when I saw this on Ocala.com I thought it was a bit unusual to be relaying 11 vehicles one of which is a f-250. I’m thinking it may have been more than one ruck that dropped them and more than one truck picking them up or the load has 10 very small cars so that the 11th vehicle could be an f-250. I titled my post with the word missing instead of stolen because one of my trucks left a car at a transport lot because he couldn’t fit them all on and left the key in the “secret” tailpipe location. In our case it appears that it was mistakenly transported by another auto transporter because about 2 weeks later it showed up in the same spot with the keys back in the tail-pipe. It had normal road grime but no extra miles.

Truck stolen from Adesa Auction

The Jackson Hole News and Guide is reporting a double fatality in the collision of a Ford Focus and an auto transport truck. The transport driver was taken to the hospital for treatment but neither of the occupants of the Focus survived. The auto transporter was traveling empty northbound on Hwy 89 in the Grand Teton National Park. The Ford Focus ,registered in Arizona, was southbound.

From the colors it looks like it may have been a Selland Auto Transport truck.

6-27-08 I got this update from the Hearld Tribune

Grand Teton National Park officials say two tourists from Belgium were killed when their car crashed head-on with a semi-truck hauling a car transport trailer.

This is a sad report.

WFTV has a slideshow of helicopter shots. I pray that the injured man is able to recover fully. It sounds much Like the tragic accident at Adesa awhile back.

The WFTV article says Three people were run down by a car during an auto auction in Orange County. It happened at the Manheim Auto Auction off West Colonial Drive on Tuesday.

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Eyewitnesses said a worker driving a Porsche Cayenne lost control and went into the crowd. Four people went to the hospital. That includes the driver. One person was left in serious condition.

Yahoo news just ran an article on the effect the high fuel prices are having on the independent trucker and I think that the effect is virtually the same for small family companies. I hear it all the time as I visit the smaller auto transporters that are feeling the squeeze. Flying j has diesel listed on their website costing $3.879 a gallon

PA, Smithton

I-70 & Exit 49

3.8790

I’m not sure at this point if it is good for my business or not. I install computer programs and one of the effects of this economy is that people tighten their belt and don’t spend on anything that is not absolutely necessary to try and make it through the tough times. That means that a set-up fee of $500 to $1000 that in the past would have been no big deal can squash or at least delay a set-up. The flip side of the coin is that in this economy everyone is looking for maximum efficiency and so some are realizing that the technology available can decrease stops and empty miles as well as decrease waste caused by missed exits and inaccurate routing so some see the computer as a tool to help them through this tough time. My big question is which effect will be stronger?

Saab pros has posted their rates including what the fuel surcharge will be at different fuel prices on their web site. We may see an upsurge of this type of pricing in the future.

I wonder if they ever imagined they might have to add another tier above $4.50 a gallon.

	Fuel Surcharge:
	Diesel price at pump less than $3.00/gal.	Base rate
	Diesel price at pump $3.01 to $3.25/gal.	Base + 5%
	Diesel price at pump $3.26 to $3.50/gal.	Base + 10%
	Diesel price at pump $3.51 to $4.00/gal.	Base + 15%
	Diesel price at pump $4.01 to $4.50/gal.	Base + 20%

I missed this on feb 1st

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — An elderly couple was seriously injured Friday when their car slammed into the back of a big rig unloading new cars at a Scottsdale Lexus dealership.

Police said the woman was driving when the couple’s sedan, heading east on McDowell Road at about 40 mph, collided with an 18-wheel car hauler that had stopped in the roadway to unload cars.The new vehicles had all been unloaded from the truck, allowing the couple’s sedan to go up the car hauler’s ramp and slam into the back of the cab before coming to rest hanging halfway off the ramp.Police said the couple was taken to a Scottsdale hospital, the man with life-threatening injuries.