Tonka Tango

Tonka trucks in our sandbox and comic books that featured robots and machinery were a big part of my early youth. Today, I went back in time. Real time.

Most of my working life is comprised of sitting behind my desk or in a conference room studying the operations and capital needs of our clients. Most of this happens via charts and spreadsheets. But, occasionally, I get to kick the tires and I love my days in the field.

This is a Caterpillar 793 and it is in many ways a backbone of the industrial world. It is 42 feet long, 22 feet high, and 21 feet wide. Its price is nearly $6 million and it likely has more computer chips onboard than did Apollo 13. The cost of the tires is an additional $300,000 per set and they typically last less than one year. Each of the tires are 13.5 feet tall and five feet across the tread. If all of that does not amaze you, perhaps this will: It will carry 480,000 pounds of payload at speeds of up to 40 mph.
After sitting in the cab of one of these today, I marvel at the men and women who pilot these trucks and they do such with pinpoint accuracy and utmost confidence and ease.

As with any industrial machine, there is an impact to the earth. But, fifteen years ago, it would have taken nearly nine trucks to have the productivity of this one.

Sorry for the he-man-blip, but this is what happily comprised my entire day. The big truck gets bigger in big.

Please have a great over the hump day.