load for Sandusky, Ohio. Probably stuff for Callahan Auto Parts new brake pad division. He rolls out of the Chicago terminal in daylight with strict orders to be there by 5AM, about 300 miles away. Shouldn’t be too difficult to make in likely 12 hours, but we do have a gasoline engine in a big rig.
We are rolling down a newfangled Interstate highway before all the potholes have been installed so it’s smooth going. We stop at a truckstop where a guy checks everything and pounds the tires with a calibrated hammer, apparently. Later we have dinner at midnight where polite, well dressed drivers have coffee served in china cups and saucers. After we’re off the superslab we come upon the unfortunate driver of a 57 Chevy wagon who failed to negotiate a curve so of course he’s on fire, our hero dumps his extinguisher on it.
Finally our driver gets to the terminal and bumps the dock. Made excellent time too, averaging about 25 MPH.
Some things get better, some things get worse.
CANNONBALL
Them song from the TV Series
Barrelin’ down the highway
Wheelin’ right along
Hear the tires hummin’
Hummin’ out a song
The rumble of the diesel
The shiftin’ of the gears
The rhythm when he’s rollin’
It’s music to his ears
Cannonba-a-a-ll! Cannonba-a-a-ll!
Any kind of weather
Any time of day
When the rig is ready
He’ll be on his way
He’ll carry any cargo
He’ll go anywhere
Name the destination
And brother, he’ll be there
Cannonba-a-a-ll! Cannonba-a-a-ll!
I remember watching that show.
Cool old flick, I drive a TT to pay the bills, yes a lot has changed, but the mission is still the same, put freight into a wheeled vehicle and deliver it….