Mike was issued his truck Friday, and all items were installed (TV, microwave, refrigerator). Repairs that needed to be made were also taken care of on Friday.

The company Mike will be driving for is Elberta Logistics International, LLC (“ELI”). ELI is a trucking subsidiary of Elberta Crate & Box Company. Since 1905, Elberta Crate & Box has been crafting high-quality wirebound crates and has become the largest wirebound box manufacturers in the world. These wirebound boxes are used in the produce, fish, industrial, and military industries.

In 2015, ELI was formed as an asset based carrier. They haul dry van, flatbed, and refrigerated freight. It really is interesting to drive around the yard and see all the different aspects of their business. Below is some of the wood that gets turned into the wirebound crates.

On Friday evening, we moved most of Mike’s items into the rig and got the sheets on the bed. It had been a long day, so we grabbed a very late dinner and got back to the hotel at around 10 pm.

Saturday was spent getting the rig set up, and items such as the GPS and Qualcomm up and running. It really is amazing just how much technology is used in today’s world when it comes to trucking. The Qualcomm (or Omnitracs) is an onboard computer that is basically an electronic logging device that allows trucking companies to track where the driver is, monitor the truck, and exchange messages with the driver similar to email.

The trailer had to be hooked to, the entire rig had to be weighed, pre-trip inspections had to be completed, DEF fluid and fuel had to be put in, too. This is all very time consuming for a first-time set-up especially.

By the time all this was done, it was 4:00 pm, and he was ready to hit the road. It was difficult to say goodbye to each other, but it will just take time to adjust to our new norm.