Attention: TDR Forum Junkies 
Thanks to all the recommendations, tips, tricks, suggestions, etc. , I've completed the first round trip, Nashville-Las Vegas-Nashville, about 4,000 miles in all. Everything went exceptionally well and the truck pulled the trailer like a champ (12,300 lbs on the return).
I did pick up a nail in a trailer tire and Good Sams ERS came to my aid in less than an hour and had my spare on in no time flat. It was at the end of a day's run and after everything cooled down, I noticed a slight loss of air pressure and saw a nail in the tire. I was lucky that it did not cause me one minute of delay.
Driving instructions through Memphis were a HUGE help! I-40 is really rough in places and it helped knowing the best plan of attack.
The book, "The Next Exit", is worth every penny as it helped me make reservations at a Ramada near OK City and a Hampton Inn in Albuquerque that have good interstate access and good truck/trailer parking (not BIG truck, but good for my size). I also had a good experience with Flying J truck stops, while some other brands of truck stops were not up to Flying J's standards.
I'll take a week or two off and do the round trip again, but the three, ten hour days each direction were really not a problem. I did enjoy my new iPod, as it has enough commercial free, DJ free music to listen to for the entire 60 hours without repeating a song. There are some lonely stretches of New Mexico and Arizona that most likely do not have good radio coverage. You guys with satellite radio must enjoy that too.
I may add a CB before the next trip, partly for entertainment, and partly for the valuable information it provides. I'm not sure what I want to do about an antenna. I'd really like a combo radio/CB antenna so that I don't clutter up the truck. There are some expensive CBs on the market, but I think I'll just go the cheap route since it is only for limited use. If this was going to be something I did regularly or for a living, I'd go with a quality unit.
Thanks again guys. You all made the trip safe and easy.
I did pick up a nail in a trailer tire and Good Sams ERS came to my aid in less than an hour and had my spare on in no time flat. It was at the end of a day's run and after everything cooled down, I noticed a slight loss of air pressure and saw a nail in the tire. I was lucky that it did not cause me one minute of delay.
Driving instructions through Memphis were a HUGE help! I-40 is really rough in places and it helped knowing the best plan of attack.
The book, "The Next Exit", is worth every penny as it helped me make reservations at a Ramada near OK City and a Hampton Inn in Albuquerque that have good interstate access and good truck/trailer parking (not BIG truck, but good for my size). I also had a good experience with Flying J truck stops, while some other brands of truck stops were not up to Flying J's standards.
I'll take a week or two off and do the round trip again, but the three, ten hour days each direction were really not a problem. I did enjoy my new iPod, as it has enough commercial free, DJ free music to listen to for the entire 60 hours without repeating a song. There are some lonely stretches of New Mexico and Arizona that most likely do not have good radio coverage. You guys with satellite radio must enjoy that too.
I may add a CB before the next trip, partly for entertainment, and partly for the valuable information it provides. I'm not sure what I want to do about an antenna. I'd really like a combo radio/CB antenna so that I don't clutter up the truck. There are some expensive CBs on the market, but I think I'll just go the cheap route since it is only for limited use. If this was going to be something I did regularly or for a living, I'd go with a quality unit.
Thanks again guys. You all made the trip safe and easy.
