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TruckersConnectionMagazine
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June
August
2019
June 2020 2019
Vol ume 33
Issue Vol 6
ume 34 33
Issue 86
Features
Features
10
16
22
22
9
16
18
Safety Tips
Bill Mack’s Entertainment WOMAN IN WRONG-WAY Beat
24
36
44
50
60
9
16
Viewpoint
Viewpoint
Safety Tips
Safety Tips
BRIAN SNELL, WHO AIDED
18
BRIAN SNELL, WHO AIDED
WOMAN IN WRONG-WAY
CRASH,
CRASH,
NAMED
NAMED
HIGHWAY
HIGHWAY
ANGEL
ANGEL
OF THE
OF
YEAR
THE YEAR
Bill Mack’s Entertainment Beat
Bill Mack’s Entertainment Beat
Connection Wordfind
24
36
44
50
60
Let’s All Go to the Movies
Let’s All Go to the Movies
Tech
Tech
Nascar News
Nascar News
Trucking News
Trucking News
Connection Wordfind
Connection Wordfind
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is TheTrucker.com’s exclusive
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In addition to TheTrucker.com,
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Published by:
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Safety
Tips
One of the best ways to stay safe, in and out of your truck, is to stay alert. Before exiting the cab, look around
the vehicle. While walking, be observant of what’s happening around you. No on hangs out in a truck-stop
parking lot. (The Trucker: Wendy Miller)
Drivers should always consider safety when
choosing a parking space
By Cliff Abbott
Finding a safe place to park an 18-wheeler
gets more difficult every year. But in 2020,
events seem to have magnified the problem.
Numerous states have closed rest areas where
drivers could once park. More truck stops
are charging drivers to park, and many that
offer free parking are designating spaces for
“premium” paid parking. Towns and cities are
enacting more laws that prohibit parking on
local streets. Customers want on-time pickups
and deliveries but don’t want trucks on the
premises before or after those activities.
And now, demonstrations-turned-violent in
multiple metro areas add another element of
danger.
The good news is that there is technology
that can help. Phone apps such as Trucker
Path, TransParking, Park My Truck and
TruckPark are available through the driver’s
favorite app store. These apps help users find
10 TRUCKER’S CONNECTION www.TruckersConnection.com

THANK YOU to Flatbed Truck Drivers and
All Essential Workers on the Front Line
of Covid-19
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Safety
Tips
out if parking is available where they want
to stop; then, when they get there, the apps
can make entries to alert other drivers. More
apps are available from truck-stop chains that
report available spaces and allow reservations.
Parking on highway entrance ramps can be
a solution, but it’s illegal in many jurisdictions
and can be risky even when legal. Some drivers
find parking in abandoned shopping centers
or parking lots at large stores. However, it’s
always best to ask permission from a store
manager, even if there are no signs prohibiting
truck parking. Too many drivers have seen their
equipment towed or “booted” by unscrupulous
towing companies that charge extortion-level
fees to remove the locking device.
Regardless of where a driver chooses to park,
it remains important to follow some commonsense
steps when parking. The security of
your vehicle, your load and even your person
are at stake.
Most truck accidents happen in truck stops.
While the accidents are generally low speed
and low cost compared with highway crashes,
repairs are still expensive — and drivers can
lose enough time to cause service failures
with customers. Parking at the end of an aisle
or in restricted areas can set your truck up as
a target for sleepy or inattentive drivers.
Illumination is a proven deterrent to crime.
For personal safety, especially if you plan on
getting out of the truck, parking spaces with
direct paths to the store and restaurant are
preferable. Also, the shortest route may not
be the safest. Walking in tight spaces between
trailers, where sight lines are obscured, can
increase your vulnerability, so it might be
better to walk to the end of the aisle or along
the edge of driving lanes.
Trailer locks can help keep your load secure,
but backing close to another trailer or a fence
or wall leaves no room for thieves to get trailer
doors open. Locking the cab goes without
question, whenever you leave it and when
you come back to it. Thieves often look for the
easiest opportunities; don’t make it simple for
them to make you a victim.
One of the best ways to stay safe, in and out
of your truck, is to stay alert. Before exiting the
cab, look around the vehicle. While walking, be
observant of what’s happening around you. No
on hangs out in a truck-stop parking lot. Most
people will be going to or from their truck. If
a person has no apparent reason to be there,
chances are YOU are the reason. Criminals
often look for a victim who appears weak,
so walk briskly and stay aware of what’s
happening all around; this will help display a
sense of confidence and strength.
When returning to your truck, check the area
all around the vehicle before you approach. If
you need to perform a pre-trip inspection or
a tire check, it might be better to wait for the
light of day or to pull out of the space and find
an area with better visibility.
It’s never a bad idea to check your fifthwheel
release handle and perform a “tug test”
before driving off. Troublemakers who are
avenging a perceived slight, have a grudge
against the company you work for, or have
some other reason have been known to pull
release handles, setting the driver up for a
major problem. In the worst cases, landing
gear can collapse and air lines can be ripped
loose. Even if there’s no damage, cranking a
loaded trailer high enough to back under is a
daunting task.
Personal protection is a decision every driver
must make. Weapons of any kind, including
pepper spray, tasers or other nonlethal defense
devices, are illegal in many areas. While an
arrest or loss of a job might be preferable to
being robbed or harmed, make sure you know
the risks before arming yourself. The best
defense is to stay out of a bad situation to
begin with.
12 TRUCKER’S CONNECTION www.TruckersConnection.com

Coal City Cob
Company, Inc.
Hiring Company Drivers
& Owner Operators
In 1970, the Cloonen family
started Coal City Cob with one
truck and a plan. Fifty years
later, that plan spans the nation
with over 200 drivers providing
quality service to chemical and
hazardous waste customers. At
the heart of it, though, we’re
just folks that love trucking. As
the big get bigger, we welcome
you to join us and remember
what it’s like to work in a culture
that is family. We look forward
to hearing from you soon.
TERMINAL LOCATIONS
CHARLOTTE
Charlotte, NC
CHIGAGO
Diamond, IL
CINCINNATI
Cincinnati, OH
DALLAS
Waxahachie, TX
HOUSTON
La Porte, TX
LOUISIANA
St. Gabriel, LA
MORROW
Morrow, GA
NEW JERSEY
Rahway, NJ
Pedricktown, NJ
888-860-2434
Drive4CCCOB.com

Entertainment Beat
[Greatest Hits]
“LeAnn Rimes…Too Much, Too Soon”
I have received a tremendous amount
of mail, telephone calls and e-mails during
the past several months pertaining
to LeAnn Rimes. Numerous newspaper,
magazine, radio and television reps
from around the world have interviewed
me, including some from England and
Australia. Reason is, LeAnn has made
many headlines during the past year or
so, not all of them positive. You must
have read some of the stories in various
checkout counter sizzle magazines “exposing”
LeAnn and her doings. Certainly,
you must have heard on radio and seen
on television numerous exposes of the
Rimes family.
The basic question I have been asked:
“What do you think about LeAnn and the
negative news she has been making?”
In many ways, I have been shocked at
the so-called happenings, but I’ve also
been very sympathetic because of the
fact that many of the Rimes happenings
are very personal. After all, I have been
close to LeAnn, her daddy, Wilbur, and
her mother, Belinda, for several years.
I knew them when they were living in
an apartment in Garland, Texas, while
LeAnn performed at area show spots.
(celebrity-photos.com: John Matthew Smith)
awards for us, bringing us very close, personally
and professionally.
Within months after Curb Records released
“Blue,” Wilbur could afford to drop
his regular job and devote his energy and
encouragement to LeAnn, the hottest
new singing star in the business. The
“Blue” album has now sold close to ten
million copies. LeAnn’s second album of
sacred songs is also close to ten million
in sales. Another of my songs, “Clinging
to a Saving Hand,” is in that collection.
One interviewer asked me, “Do you ever
feel guilty over the fact that your song
made LeAnn a star and the family would
finally split up because of it?”
When LeAnn finally found that break
with my song, “Blue,” there was an immediate,
almost overnight change for all
who were attached to that first recording
by the pre-teen performer. “Blue” was to
win Grammys for both LeAnn (“Performer
of the year”) and me (“Country Song of
the year”). It would also win many other
16 TRUCKER’S CONNECTION www.TruckersConnection.com
Although my song did make LeAnn
a star, I wasn’t responsible for the family
split. I’ve always attributed the family
breakup to the old cliché, “too much, too
soon.”

By Bill Mack
By Bill Mack
(U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. John E. Lasky)
The first hint of internal problems within
the family that I noticed was when Belinda,
whispered to me one day: “I wonder
if it’s worth it, Bill?” This was shortly after
“Blue” became the best-selling recording
in the nation and LeAnn was booked in
some strange city practically every night.
The over-booking of the young chirper
brought on the first discomfort in the
family. LeAnn, like any over-worked
human, was exhausted after traveling
thousands of miles weekly in the custom
built bus, designed by Wilbur, called the
“Peterbus.” It was a combination truck/
bus, made by Peterbilt. LeAnn told me, “I
hate that thing-it’s uncomfortable!” Trouble
was, she didn’t tell her daddy until he
had ordered the second Peterbus.
The real shock for LeAnn occurred
when her parents, Belinda and Wilbur,
decided to divorce. I was with LeAnn in
Louisville, Kentucky, when she spotted
her dad (then divorced from her mother)
with his girlfriend, whom he eventually
married. Her eyes reflected hurt. I was
never again to see the pre-“Blue” happiness
shine in the little girl’s eyes.
Next, LeAnn fired her dad as her
manager and filed a lawsuit against
him and her attorney, Lyle Walker,
claiming they had ripped her off to the
tune of $7 million. Since LeAnn was
underage and couldn’t file the suit,
Belinda signed the legal papers.
After building a couple of homes in
18 TRUCKER’S CONNECTION www.TruckersConnection.com

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Entertainment Beat
Continued
Nashville and feeling a bit unwelcome by
her pickin’ and singin’ peers there, LeAnn
decided she wanted to move to Los Angeles
where she would not only change
her residence, she would also change
her style in singing. Instead of reflections
of Patsy Cline in her styling, it would be
Celine Dion. She publicly stated that she
wanted to “venture into new avenues
with her voice.” A lot of country music
fans became angry, saying LeAnn was
“ashamed of the country sound that had
made her famous.”
I come to her defense here. In my first
interview with her in 1995, she let it be
known that she wanted to sing all kinds
of music.
Now, there are completely different
settings in the Rimes family. Wilbur has
remarried and lives in the Nashville
area. Belinda is now married to Ted
Miller, who used to do the photography
for LeAnn. The Millers now make their
home in Dallas; LeAnn lives in a mansion
in Los Angeles.
I believe the most damaging thing
LeAnn did was when she yelled at her
dad in a Nashville courtroom: “I hate you!”
She was suing her record label, Curb.
She had lost the suit and was angry at
the world. (She later made a public announcement
that she was sorry for those
words to her dad.)
Then, for all the world to see, while she
was hosting the Academy of Country Music
Awards and sporting a T-shirt reading
DADDY, she sang a song someone
had written which picked fun at her dad
and Curb Records. Producer Dick Clark
should have never allowed this to happen
on national television…and LeAnn
should never have performed it.
Is LeAnn a spoiled, ungrateful brat, as
one magazine stated?
LeAnn is a true professional. Yes, she
may be spoiled, but she is not ungrateful.
This, I know.
(Yahoo! Yodel Studio)
Incidentally, the lady’s birthday is this
month (August 28), and she is now 19.
Happy birthday, LeAnn.
Visit Bill at BillMackCountry.com
20 TRUCKER’S CONNECTION www.TruckersConnection.com

puzzle
School Subjects
Solution on page 24
Football
Music
Metalworking
Woodworking
Art
U.S. Government
Geology
Agriculture
Earth Science
Trigonometry
Journalism
Geometry
Algebra
Chemistry
U.S. History
Literature
Spanish
Biology
Geography
Health
Social Studies
Physical Education
English
22 TRUCKER’S CONNECTION www.TruckersConnection.com

index
Cargill .................. 19
Stageline ............. 9, 23
Coal City Cob ........... 13
TMC ................... 21
East West .............. 2-3
K. L. Harring ............ 15
Millis ................... 17
Navajo .................. 15
P.I. & I. Motor Express . 11, 26
Red Eye Radio ........... 14
Royal .................... 7
WordFind Puzzle
(page 22) Solution
24 TRUCKER’S CONNECTION www.TruckersConnection.com

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THANK YOU to Flatbed Truck Drivers and
All Essential Workers on the Front Line
of Covid-19
• Local, Regional & OTR
• Great Home Time &
Benefits including Paid
Holidays
• Percentage Paid Weekly
• Ask About Our Pay
Guarantee & Vacation
PAID TRAINING PROGRAM FOR COMPANY DRIVERS
APPLY ONLINE NOW
www.piimx.com
866.819.8913
PAID TRAINING PROGRAM FOR COMPANY DRIVERS