My first weeks at BESL Transfer were a crash course in flatbed trucking. With Ernie guiding me, I learned fast — but nothing could have prepared us for a snowstorm that nearly buried us alive in Pennsylvania.
As I mentioned in the last chapter, I had the benefit of learning flatbed work under the guidance of my best friend, Ernie Lipperd. Ernie was more than a mentor — he was a common-sense master who taught me the right way to do things.
He wasn’t my only friend at BESL, and I’ll introduce others later in the book. But in those early weeks, Ernie was my lifeline.
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First Loads Together
Our first load came out of North American Stainless (NAS) in Ghent, Kentucky. We had identical loading appointments so Ernie could walk me through the process. We both loaded three stainless steel coils, and he taught me the proper way to secure them.
After finishing inside, we scaled out to make sure the total weight matched the billing weight. Then we hit the road.
Delivery: Ryerson Steel in Indianapolis.
Next load: Nucor Steel → back to Cincinnati.
Then another trip: NAS → Ryerson Steel again.
Then: Nucor (Crawfordsville) → Steel Tech in Ghent, Kentucky.
It was a steady rhythm of steel coils moving back and forth.
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The Machinery Load
Things took a turn when we accepted a load in Louisville. Instead of coils, it was machinery.
Machinery meant a whole new learning curve, and I’ll admit I was nervous. I had no idea how to secure it properly. Thankfully, Ernie stepped in again and guided me through it.
But what neither of us could prepare for was what happened next.
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A Snowstorm to Remember
That machinery load was headed to York, Pennsylvania. It had been years since I’d run that far for a delivery. We had about 10 hours to make the drive legally.
We left Louisville, ran I-71 up to Columbus, and then took I-70 east. By the time we reached the stretch between Pittsburgh and Breezewood, Pennsylvania, the snow started — and it didn’t stop.
It snowed so heavily that we could barely see the truck in front of us. I wanted to stop, but Ernie was determined to push through.
By the time we reached the receiver, over two feet of snow had fallen. The guard at the gate told us to leave and come back in the morning. The problem? Pennsylvania had issued a critical snow emergency — all roads were closed, and traffic was ordered off the highways.
When the guard threatened to call the law, Ernie stood his ground: “Do what you need to do, but we’re not moving.” Eventually, the night manager stepped in and allowed us to park until morning.
By the time we woke up, there were more than four feet of snow. It took two hours to dig out our trucks, plus the same amount of time for the facility to plow us into a dock.
After unloading, we were stranded. The state forced all trucks off the road, and the plant manager had to drive us to a hotel, where we were stuck for two full days. No revenue. Just waiting.
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Back to Work
When the roads reopened, we were dispatched to Beech Bottom, West Virginia, where we loaded eight mini coils each and ran them back to Louisville, Kentucky.
That marked the end of my first three weeks at BESL Transfer. It was a crash course — from routine coil hauling, to machinery, to the worst snowstorm I’d ever seen on the road.
As you’ll read in the next chapter, not all of my time at BESL was smooth sailing. Some loads were excellent, but one turned into the worst experience of my time there.
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