Behemoth Load

After aimlessly refreshing the screen on the local news station website for the millionth time the other day a story appeared (good pictures too!) about a traffic alert relating to an oversize load passing through the area. Clicking on the link I was surprised to see that a massive 187 ton turbine was traveling the backgrounds of Upstate NY from the G.E. plant in Schenectady to a location in Pennsylvania. According to the story the convoy would be passing through nearby Cazenovia, NY and possibly laying over there until dawn. Taking to social media I quickly found more than a few posts about this 345 foot long truck and where it currently was parked for the night. By this time in the day there was less than an hour of natural light left so I raced against the very rotation of the earth itself and made the 28 minute drive to Caz in record time.

I had just enough light to snap of a few good photos of the Kenworth C500 that was left tied to the generator for the night. Most of the time while taking pictures of trucks and heavy equipment I’m used to people staring and wondering what I’m doing. This time around the tables were turned. Car after car slowed down for photos and long glances. More than a few stopped and wandered around the truck. People coming together over trucks. This is how it should be everyday!

This truck is the biggest I have ever seen on the roads. It officially dwarfs the Trans American Trucking rigs commonly seen parked in rest stops along I-81.

With the sun officially down for the day I made my way into the village to check out the local hotel figuring the crew had to be close by. Rounding the bend I was greeted to the scene of not one Kenworth C-500 but four! Also in the parking lot were a variety of bucket trucks, pickups, service trucks, and a Kenworth T-800 that on any other day would seem massive.

The more I got to think about the more I wanted to see more of this setup in action. I figured they would be ready to hit the road at first light and make their way down NYS Route 20 which has more than a fare share of steep hills, 7% up and down at the least. The local media had the entire route laid out and with previous reports of the convoy averaging 3 miles per hour I figured an early lunch would help me catch some of the action.

The original plan called for the convoy to travel down RT 20 until it could make the turn on to Apulia Road. Looking at the map below you’ll see that the turn occurs at a weird angle for most vehicles let alone a 345 foot long truck. Working my way along 20 eastward toward Cazenovia I came across the Edwards crew laying down mats and steel plates at this intersection to help give the truck enough room to execute a swing.

Do you have an idea where this story is heading? Yup, you guessed it. The turn was too tight. I sat along a hillside outside of Cazenovia for about two hours waiting to see this mega load crest the hill and thunder on by. Each time headlights in the distance appeared I strained to see if was the pilot car or State Police. Each time traffic in the opposite direction seemed to stop for a prolong period of time I though the moment had arrived. What is that saying about the best laid plans? Below, the intersection as seen by Ray, another avid heavy equipment fan of CNY.

 

A photo posted by Ray Sabin (@strawberry_cowboy) on Feb 2, 2017 at 1:24pm PST

So what’s next? Well, the load was supposed to be in Homer, NY by today (Thursday 2/2/17) and well into the countryside around Ithaca by Friday. Clearly, that ain’t gonna happen. I’m sure someone will figure out how to get the truck around the turn by tomorrow. Lord knows I won’t be sitting there waiting for that to happen but maybe now I’ll be able to pick up the chase come Saturday. 😉

Below, one of my famous rambling vids where I try to explain things that I really don’t know much about.

Here is another angle of this complex setup as seen from above. Click here to learn more about the company hauling this load, Edwards Moving and Rigging. 

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