Chapter 22: On the Road Again

The new coach arrived in the freight yards of Union Pacific. The yards were in the neighboring town of Roseville, and Harlan, Rose and I were there to supervise the unloading and inspection of the new unit. It had been covered with a soft fabric material to ward off dust and debris. I wasn't permitted to drive it off the flatcar. That was a job for an experienced man, they said. I watched as they expertly moved the big unit slowly down the steel ramps and onto the apron. I wasn't breathing until it was safely on the ground.

It took three men to remove the tarp and we set about inspecting the exterior for any signs of damage. There was no hint of a problem along the sides or the front and rear. I stepped into the bucket on a cherry-picker with one of the crew and inspected the top of the unit. Again, we saw no sign of any damage.

Our next inspection was the interior. Much of the cabinet and door fixtures had been securely taped shut to avoid them popping open during transit. I was impressed with the care the manufacturer had taken to make sure nothing was going to interfere with their delivery of the big, expensive machine.

We took an hour to complete the inspection, but when it was done I told Harlan that we could sign off on the delivery slip and start to move it to Sierra Motorworks, the location where we would get it ready and serviced for use. With some help, I installed the batteries. We had brought a ten gallon canister of diesel fuel along with us to move the coach to our maintenance provider. They would go over all the mechanicals and interior furnishings to make sure everything was working properly. I made a quick check that there was oil in the engine and fluid in the transmission before boarding.

After getting Rose on board with the lift, I turned to Harlan.

"Do you want to do the honors," I grinned.

He gave me a big smile, leaned over and pushed the start button. The big diesel sprang to life immediately and I gave him a thumbs up and a high five. Rose clapped her approval. I adjusted the mirrors and slowly moved out of the rail yard, following Harlan's directions to our maintenance provider's shop.

I knew within a couple of miles that I was going to enjoy driving this big unit. It was the latest in technology and was quieter and smoother than the coaches I had been piloting at Silver Arrow. I was almost disappointed when we pulled up to Sierra Motorworks and handed the coach over to the mechanics. It would be a day or more before we could pick it up and take it "home." I could see the excitement in both Harlan and Rose as we watched the coach being carefully driven into the shop. The next time we saw it, it would be spotless and ready to roll.

"You aren't saying much, Doug," Rose said with a slight smile. "I expected you to be excited about the new vehicle. It's a 'one of a kind.'"

I turned to her and returned the smile. We had been sitting in the living area of my home, waiting to take Harlan down to Sierra to pick up the new coach.

"It's that all right," I agreed. "And yes, I am excited. It's something completely different and I can't wait to get it on the road for the first time."

"Debbie is really a nice young girl," she said.

It was a complete non sequitur and caught me wondering what she was thinking. My confusion must have shown in my expression.

"Uhhhm, yes, thank you. I'm very proud of her."

"Has she told you what she wants to study when she goes to college?"

"No ... not yet. I got the impression she hadn't made up her mind."

"She asked me my opinion on teaching. She wondered if I thought she would be happy with a career in education."

"Huh! So ... what did you tell her?"

"I told her she should do whatever she felt strongly about. Forget what anyone else thinks and consider what might make her happy."

I thought about her comment and then nodded.

"That sounds like good advice. I don't recall anyone trying to convince her to pick any particular career, but perhaps her school counselor or someone else might have suggested something."

"You're a pretty smart guy, Doug. I wasn't so sure when Harlan hired you, but after meeting your family and seeing you interact with them, I think I underestimated you."

"You mean, how could a lowly bus driver raise three smart kids like I did?" I said, not without some attitude."

"Don't get bent out of shape, Doug. It was a compliment and from what I can see, you aren't lowly or just a bus driver. You've had some hard things happen to you in your life and you've handled them very well. I've been there, so I know what I'm talking about. What I'm wondering is what you want out of this job besides just driving that fancy big rig up and down the state?"

"You know, I've been thinking about that very thing. What am I supposed to do when Harlan isn't on the road? I've been toying with the idea of going to school."

"Good plan," she grinned. "But Harlan isn't going to be here forever. Their sons aren't going to take over the business and his daughter is married and has her own life. My plan is to find a way to take over at least some of his holdings, but I can't do that alone. I've learned a lot being with him as he manages the properties and lobbies the state. I'm watching and learning how he operates. He knows that and he encourages it. You could learn too, Doug. You could earn yourself a piece of the empire too."

I was astonished at her comments. I had no plan to work myself into a position of ownership of Harlan's ranches. But here was his closest business confidant suggesting that it was a possibility.

"I think it's a little too soon to be thinking like that, Rose. I know nothing about the ranches or the business. I'm not sure Harlan would be too pleased if I started to get nosy about how he conducted his business. I've been hired to drive the coach and do some chauffeuring, that's all."

"Harlan never does anything without a longer term plan. Why do you think that house was made available to you and your family? Why do you think he chose you over at least a hundred other guys who could drive that coach? Your old boss, Grant Depassie, thought you were the cream of the crop. I did the background check on you and it came up clean. It also told us that you weren't just an ordinary guy. I wasn't so sure, to be honest, but I was willing to wait and see. I'm still waiting and seeing, but so far, you seem to be 'as advertised.'"

"It's a pretty big leap to go from driver to rancher, don't you think?" I said with a health portion of skepticism.

"Doug, what you'll need to do is watch and learn. At some point you'll find which part of management you feel more comfortable with. If it doesn't happen, then it doesn't happen and you continue on as the driver. I have a feeling that you will find something that interests you, and that you can grab onto.

"There are three elements to this business. The first is management of the ranch properties. That is, the trees themselves and their care and culture. The second is people management. The people we've hired to run the ranches. The third is the political side. Keeping in touch with the people who set the rules, provide the financial and regulatory assistance to the growers in this state, and who are prepared to listen to our concerns and needs."

"How long have you been here, Rose?"

"Seven years."

"And of those three things you mentioned, how would you rate yourself on each of them?"

"I have some small knowledge of the horticultural side. I've never been strong in biology. I have a very good knowledge of the men and women who manage the individual ranches. I think I'm pretty good at reading people and assessing them. That's also Harlan's strength. As far as the lobbying goes, I'm learning from a pro. Harlan is very good at getting his point across without sounding like he's lecturing the state and county people. I have an advantage, of course. As a handicapped person, they tend to be a little more generous with their time. I'm getting known around the capitol by being with Harlan, so after a while, I can operate on my own in certain circumstances."

I sat back and listened as Rose talked about her strengths. Her weakness was likely my weakness too.

"I don't see myself learning a lot about pruning, disease control, or that kind of thing," I said. "Is Harlan really good at that?"

"Up to a point. When he's in doubt, he calls in experts and gets their opinion. He relies a lot on our suppliers. Some of our ranch managers are tree fruit professionals as well and that helps. Harlan's always tried to surround himself with good people and then trust them. He's had pretty good luck up to this point."

"I guess I won't know what to think until I have some time under my belt, watching you two operate. I'll keep my ears open and my mouth shut unless I'm trying to learn something by asking a question."

"Good plan, Doug. That's how I did it. You'll be surprised at how quickly you'll pick up on what's going on. You won't be involved in the lobbying just yet. That would be the last thing on your plate."

I nodded. "Good. That's a whole other challenge."

Watching Harlan, I could see that he was just as excited as I was about the new coach. It had been rolled out of the shop and sat in the brilliant sunshine of a July morning. It was spotless and with its distinctive paint scheme it looked very handsome. A number of the mechanics and staff were outside to watch when the head man walked to Harlan.

"Here's the keys, Mr. Cummings. She's all ready to go. Fuel and water are all topped up, all the electrical systems have been tested and are in proper working order. It's all yours," he grinned.

"It looks better than I imagined," Harlan smiled. "Doug, why don't we take it out on the road for a test drive?"

"Let's go," I grinned as he handed me the keys.

We had Rose on board and secured in her observation spot. Harlan was seated in the right hand captain's chair while I adjusted the driver's seat and mirrors.

"Where to, Boss?" I asked.

"Let's head up 99 to Yuba City. That will give us a pretty good idea of how it will ride on the old highway. We'll come back on the back roads to Roseville before we head home. We'll be putting a lot of miles on old 99, so let's see how this big baby rolls."

"Got it," I said, dialing in Yuba City on the GPS and looking back at Rose. She was smiling and just as anxious to see what our new traveling life was going to be like.

The construction of the interior of the coach was so completely different from a regular tour bus that it made a big difference in sound transmission. While modern highway buses were quiet, this unit was even more so. Harlan guided me to the entrance to Highway 99 and we were on our way. Almost right away I knew I would have to get accustomed to a different feel and sound. After a while, I learned to control my speed in the tour buses by feel and sound. I couldn't do that yet in this vehicle. I found I was constantly watching the speedometer to make sure I wasn't speeding or going too slowly.

We made the fifty mile drive to Yuba City in slightly less than an hour. We stopped for a morning coffee and I had a bran muffin as well. The coach attracted a lot of attention since we parked it on the street directly in front of the restaurant. I had a hard time taking my eyes off it, worrying a bit about something unexpected happening to it. As we left the restaurant, I did a walk around to see if everything was in good order. Aside from some dead bugs on the front, everything was in good order.

We took the side road to Highway 65 at Olivehurst and drove south to Roseville before turning onto I 80 and the run to Davis. It didn't seem to matter what kind of road we were on, the ride was silky smooth. The smile on Harlan's face told me he was happy with his purchase and proud of the attention it got. I saw quite a few people cruising along side to get a better look at our coach.

When we pulled into the Cummings Ranch, we were welcomed by the whole gang. Harlan had called ahead when we got to Davis and let them know we were only a few minutes out.

"Wow, Dad, that is so cool," Bill said, wide-eyed.

"Go ahead and have a look around inside," Harlan suggested.

My three didn't waste any time stepping up into the coach and looking at all the fittings and gadgets. I didn't see them again for almost fifteen minutes.