Now THAT'S a Trailer Load! (Wind Turbine Blades being transported - pic heavy) [View All]

[A HERETIC I AM]

I'm on my way from Denver to Portland and stopped today in Little America, WY, about 30 miles west of Rock Springs. There were two rigs hauling Wind Turbine blades and I thought some of you might enjoy seeing some shots I took. Pardon the quality, as I am only using my camera phone.

Here's my truck parked next to one of the rigs;

My truck is right about 75' long. The driver of the blade rig told me they were permitted for 150 feet. The blade itself is over 100' long and hangs past the tail lights by about 25'. So from the drivers seat to the tip of the blade is easily 140'! Just about exactly twice as long as my car hauler, nose to tail.

The two rigs side-by-side with their escorts behind. This shows how far the tips extend beyond the end of the trailers. The escort vans are parked underneath them!


These trailers are interesting and unique in that they are "rear steer" capable.
Here is a detail of that mechanism;

The trailers had 3 axles and were steerable by the operation of the hydraulic ram you see, one mounted on each side. The rams were attached to arms that actuated all three axles at once. This feature is necessary with a unit of this length or negotiating even broad corners would be difficult and normal corners impossible. The steering was controlled by the escort driver in the van behind, NOT the rig driver, using a small, hand held, 3 button transmitter. Left / Right / Center. Simple.

The rig from the front;



They mount the hub end of blade to the trailer using the studs that will eventually attach it to the turbine hub when it is installed. The rear of the blade is secured into a cradle and strapped down, so it has only two mount points with no support in the middle - not that it really needs it. One driver of these units I spoke with told me they can be a real hand full in a crosswind as the blade amplifies the side loading effect of a broadside wind.

I mentioned the permit for 150'. One of the escort drivers told me the over length permit to travel across Wyoming was $900! He told me they could drive 2000 miles in circles in Texas and the permit would only be $30.00! Nine hundred for 400 and change miles! What a rip off. I have talked to a couple of these crews and they all agreed however, that Kansas was the worst for permitting and just being a general pain in the ass about moving this equipment.

These rigs fascinate me and I would love the chance to drive one, as I enjoy a challenge like this. If you have done any cross country driving, you'll have noticed wind-farms cropping up all over. This is the first time I've driven across Wyoming in probably 10 years or so and there are now wind turbine farms in places that were barren, even a few years ago. What I find really interesting is the spots they are installing some of these things - at the top of mesa's and ridgelines and the driver has to get that thing up a sometimes winding, steep and almost always dirt road to get it to the jobsite.