I haven't been there for a while, but the way it used to be set up, you came out of the Mojave over Tehachapee Pass, rode up to Bakersfield on Hwy 58, went under Hwy 99 and across some farm country to hit the interstate, I-5. The underpass that went under 99 was a low one with lots of "low bridge ahead" warning signs, urging truckers with high loads to use an alternative route.

But these guys were Army truckers, they didn't have to stop at California scales, didn't have to worry about all the things that make trucking hard for civilians...just load 'er up and go. It was that mentality that caused the problem. Once you reach a certain level in the military, you have to be a boss and do not often get to do the things you like most. In the case of Motor Transport Operators, by the time you are a staff sergeant (E-6), you don't get to drive much because your duties are more in the nature of supervisor. Our operational manager in a truck company is the Truckmaster. He NEVER gets out on the road. So when this particular mission came up on short notice and most of the company was already on other missions, Truck (as we called him) decided to leave things in the able hands of his operations NCO and lead the short notice mission himself.

Simple job. Go to Fort Irwin in the Mojave Desert, outside (way way waaaaay outside) of Barstow. Pick up an Air Defense Artillery Battalion. Bring them back to Fort Ord. Two days, three at the most. Truck was like a kid in a candy store. Phase one was flawless, pulled out on time, hit Barstow for dinner, into Irwin before dark. Loaded up the next morning, done by early afternoon. Ready for an early morning departure the next day. Piece of cake.

This particular unit was equipped with the Chaparral missile system. It looked kind of like a mini-tank with missiles on top instead of a turret with a big gun. Of course, for transporting them, the missiles weren't mounted on their rails. The track vehicle, minus missiles, weighed about 15 tons. We could fit two of them on our trailers, but it was a tight fit and required a lot of crawling around to tie them securely on the trailer. Most tractor trailers operating on interstates are limited to a gross weight of 80,000 lbs. Our trailers had three axles and were rated at 105,000 lbs. California didn't like us to go over 90.000. Oh well, sometimes ya do things ya hate. But I digress...the two Chaps made a very comfortable load, thirty tons ate up enough of the springs to make a smooth ride and wasn't so much that the Cummins Big Cam III couldn't sail along easily. Truck got every one loaded and checked out and put to bed early so they could get a move on in the morning.

The trip was uneventful until they cut across the bottom of Bakersfield. There was that pesky underpass. But all the trucks had sailed under it with not a problem. Truck was the last in line and reasoned if they all did it, so could he. Of course, being THE Truck, the senior guy and most experienced truck driver in the unit, he would sail through it at freeway speed, all the other truckers had crept through it to insure they made it. They all had about 9-12 inches to spare. It came as quite a shock to him when the truck came to a sudden stop under the underpass.

Apparently, when the missile system crews take the missiles off their rails, they tilt the rails up close to firing position to facilitate sliding them off. When they return the rails to travel position there is a latch or detent or something that keeps the rails locked down. If the latch doesn't latch, all that sixty mile per hour wind blowing on them can push them up into firing position, where they are almost three feet taller than in travel lock. Guess how we know that? uh huh.

The damage to the track was extensive, expensive, and it made some senior officers in the division really mad. The damage to the bridge was extensive, expensive, and a civilian matter that no one in OD paid much attention to after the ticket for careless driving was issued. There was a few weeks of finger pointing, finger shaking, finger waving until the Army decided that no one would have to face a firing squad...but everyone who touched that missile system got a new one ripped into place, courtesy of at least an O-5 (that's a Lieutenant-Colonel).

Then a couple of months later, as he was preparing to drive to Bakersfield for his court date, Truck received a notice from California that they expected him to pay for the damages to the bridge. The repair bill total had a LOT of zeroes on the left of the decimal point.  I don't think his shirt-tail touched his butt until he reached the JAG office. JAG explained that it was normal for the state to try to hold on individual responsible, especially since he was the one driving the truck. But they also told him that the claim was already in the works and he shouldn't worry too much.,,They could work our a pay plan. (JAG was joking...but Truck was still scared all the way to Bakersfield. He was sure he would be arrested when he showed up). He didn't have to buy the bridge, but he did have to work out payments on his fine...it was a good 'un.