TIME TO TRADE
One might not be as valuable as a vintage Mickey Mantle, but then jocks chewing tobacco never looked good in chrome, either. The 18 Wheelers Series Three trading cards include 98 new and antique trucks. They can be found at certain truck stops, by calling (800) 727-4488 or by visiting www.18wheelers.net.
RUDENESS KNOWS NO LIMITS ON THE NASTY NIMITZ
The San Francisco Chronicle reports that I-880 from Oakland to Fremont has the worst drivers in the Bay Area, according to a poll by the American Automobile Association of Northern California. That stretch of 880, nicknamed the Nasty Nimitz, has heavy loads of commuters and trucks. Tied for second were I-80 between Oakland and Vallejo and Highway 101 between San Francisco and San Jose.
SWEET DIESEL DREAMS
Ambient music – you know, the long recordings of mountain streams or crashing waves intended to soothe frazzled nerves – has nothing on Anton Simpson. He has produced “The classic sound of Brian Hidgems’ 1960 Peterbilt 281.” After the sounds of a door opening and closing, it’s pretty much the steady chug of a 262 Cummins grinding through gears for an hour – though, writes Simpson, “You will hear it has a Jake Brake.” To order a tape or CD of this first in the series of Anton’s Diesel Truck Dreams, write to: 56 Castlerigg Dr., Lakeland Way, Burnley, Lancs. BB 128 Au., England, 01282 415142.
LET’S SKIP THE FREE REPLAY
“It was like a pinball machine in there.”
– Lisa Granzo, after a wheel snapped off a tractor-trailer and smashed through her Indiana house, ricocheting off the ceiling and wall before landing on her new waterbed
GAS GUZZLER
“The smoke from diesel vehicles gives me a headache and makes me tired.”
– Purbasha Majumdar, a college student waiting for her turn to breathe scented oxygen for 20 minutes at an oxygen bar in Calcutta, India, where Reuters news agency reports citizens have rising concerns about air pollution
