[JohnK and Sheri]

This afternoon about 5pm we got a call from the truck hauling our third load of bees out of almonds that he was broke down in rush hour traffic in Minneapolis. Transmission I think, they were changing it out on the side of the road. They had no sprinklers. It was mid fifties here so we are very concerned.
The first two trucks got in this morning and are looking very good but this load might be in trouble.
Sheri

 

[Tom G. Laury]

Sheri can you send some pictures? I would like to see them changing out a tranny by the side of the road.

What you ned is another tractor pronto. Muy pronto they may have probs with a roadside installation,(?) it would be surprising if they didn't. Get another tractor and get home. Best wishes.

 

[The Honey Householder]

Sheri,
That is the worst. Transporting bees is the worst day of the year for me.
Hope things work out,
Ron

 

[Trevor Mansell]

Why cant someone just rent a tractor and the driver could just pick the trailer up at your place .

 

[Sundance]

Sorry to hear that Sheri........ If I were closer......
I hope the bees fare well. Why didn't they have
sprinklers??

 

[pahvantpiper]

Mid fifties...I bet you'll be ok. Good luck.

 

[JohnK and Sheri]

Thanks guys.

I am a little shaky on the mechanicals, maybe it wasn't the tranny but a component of it that they said they could swap out on the road in an hour or so. Otherwise another tractor would have been an option. I guess they all figured that by the time they got another truck together they would be back on the road. They were about 2 hours away from us and I wanted to jump in the car and run over there but it wouldn't have helped any.
As for sprinklers, not that many trucks have sprinklers, we have never had a truck with them. Maybe we will demand them from now on.....
The truck got unloaded this morning. There are more dead bees on the deck than normal, but doesn't initially look as bad as I thought it would be. I took pics. What I am most worried about was some looked like the bees were piled up between the frames as you looked in the entrances, not a good sign. We won't really know until they go through them today just how bad it is. It is mid 20s here, cold enough here that they are pretty tightly clustered. I hope that is the reason they aren't responding stronger when I knock on the boxes.
Sheri

 

[Ian]

holly crap! thats not good at all
let us know how they made out

 

[irwin harlton]

any insurance available for live bees in transit?





"And a great storm arose, and it became dark, The waves were driven higher by the powerful winds that blew across the sea, and Jesus had not yet come to them. Then, when they had rowed out about three or four miles on the rough waters, they saw him walking through the tempest, drawing nearer to their boat. Their hearts were gripped with the terror of the storm and the fear of the unknown. But on approaching Jesus said to them, "It is I; do not be afraid." John 6:17-20

 

[JohnK and Sheri]

The truck firm has insurance, but we've never had to test it. I hope we don't have to this time...... we should know more by this afternoon.
Sheri

 

[Sundance]

Fingers are crossed........ insurance is never a
pleasant experience if you have to use it...

 

[JohnK and Sheri]

Well, it is looking like we dodged a bullet yesterday. It must have been late enough and cool enough enough when the truck broke down. There was more than normal amount of dead bees on the deck, but it could have been much worse. If anything, they looked better than the loads from yesterday.
Whew, what a relief! Maybe looking into sprinklers next year.
Sheri

 

[Roland]

Good, had me nervous. Thought I might have to go up there and fix it myself.(I work on 10 dump trucks on the side)

Roland

 

[JohnK and Sheri]

LOL, Roland, I wish you'd been riding shotgun on that load, we would have slept better. As it is, we are feeling very lucky and still looking over our shoulder....
people who ship bees know how it is to worry about bees on the road, we've all heard about those disasters.....
Sheri

 

[BEES4U]

Did you drop a drive line?
Ernie

 

[jean-marc]

I don't think that you'll have troubles with the bees at that temperature, even though it's nerve wracking.

Jean-Marc

 

[Nick Noyes]

Sprinklers sound good but were to you get enough water to run them?

 

[Keith Jarrett]

Sprinklers sound good but were to you get enough water to run them?

Yeah, and sometimes the cheapest rate isn't always the best rate.

 

[Skinner Apiaries]

Sheri, didn't yours leave Friday night? (Talked to Ryan Fri AM) Did ya'll use team drivers? We paid for team, and ended up with a single who got here monday night. He left 7 pallets... And wasnt over weight...

 

[sqkcrk]

Sheri, didn't yours leave Friday night? (Talked to Ryan Fri AM) Did ya'll use team drivers? We paid for team, and ended up with a single who got here monday night. He left 7 pallets... And wasnt over weight...

What are you doing about those 7 pallets? I know someone who had to leave 8 pallets because of weight. Supposedly they were going to get on a short load back to NC. Obviously not yours.