I've driven the 379. It's the precursor of the 389. They are pretty much the same truck. The visibility out the front is poor. Out the back, it's abysmal. I abhor the 379. The hood is so long, the ground is not visible for 30-some feet. It would be very easy for a small car or motorcycle to get lost under that hood with dire consequences. Happened to a friend of mine in the mid-1990s. A small car sneaked into the gap between him and the car in front at a stoplight while he was looking down to get a drink of water from his lunchbox and got under the hood of his big Mack. Kerry pulled a bit forward because the light would soon change-- and hit the car. Never saw it, never knew it was there. Nobody was hurt, but there was an accident and all that one entails. Out the back, visibility is nearly non-existent. The stacks interfere quite badly. Backing up one of the things is a genuine pain in the tokhus. They have such a long wheelbase, that it takes until tomorrow afternoon to get around a corner. Backing one into a slot at a truckstop is an adventure in knee fatigue. They turn so slow and so widely, it takes forever to get one in. I prefer the Freightliner. I can whip a Long Nose Classic XL around like it was a Mini. They just turn faster. I cut my teeth backing into grocery warehouses in metro New Jersey. These filthy dumps were built before the War, when a 35-foot trailer was a big trailer. They are 53 feet long now. Getting a 53-footer and a long-nose road tractor into the docks in these ancient, decrepit places is a test of will.
You'd probably love to have been an American trucker, Fozz. I get to go places and see things most Americans never do. I've been on military bases where the public would never be allowed to go, been to Key West courtesy of my company, seen all the big mountains out in the Big West during all four seasons, seen the deserts, seen the Pacific Ocean on a recent trip down US 101 from San Jose to Los Angeles. I remembered you wrote once in the pages that you like to fly around the SoCal area. I thought "I am seeing it. Fozzer would love to be here." I go over The Grapevine with regularity. You ought to try a flight over Tejon Pass. That's The Grapevine. Beautiful hills and wide-open fields around there. I could go on forever, but you probably have a nice sauce on the heat, so I'll shut up now...
Thanks for that story, Brewer... [smiley=thumbsup.gif]...!
A fantastic read!
Highway 1, following the Pacific Coast, Interstate 101 and 5 are my favourite Sim Flying routes, and not forgetting Highway 10 from LA, Eastwards over the San Bernardino Mountains to Arizona...!
Also following the Route on the film "Duel" (Peterbilt Truck), from Santa Clarita (CSI Las Vegas film location), to Palmdale (14)...

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All wonderful stuff, and a real education!
Paul...Cessna 150, with Twin Air Horns, and polished chrome Stacks!...

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P.S....and what about the classic, Route 66! Which I sim flew in my Beech Baron 58, from Santa Monica to Chicago a while ago!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._Route_66