Virginia Gun Owners Forum - VGOF

So 95 was a parking lot today from 495 interchange to Ashland so we went the "new way". Made ou way to 28, headed south on 15/29, then took 522 all the way to Powhatan then took the back roads home. Took 2 hours 30 min from the moment we left 95 (north if dumfries to get to chesterfield.

Not bad considering it had taken us an hour to go 6 miles on 95.

Pretty countryside too. Thought of y'all all the way.

If you are going that way it is much more peaceful than the 95 corridor.

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No joke!! Going 95N today it took 4.5 hours to drive from Suffolk to DC. I plan on taking 301 back down and gladly pay $6 at the Nice bridge just to avoid that. This man had to be up at 0600 for work!

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Heh, I suspect you went by Commonwealth Park (horse place on 522) between Route 3 (near Culpeper) and Route 20. That's where Christopher Reeve had his accident. You drive through Orange county, too. Motorcyclists tend to roll through to Waugh's or to ride the more scenic routes in the County.

Unfortunately, 95 is a bit of a main thoroughfare for me. Not supposed to drive this beast on a lot of those side roads.

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SHMIV wrote:Unfortunately, 95 is a bit of a main thoroughfare for me. Not supposed to drive this beast on a lot of those side roads.

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I guess in these days of MapQuest, etc., the dispatcher tells you exactly where to go and how to get there? I ran into that with a piece of equipment that was delivered before we were ready to install it, but that was because of the overwidth permit the state issued. I tried to get it taken to an alternate site across town, but the driver told me the state permit was tied to his in-truck GPS system and if he strayed from the permitted route the state would know it almost immediately. I wasn't plumb sure he wasn't pulling my leg, but come to think of it, I guess dispatchers have a lot more knowledge and control of what goes on between terminals these days, huh?

I do have some flexibility in my routing, so I can stray from the route within reason, but I do so at my own risk.

Also, there are a large number of roads that are truck restricted. And, I have discovered, some roads that are truck-legal but probably shouldn't be.

That driver of yours probably was not pulling your leg. There is an eye on my truck, 24/7. And cab cams. It kinda kills the romance in trucking.

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I reckon that would take a little of the shine off'n trucking.

I used to ride them some and drive them a little when I was just a pup and there was no CDL law and not a whole lot of regulation beyond local and state cops. That was before they deregulated trucking in the late '70s/early '80s and you could actually earn some significant revenue hauling your own raw materials for the "freight allowances" by which suppliers would reduce their prices. We had an old-time trucker that used to LOVE to overload and then run the back roads and "hog-paths" to dodge "the man". Back then, a trucker left the dock and you didn't know if he was alive or dead until he either showed back up, called for a mechanic and/or bail bondsman, or they wrecked what was left of the truck home. These days, sounds like they know when you scratch your b@lls. I guess not all change is necessarily progress.

Sorry can't help you truckers....but look at it this way. If more of our minivans were off 95 and taking back roads yall would have less congestion on the main route.

Anywho.....it was a lovely drive through God's country and we arrived home tired but not exhausted. Gotta watch out for deer though...we nearly clipped one attempting to graze on asphalt.

Didja smile and wave when you passed thru Gum Sprang?!

Palladin wrote:Didja smile and wave when you passed thru Gum Sprang?!

I think probably not... The front of the truck was likely just leaving Gum Spring as the rear of the truck was just coming into Gum Spring.

JC

@Dormin: It strikes me that the trucking industry seems to have gotten heavily regulated since deregulation took place. But, the industry is far older than me, so what do I know?

@MamaBear: Not to concerned with Mamas minivans. Those typically stay out of my way. It's the douche nozzles n in the little sporty cars that are dangerous.

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SHMIV wrote:@Dormin: It strikes me that the trucking industry seems to have gotten heavily regulated since deregulation took place. But, the industry is far older than me, so what do I know?

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What they deregulated back then, basically, was the rate structure and obstacles to getting hauling authorities that isolated a lot of trucking companies from competition. It led directly to the demise of companies like Mason-Dixon that had negotiated year after year of big-money labor contracts counting on the regs to protect them from competition. But unlike most government action, it did actually lead to more competition and lower freight costs. It also led to some under-served areas where freight costs went way up. Then the DOT et als immediately started piling on more numerous and burdensome layers of regulation regarding safety, hours of service, etc. So you guys today are obliged to stay off the road with a rig that you can't eat off any part of, can't drive as many hours, can't stretch as much out of brakes, tires, etc. So in that particular, you are vastly more regulated. The CDL regulations with the attendant stricter "health card" requirements as well as the more stringent restrictions on just how bad your driving record could be put a LOT of the old-time truckers off the road. Could be the drug testing got some of the bad apples that ran on pills, too. But a lot of damn good drivers parked the rig for good due to government regulations. So yeah, trucking got de-regulated, alright. But then it got re-regulated.

mamabearCali wrote:So 95 was a parking lot today from 495 interchange to Ashland so we went the "new way". Made ou way to 28, headed south on 15/29, then took 522 all the way to Powhatan then took the back roads home. Took 2 hours 30 min from the moment we left 95 (north if dumfries to get to chesterfield.

Not bad considering it had taken us an hour to go 6 miles on 95.

Pretty countryside too. Thought of y'all all the way.

If you are going that way it is much more peaceful than the 95 corridor.

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MBC, we used to take a "short-cut" when going to the Eastern Shore to goose hunt - instead of going all the way up I-81 to Front Royal and then going all the way across on I-66, We'd turn off at New Market (or was it Hay Market?) and run across the mountain through the National Forest and come out at Manassas. Fewer miles, pretty drive, and we always saw several nice deer. Made more sense when the speed limit was 60 on the interstate. I've also run down Rt. 29 to Charlottesville and across I-64 to avoid both I-95 AND I-66/I-81. 29 is a pretty drive, as long as you ain't in too big of a hurry. Once ran down US 1 from DC to Richmond. Also a nice drive. And any of those would beat I-95 at 5-10 mph, I reckon.

29 is nice used to take it going to Lynchburg. As I recall lots of speed traps, but I try to keep the speeds down......carrying your offspring limits the lead foot.

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Ha ha, from the sounds of your "new way" it sounds like what we call "the backroads". Been using them for 10 years now from nova to Louisa. They used to be great but as more and more people found out about them it's not nearly as fast as it used to be.

We still use them almost every Friday as 95 is normally f'ed.

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Came home on your route in reverse on Sunday from Pocahontas State Park. 288 to 64 to 522 to 29 to Warrenton. No way was I touching 95n that day. Actually enjoyed the ride better and will probably use it more often when headed that way. No problems pulling a 28 foot travel trailer.

Good to know dry bones as we will prob take that route up from now on as well. We are also looking at getting a travel trailer as well. So it is good to know one can haul it up through that route.

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I love back roads when I am off duty and in my personal vehicle. Hate 'em in the truck. And, it seems that folks who want a truck load of top heavy freight like to locate themselves 60 miles down a twisty curvy back road. Seems that empty logging trucks with lead foot and tail afire end up trying to pass me on those roads, too.

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