Sure, you have the plain Jane trucks that, tour our cities' highways looking for a quick hit (some folks would call these guys crooks). They are usually medium size, similar to this one used by our local police.........
.........but, going beyond that, there are some very interesting rigs on the roads. Ever wonder what can tow the very biggest vehicles?
Something like this would never be seen towing a mere car. No, this monster and the one below......
.......can tow just about anything from a bus (probably a loaded one) to a huge tractor trailer rig or even a fully loaded dump truck. How else did you think that they got moved, when they had a problem? For that matter, even when the very biggest trucks break, there needs to be something even bigger or at least more powerful to come to their rescue and take them back to the shop. For example.......
If you've followed this blog forever, you'll remember the one I did on those huge Terex and Caterpillar mining trucks. Never think that they break down? Guess again, my friend, so they too, need a tow truck that can get them back to the shop. And some of them can get pretty fancy, if you have a proud owner driver......
And by this picture below, you can see that there are a few other folks, who find some of these tow trucks interesting and maybe even interesting enough to devote an entire wall to displaying models of them. Hey, I said I was interested in them, not obsessed by them.
But it stands to reason that, if there are huge tow trucks, there must be something at the other end of the spectrum. There might even be a "toe" truck somewhere......
Sure, you'd expect a Mini tow truck, since they have been converted into just about everything that you can imagine and a few that you can't. But what about this Daihatsu Midget (the name says it all).......
......or this one from some other company Pacific rim country........
Now, just imagine what these little fellows are equipped to tow? No, I can't think of anything either, maybe a golf cart, but heck, you could push them.
Tow trucks. Give them respect when you see them, or at least the biggest rigs and remember that size doesn't always equate to power (the exception being the little guys above).........
Until next time.........
For every purpose there is a piece of equipment sized to properly deal with it in the event of an emergency. For the most part I have a great deal of respect for tow trucks and what they do, but there are some that give me a great deal of contempt.
ReplyDeleteCase in point: The college admin got tired of students parking their vehicles in places where they weren't supposed to so it decided to take affirmative action; it hired a towing company to patrol the campus and tow any violators away. I respected that and always parked my truck in the student parking lot. However, there were times I had to pick up something at one of the buildings and needed my vehicle to carry it back. One time I parked my truck in front of the door to the classroom, left it running with the flashers on, and went inside. It wasn't three minutes when I came out to find my truck hoisted up and almost ready to tow. I waited until the driver slid in behind the wheel of the tow truck then bolted for mine. I got the passenger's door open and jumped in. The ride to the impound lot was about three blocks; the tow truck driver drove in, made a wide circle and proceeded to drop my truck off. After he dropped my truck and headed for the gate, I started mine and almost beat him to the gate. I passed him just outside and sped back to campus.
I knew I'd likely be summoned to the dean's office so I beat everyone to the punch and was there explaining everything to the dean when the call came in. The towing company demanded its $50 but I told them to sue me. It took a while but by the time the semester was over, there were no more tow trucks circling the campus like vultures and they even dropped my key (the one I left in the ignition with the engine running and the door locked, which the tow truck driver had to defeat to remove the key) off at the dean's office. I still bristle whenever I think about it because that guy was totally in the wrong.
Great story, George, of the kind of things that only a younger mind can dream up.
DeleteJuly 21: Hey buddy, need a tow? Sounds like the start of an adventure! Count me in for some roadside camaraderie. Let's roll.Hawaii Towing Company Inc.
ReplyDelete