Truck towing overloaded kills, driver gets felony charges.

[ultrarunner]

I think so many posts because many here tow large and we talk safety...

I bet more than a few heavy trailers and trucks have been bought due to TBN.

I know I have a little voice that I call TBN when securing load.

Lots of sailboats hauled at Meeks if memory serves.

Having a big boat at Those bestows bragging rights in waters where steamers once plowed...

Having missed the Tahoe fire by two days and driving the same route makes it all the more real...

 

[Jstpssng]

Good Holy Crap !! Over 15,000 posts in a TBN thread? I suppose that sets some kind of record...

Perhaps a very far second... the “Good Morning thread https://tractorbynet.com/forums/threads/good-morning.223701/page-2840 has nearly 10 times as many.

 

[JasperFrank]

Agents were always the same guy, we dealt with at Marinas and always started a conversation with, "This is what we are going to do." As sub-contractors, we would entertain what this guy said his client wanted. And I remember that we passed, on many, and got out of many situations, that later went wrong. You never want an Agent that says, "We are going to do it this way." If that way is odd or on the cheap. The Agent doesn't get to tell you how to do your job. You tell them what the cost is. And they can take that or leave it.
In this case, there will be found an Agent, that brokered this Transport. That person is just as responsible as anyone else for doing this on the cheap, and possibly some fraud involved. I hope all those people are also charged with something.

 

[plowhog]

I don't know why he didnt drop it down a few gear notches, the truck should have been able to handle the load

I'm not confident of that at all.

Different circumstances, but I recently drove a gas motorhome down Monitor Pass. On a Ford F53 chassis. At least as steep as the downgrade involved here.

Even using 2nd gear, and braking to control a speed range all well under 35mph, usually much lower, I exceeded the brake capacity. Twice. I pulled over, twice, into turnouts. Then shutdown for 15-20 mins to let the brakes cool. The 2nd time I could smell brakes *big time.* All this on a single downgrade.

I did not have brakes on the tow vehicle. But it was only a 3,800lb Jeep Wrangler.

I'm confident my diesel pusher motorhome with an engine brake could have easily handled this. But that's a completely different category-- it's GVW is 48,000 lbs. I'm not so sure of a Ford Pickup. Towing a much, much heavier load.

 

[4570Man]

I don't know why he didnt drop it down a few gear notches, the truck should have been able to handle the load

If it was a diesel with an exhaust brake maybe. But without the exhaust brake it would have no chance. And you’re assuming the guy has a functioning brain cell which he apparently doesn’t otherwise thar load wouldn’t be hooked behind an F350 without trailer brakes.

 

[ultrarunner]

Many forego licenses for reasons stated and plead ignorance later.

Happens all the time with unlicensed drivers here... they simply don't pay for insurance so no registration and not operators license and willing to walk away from car if a problem.

Tag theft here is huge...

Stopped... no license, reg or insurance call Uber for a ride home and forfeit junker which won't pass smog anyway.

It costs a lot to operate above the line...

 

[3 Horse Ranch]

Wierdly enough i happened to pass this guy and then had to repass him on the way down the pass. My intuition could tell it was a hinky operation and I got the hell out of the way once passed. In the posted pic i would be just out of sight to the right. I turned off in two blocks and the sirens were already on their way. I could smell the brakes before i passed. I feel for him but he was a moron and two very innocent people got wiped out due to his stupidity/chutzpah. Not saying I've never done anything this stupid(knock on wood for the future). I don't know why he didnt drop it down a few gear notches, the truck should have been able to handle the load

I sort of think that truck was beyond moving that boat no matter the gear. There just isn't enough hold back in a pickup diesel to do anything but creep down the hill at 10 mph and use frequent turn outs to let the brakes cool with 35,000 to 40,000 pounds behind it. A 6% grade has a lot of push.

 

[4570Man]

I sort of think that truck was beyond moving that boat no matter the gear. There just isn't enough hold back in a pickup diesel to do anything but creep down the hill at 10 mph and use frequent turn outs to let the brakes cool with 35,000 to 40,000 pounds behind it. A 6% grade has a lot of push.

Agreed. Some newer trucks have an exhaust brake that’s pretty effective but engine braking alone has no chance with that load.

 

[MikeWanless]

I don't have an answer for you. I have been in a situation of heading down a mountain pass in tractor with a loaded "trailer of wood" with fading brakes with a small town at the bottom of the grade. Barreling through that town without brakes wasn't even on the list of options I considered.
Looking at the highway on Google maps, there is a runaway ramp about a half mile from the intersection. It is unlikely that this was sudden catastrophic brake failure on the trailer, but rather brakes already badly faded and over heated from controlling all that weight down a long grade, a 3000' descent over 10 miles. With that weight over that grade and with the brakes in the condition mentioned in the article, I will make an educated guess that his speed was out of control well before the runaway ramp and definitely well before that intersection.

as i pointed out earlier, he was not speeding when i passed him 2x, the last about 2 miles from the accident. I will say it was a "huge" effing boat, I smelled brakes and i got the hell out of the way fast!

 

[MikeWanless]

I sort of think that truck was beyond moving that boat no matter the gear. There just isn't enough hold back in a pickup diesel to do anything but creep down the hill at 10 mph and use frequent turn outs to let the brakes cool with 35,000 to 40,000 pounds behind it. A 6% grade has a lot of push.

some one else said there is a run way ramp, i missed it but from what i saw he should have been able to make that work if he understood ramps