Krazy Karl won't be with me this year

Well in about thirty five days I head to California. I wanted to meet Karl Haartz out there, he and I have a job that we sort of created on the run. One of the fuel crew leaders put it quite well (although I do not think he meant this in a nice way, but he was right) Karl and I make nice with the big rigs that the run encounters.

Our standard script is quite simple:" Thanks driver for staying in the center of your lane, and for being patient with us. This is not a rally, it is not a poker run, it is not Kyle Petty's Chick Filet charity ride. This is a POW MIA awareness mission. You do not have to like it you just have to do it."
Karl always adds "God Bless our troops and the Great American Trucker, If this country looses either, we are lost."

So for those of you who are following this to get information about loved ones on the run, they are being watched over, and the trucks love us. Or at least most of them do, and for the one percent that don't the other 99% tend to shut them up pretty fast. I will be looking for some one to take Karl's place, but that person will have big shoes to fill. I sure hope Trike is there, he has been the third member of Karl and My team for at least four years.
This team was not official until 2007, but I did it alone in 2005, and Karl helped me out in 2006. We became official when I notified Tanker of an Oversize rig that was partially blocking the right lane a few miles ahead of us, and in 2007 a truck that had passed us hit a deer that was laying in the center of the left lane. Sheepdog became a true believer when I notified him and he got the pack into the right lane. When Karl went by the deer who had only been sleeping jumped up and ran into the median. That could have been interesting with 500 bikes in the left lane.

I cannot wait till May