400,000 Miles~

 By mid-April, Butch passed his next milestone of 400,000 OTR miles!  182,950 of those miles with Nationwide since he started driving for them November 1, 2023. 100,000 miles since June of last year.  Of those miles, 82,252 with his original Nationwide truck, Maverick & 19,462 with his new truck Maverick II as of April 12th.  He managed these miles since February first of 2022.

Maverick, 7-15-2024

This last 1000,000 miles were all driven in the Midwest after having reached 300,000 miles in June 17th of  2024.  After making a delivery, an often-used return route, was via a paper pickup at Pixelle Specialty Solutions.  Sadly, the Chillicothe, OH plant is closing. This dispatch gets my award as the most colorful!

6-13-24 A delivery of paper from Pixelle~

There never seems to be a lack of beautiful views driving in the Midwest~

7-13-24 Near Palmyra, MO~

July, Butch had lots of dispatches delivering paper, pallets & more paper.  He almost had a dedicated run between either Omaha, Sioux Falls, KS & Ohio.  He visited the Route 66 Welcome Center in Niangua, MO!

7-29-24 Route 66!

When Butch returned for home time in August, Driver Appreciation items were waiting for him at the office.  

8-20-24 Butch picked up his gifts~

On the 7th we left for our road trip to WA state.  A busman's holiday for Butch.  Sadly, the circumstances were for our Grandson Mason's Celebration of Life.  Seeing our girls & their families was very special to us.  We enjoyed time to talk after so many months mostly spent apart & took some interesting side trips.  I always love seeing the country.

9-4-24 View of Kansas City ~

Back on the road again, Butch kept busy.  The above photo is one of my favorites.

10-25-24 Sugar Creek Packing, Cambridge City, IN

During the course of the year, he made several trips to Sugar Creek Packing.  The size of these warehouses reminds me of small cities.  Some allow overnight parking for the drivers, others don't.  The truck stops anywhere near the bigger facilities are always jam packed, making it difficult to find a place to spend a night if you arrive early or have a middle of the night delivery time.

11-17-24 Love's, St. Paul, IN

Seeing the beautiful sunrises & sunsets are a part of the job that never gets tiring.  Butch used to park the school bus out on one of our big hills to admire the sunrise, if he was running ahead of schedule.

12-3-24 On the way to Hudson, MN

December wouldn't be December without snow.  Lots of snow.

1-14-2025 Rest Area, West Salem, OH

With the truck stops usually so full, Butch likes the rest area's when they're available.  They have places for walks & some have interesting exhibits.  Even there, almost all are completely full early in the evening.

1-17-25 Maverick II

In January, Butch changed over to a new Volvo.  Since this truck is almost a dead ringer for the truck he'd been driving, we decided to keep the name Maverick & just add the II.  The only visible difference is the truck number & the fairings. 

2-17-25 Children's Mercy Hospital, Kansas City, MO

Sadly, Maverick II had engine problems after only just over 7,000 miles.  The truck spent a few weeks waiting on a new engine.  In the meantime, Butch had caught a ride home with another driver & returned to driving his original truck, Maverick.

3-2-25 On the scale, Crete, NE

In answer the question, how much does a loaded truck & trailer weight?  Here's DOT's answer!  Butch always checks his load weight over a scale.

3-3-25 Lizton Rest Area, IN

Maverick's last dispatch for the second time, was a return visit to the Caves.  It was Butch's first time here since he started driving for Nationwide.  It was also his first time driving in at night.

3-6-25 A trip to the Caves~

This is one trip I wouldn't mind taking, just to experience the underground caverns in a semi!  Otherwise, feeling the momentum of all that weight in the trailer while riding in the cab is not something I enjoy at all.  The trip to Buena Vista was enough of that for me!

3-11-25 Maverick II was back on the road~

By March, Butch had flown out to OH & picked up Maverick II from the shop.  The truck was again ready to get on the road.  

3-3-25 Butch receives his first Award from Nationwide~

Butch's award, in recognition of his first year of safe driving with Nationwide.  He will have completed his second year with this company November 1st of 2025.  It's been so handy to have him based close to home.  In March I think he had at least four nights where he slept in his own bed, not counting his home time.  That doesn't happen often enough.  Finn has figured out when I start cooking, Dad is coming home!  He's shared with Butch that meals are pretty lean when he's gone!  

300,000 miles~

200,000 miles~

100,000 miles~

First Year with Nationwide~

 One year ago today, we drove to Omaha. Butch had completed his orientation at Nationwide Transportation, Inc. & was picking up the semi he planned to drive.  His sixth since starting OTR.  We named the shiny blue Volvo Maverick.

10-31-2023 A stop at Love's ~

On the way home, we stopped at the Love's just off I-29.  It was a beautiful evening & as I returned to the Explorer, I couldn't help but admire Butch's new wheels as the sun set.  We spent a couple hours loading some of Butch's things into the truck.  He was leaving on his first dispatch the following morning.

11-1-2023 - 239,496 Miles on the odometer~

The 2022 truck had the mileage above as he took the keys.  I wouldn't see him again until just a couple days before Thanksgiving.  He parked the semi & empty trailer by one of the local schools & I picked him up.  Since then, he drops the trailer at Nationwide's yard & brings  Maverick home.

11-27-2023 Leaving after Thanksgiving~

We had snow on the ground the day he left.  It took him a while to get used to the new to him semi, but after a short time, he was appreciative of the comfort of the larger cab & smoother ride.

11-14-2023 Shopping for a horn~

There was one issue with Maverick!  The horn just wasn't loud enough.  Traveler, Butch's last truck had a great horn & Butch used it.  He joked that Maverick's horn sounded like a VW Bug!  His first stop at Iowa 80, he bought a 130-decibel horn & installed it.  Maverick's horn is now loud, distinctive & attention getting!  I love hearing it when he's a few blocks from home!

In December, Finnigan became a member of our family while Butch was away.  On the 12th Finn & I made a drive up to the Flying J truck stop near Avoca. Butch & Finn took to each other instantly.  It was meant to be!  

12-22-2023, Butch comes home for Christmas!

When Butch pulled in before Christmas, Finn remembered the truck & got so excited as Butch parked the semi.  It hadn't been a chance meeting after all!  He did have a dad!  

1-7-2024 Great Sauk Rest Area, IL

Butch was home to see in the New Year & left on the second.  By the time he was driving in IL, winter was making itself apparent.  Definitely not as difficult as driving I-80 through WY had been last winter.

2-18-2024 - Rest area Chelsea, MI

Driving the mid-west states, he still sometimes made deliveries to warehouses he was familiar with from his first year driving for Blake Scott & pulling D&D trailers.  I appreciated him getting home now & then for an overnight stop.  Also reminiscent of his first year OTR.

3-24-2024

He had driven 633-miles to make the delivery above.  From spending the night at the Flying J in Lebanon, OH to Steelcraft in Cincinatti, OH & finally to Allegion Steelcraft in Lenexa, KS.

4-1-2024

The first of April, Nationwide gave him an April Fool's surprise!  A full set of new tires on Maverick!  He said the difference was noticeable & now the truck traveled about as smooth as could be expected of a semi.

5-22-2024

In May, the rains came!  He was waiting in Jackson, TN as rain came down in buckets.

6-1-2024 - Valero, London, KY

The first of June was another drive of over 600-miles from London, KY, to Steelcraft in Cincinati & ending the day at his favorite truck stop, Iowa 80.

7-15-2024 Lights on the trailers ~

July, mid-month he had a short drive & a long wait, as usual at the Triumph Warehouse in St. Joseph, MO.  To be so close to home & have long waits is the worst.

8-20-2024 Driver Appreciation Day~

In August Nationwide has their Driver Appreciation Day!  The company has drivers who have driven for them over 25-years.  This says a lot about a company's integrity.  They never fail to wish a driver happy birthday on their Facebook page or give congratulations when an employment anniversary date arrives.  All drivers received the above gifts.  Butch is one of the lucky ones who lives near the yard.

9-25-2024 In the shop~

Maverick had traveled a lot of trouble-free miles, until Butch had issues with the battery charging. Luckly he was on a dispatch from Holstein, IA to Sioux City & then home, when it happened.  He made it to the shop, where the alternator was replaced.  He left, but within a couple miles the battery was still not charging.  Back to the shop, where the mechanics found the ECM ground wire was corroded & replaced it. 

10-15-2024 - Fall ~

On the evening of October 15th, Butch was at the eastbound US 30 rest area near Nevada, OH on his way to Chillicothe, OH.  He's familiar by now with most of the dispatch routes, or at least the one's he travels often. 

10-31-2024 - Maverick's odometer

Butch has driven Maverick 125,903 miles!  Congratulations to my husband on another year of safely navigating the highways & byways of the central United States!  Soon, I'll be adding up the mileage from his first day of driving February 1, 2022, to the same date in 2025!

300,000 Miles!

 June 17th, Butch passed another OTR milestone - 300,000 miles!  He accomplished those miles in 28.5 months from the first time he took the driver's seat February 1, 2022.  Maverick has been his steady ride since November 1st. of last year.  From then, until now, he's driven Maverick 81,231 miles.  It's taken from August 23rd of 2023 to accumulate his third 100,000.  This time, he's only driven two trucks, Traveler & now Maverick.

Butch & Maverick~

I've been keeping record of Butch's drives from the beginning.  I use Google maps & plot his dispatches from when he stops each day or night - as it may be - to the next.  When I realized how close he was getting, I reminded him to watch the odometer.  His GPS had stopped working for a few days earlier this year, then reset itself.  I was so happy he'd been taking photos of the odometers of the semi's both when he took keys & when he surrendered them.  Using Maverick's - we still had an accurate accounting of his miles.

6-17-2024 - 300,000 - Crossing the state line, Ohio to Indiana~

Nationwide Transportation in business since 1982, has been a solid company to drive for.  Based in Omaha, Butch gets more opportunities for overnight stops at home now.  Reminiscent of when he was driving for Blake Scott.  

6-14-2024 - Maverick, Near Pleasanton, KS

His routes now include SD, MI, MN, WI, OH, IL, IN, NE, MO, KS, AR, KY, TN, TX & of course IA.  

He carries the usual wide variety of items - from refrigerated loads of food products to massive rolls of colored paper!

6-13-2024 Colorful Delivery~

Life on the road hasn't become any easier.  Pulling in behind a truck at the fuel island, after quite a wait, Butch walked up to see what was going on, only to find the driver at his mid-day prayers.  Later, he came up on the same truck going 60-mph in a 70-mph zone.  As he passed, he could see the driver paying more attention to his cell phone than the road.  As he gave a short blast of Maverick's 130 decibel horn, the driver jumped in his seat!

6-15-2024 Loves Travel Stop, St. Joseph, MO

Mechanically, besides repairs to Maverick's AC the semi has been very reliable.  The truck also received a new set of tires!  Trailers too are kept in good repair & issue free.

3-8-2034 - The I-80 Slip & Slide through IA~

The weather was, as usual, weather.  Driving the central U.S. is as challenging as anywhere else & Butch witnessed the usual interstate mishaps.  He managed to skirt some of the worst of the storms that rolled through.

Maverick's favorite view~

Home Time happens regularly, usually about every three-weeks.  Butch has been able to get home for holidays & appointments.  Getting back on the road is always quick too, which he appreciates.  Soon, it will be three years since Butch left for Joplin.  

Traffic in the cities, long waits at some warehouses, lines at the fuel islands & the sometimes-impossible task of finding a place to park at the end of a drive are the main challenges.  I'm thankful every evening when the phone rings & I know my husband has stopped & safely completed another day's drive!   

First 100,000~

200,000 miles~