Delta Dawn

"Conjunction Junction, what's your function?" ~~School House Rock

Current Weather:

-16°C|3°F Temperature
-16°C|3°F Wind Chill
Skies: Partly Cloudy
Visibility (miles): Unrestricted Winds (knots): Calm

Delta Bus Driver training, informative and awesome all at the same time. There are three Deltas in the shuttle pool of vehicles that we operate. Delta Dawn, Tina Marie, and Gale. Delta Dawn spawned from 1977, Tina Marie: 1981, my birth year! And Gale: 1987, the baby of the fleet.

Thus far, Delta Dawn is my favorite just because of the name in honor of Tanya Tucker’s first number one hit, “Delta Dawn.”

Delta Dawn, what's that flower you have on
Could it be a faded rose from days gone by
And did I hear you say he was a-meeting you here today
To take you to his mansion in the sky

She's forty-one and her daddy still calls her "baby"
All the folks around Brownsville say she's crazy
'Cause she walks around town with a suitcase in her hand
Looking for a mysterious dark-haired man

In her younger days they called her Delta Dawn
Prettiest woman you ever laid eyes on
Then a man of low degree stood by her side
And promised her he'd take her for his bride

Delta Dawn, what's that flower you have on
Could it be a faded rose from days gone by
And did I hear you say he was a-meeting you here today
To take you to his mansion in the sky

Before I flew for Antarctica, I was able to do a little research on the Deltas through Foremost, but now that I’m actually here, I’ve been eye to eye with the beast. They are indeed formidable, yet they purr like a kitten all at the same time.

Delta Dawn sits at 43,500lbs of steel and gadgets. She’s 27ft and 2inches long, 10ft and 2inches wide, and 9ft and 2inches tall. She’s a hefty girl. She can hold 90 some gallons of fluid and her flavor is diesel.

What scared me most about driving the Delta was the articulated steering. I had never driven a vehicle where the cab moved separately from the body. However, I quickly learned that it was my new best friend. Due to the articulated steering, you could almost turn the Delta on a dime, its turning radius in some ways better than the 12 passenger vans we drove. My first day driving them, I was doing figure eights in the Delta. Talk about a good time! You could turn the wheel so far that when you looked in your mirror, it looked as if you were going to jackknife the back of the vehicle because it was so close to your wheels, but it was perfectly fine. I had made the mistake of thinking that it operated as though you were hauling a trailer behind you.

Not at all. 

Myself driving Delta Dawn

The articulated steering allowed the box to move almost separately from the cab. You could stop the Delta, put it into park, take it out of gear, turn the vehicle off, and yet you could still turn the steering wheel to straighten up the box behind you if you wanted to. It wouldn’t affect the front wheels at all. It was pretty amazing.

Another thing that was interesting about the Delta was that you had to shift into higher gears to gain a faster speed, yet it was an automatic. I’ll reveal a little secret. Before I arrived to Antarctica, I had a brief panic that maybe the vehicles were standards. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do since to this day I still don’t know how to drive a manual vehicle. I know, I know. What’s wrong with me? What can I say; I’ve lived a sheltered life. I figured that was something they would have asked during the interview and since they hadn’t, I was probably safe. But I was still nervous since I knew we would be driving vehicles from the 1970’s. But it turned out the Deltas as well as Ivan, are automatic, yet in some ways they acted like a manual. There were four gears, as well as a forward, reverse and neutral. You had to reduce your speed on the accelerator to down shift or up shift so you weren’t grinding gears.

If you made the mistake of attempting a hill in too high of a gear, you could risk stalling the engine. With the Deltas, if the engine stalled, you would lose your breaks. The steering and brakes relied on air pressure delivered by an engine driven hydraulic pump. If we lost air pressure, no brakes. A slightly scary concept considering a few years ago, a Delta turned over onto itself head over heels on this steep hillside near the backside of McMurdo due to losing its air pressure. Thankfully no one was hurt in the incident.

There are limited roads we are allowed to drive the Deltas on due to their sheer size and maneuverability. 

Interactive McMurdo Station Map

In town the speed limits are 10mph or less. Just outside of town, you can pick it up to around 15mph. And if you are out on the Ice or Snow Roads, maximum speed limit is 25mph if conditions allow for it. This usually means you are either in 3rd gear or 4th. Due to the balloon tires the Deltas have, at higher speeds the ride often turns bouncy. As a passenger in the back, this makes for uncomfortable conditions as I found out the other afternoon on what they called the “Delta Sleigh Ride with Bill.” They loaded all us new staff into the back of the Delta and took us out onto the Ice Road toward the Airfield. 

All lined up like ducks in a row in the back of Delta Dawn

The speed limit is 25mph there so Shuttle Bill (Our 72 year old Senior Shuttle Driver) opened Delta Dawn up and let her rip, giving us the full affect. If we hadn’t had our seatbelts on, we would have been on the floor of the box or bouncing so high that our heads would have hit the ceiling. The key concept of the lesson was to drive at a reasonable and safe speed to keep our passengers comfortable. Despite the fact that we all thought the “sleigh ride” was a blast because it felt like we were off roading in a Delta, it was obvious that you could easily get hurt in the back if you were driving at unreasonable speeds and hitting every bump you came across. Plus, it just wasn’t good to be bouncing a 43,500lb vehicle over six feet of sea ice. Not exactly the smartest thing to be doing.

A little comic relief

Contact Information and Care Packages!

“Letter writing is the only device for combining solitude with good company” ~~Lord Byron

This post is not nearly as exciting as the others have been. But here's the nitty gritty!

Care Packages Are Welcome!!

Mailing Address:

McMurdo Station -- RPSC

[Fran Haynes], RPSC

McMurdo Station

PSC 469 Box 700

APO AP 96599-1035

Tips for Senders:

• Packages intended to reach McMurdo Station and South Pole Station by Christmas need to be mailed from the U.S. by Halloween
• Flat mail (letters) goes faster than packages. Packages may take up to six weeks.
• Do not mail perishable food.
• Do not use foam peanuts—flat bubble wrap envelopes work best!

 Care Package Ideas:

• Dried Fruit
• Trail Mix
• Teas (I don't drink coffee...)
• Chocolate :)
• A good book
• Music
• Something amusing!

***I will have access to the internet so I should also be able to send emails as well. Skype won’t work down there, so email, pen and paper, or phone calls will be the best mode of communication.

 In Case of an Emergency: (if it involves my family or a close friend):

• To get an urgent message to me in the Antarctic, call RPSC headquarters in Denver (303 790-8606). Ask for Human Resources and explain that it is an emergency. 

Time Zones:

• South Pole and McMurdo stations operate on the same time as New Zealand, which is 16-18 hours ahead of the United States. If it is Tuesday afternoon in the U.S., it will be Wednesday morning at those stations.

 How Mail Gets There:

• Mail is received in Christchurch seven days a week. Letter mail is transported from Christchurch to Antarctica on all available southbound flights. Letter mail service varies, generally taking five to 14 days, but sometimes longer depending on the time of year. Letter mail always takes priority over package mail, both to and from Antarctica. Packages have the lowest priority of all cargo being transported to Antarctica, resulting in a delivery time of up to six weeks.
• Please do not send perishable foods.
•  The most cost-effective way to mail a parcel weighing more than 10 lbs. to Antarctica is parcel post. If you might have a parcel that contains only videos, books or CDs, it can be sent special fourth class ‘media rate,’ which is the lowest cost.
•  Do not use ‘packing’ and instead use clothing or something similarly useful and non-polluting to cushion the objects being mailed.
•  Packages destined for summer participants at McMurdo or South Pole should be mailed after Labor Day, or they will be returned. Mail that misses summer participants is either forwarded (if a directory card has been given to the McMurdo post office), or returned to the sender.
•  Parcels mailed after February 1 will not be received in Christchurch in time to be forwarded to McMurdo, so please don’t mail anything AFTER FEBRUARY 1^ST!!!

 My Flight Itinerary:

Traveler: HAYNES / FRANCIS IRENE

Date	From/To	Flight/Vendor	Status	Depart/Arrive	Class/Type
10/08/2011	ANC-SEA (Anchorage/Seattle First Flight)	AS 120	Confirmed	07:30 AM/11:58 AM	Economy / T
10/08/2011	SEA-DEN (Seattle/Denver Second Flight)	AS 672	Confirmed	01:05 PM/04:35 PM	Economy / T
10/08/2011	APA	RED LION HOTEL	Confirmed	10/08-10/10
10/10/2011	DEN-LAX (Denver/L.A. Third Flight)	AA 3822	Confirmed	04:20 PM/05:50 PM	Economy / B
10/10/2011	LAX-AKL (L.A./Auckland New Zealand Fourth Flight)	AA 7337	Confirmed	11:40 PM/09:10 AM +2	Economy / B
10/12/2011	AKL-CHC (Auckland/Christchurch New Zealand Fifth flight)	AA 7132	Confirmed	12:05 PM/01:25 PM	Economy / B

I depart for McMurdo from Christchurch on Oct 14^th flying via a C-17 and will land at McMurdo around 1400 military time. 

Here's a few images of a C-17 to give you an idea. It's gonna be a ride of a life time! (Photos taken from a Google Search)

 (I will be one of these red dressed people on Oct. 14th)

(The interior of the plane)

It's a Primary!

"Below the 40th latitude there is no law; below the 50th no god; below the 60th no common sense and below the 70th no intelligence whatsoever."~~Kim Stanley Robinson

 There are two positions Raytheon Polar Services or NANA Services will offer you if you potentially make the cut after the interview process. The first is an "alternate" position. It sounds exactly like what it is. You're the backup person in case their first choice doesn't go thru in the end.

The second position is a "primary" position. Again, it's not rocket science. You got the job if your offer letter says "Primary."

I was offered an alternate position as a field camp cook at one of the remote field camps out of the Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station and then I was offered a primary position as a vehicle operator at the McMurdo Station. My fingers had been crossed for the Field Camp Cook position as it would have been more "career oriented," and well, just pretty damn amazing. I would have been cooking for a number of people ranging from 2-80 depending on what field camp I was stationed at. It would have been intense, amazing, awe inspiring. 

But, hey, beggars cannot be choosers. 

When they offered me the vehicle operator position and it said "PRIMARY," I took it. 

I woke up bright and early on June 6^th to a voice mail from a woman from the hiring department at Raytheon. I lived where I worked; my room was on the main floor of the little kayak shop, just off the bathroom. My room was like a step back into my old college days. When I had lived with my best friend Lacey in college, we used to have a loft and that was where I slept. Yes, I’ll admit, I might be 30 years old, but my living situation had not really progressed that far from my college days. But what can you do? This room was very similar, my bed up on the loft and each morning that I was not out in the field, I would emerge from my nest of blankets like a hamster from his cocoon. 

On this particular morning, I was still sitting in my bed, barely awake since I had just gotten back from the field the day before and was groggy from lack of sleep. I dialed the woman’s number, fighting my sleep coma, my heart racing. She was from the hiring department. That could mean only one thing. 

I didn’t want to get my hopes up, but that phone call resulted in me accepting a job offer from the Raytheon Antarctic Terminal Operations as a Vehicle Operator. I had been hired to drive 12 passenger vans and the infamous "Delta Buses."

She offered the job to me and I accepted without a moment’s hesitation. After hanging up, I sat in my bundle of blankets for a moment, dumbfounded. What had I just done? 

I had just accepted a job to work in Antarctica.

Normally, I’m a pretty quiet morning person. I walk into the kitchen dressed to paddle, heat my thermos of hot water for my clients as I get my breakfast going. I nod good morning silently to my co-workers/friends/house mates as they all wander in to do the same thing. I sit down and eat my breakfast, still quiet. I then brush my teeth, go out and load my paddling gear into the van. I run to the bathroom, throw on my guide jacket, walk into the office and sit down across from Wendy, my boss. At this point, I’m finally ready to greet the morning with a smile and a friendly word.

Well on this morning it was 7:00am and I didn’t even need to be up doing my daily morning routine. I had the day off. We’re typically given the next day off when we return from guiding a trip in the field. But as soon as I hit the “end call” button on my cell phone, I was bursting with adrenaline. 

I had to share my news with the world.

I threw my blankets off, scrambled down the ladder leading to the floor so fast I almost tumbled head over heels in my hurry to get down. I threw open my bedroom door and came skidding to a halt in the center of the kitchen.

There was only one person in the kitchen doing what I normally do, fixing their breakfast in peaceful quiet as they prepare themselves for a day of kayak guiding. I stood there for a silent moment, shaking with suppressed energy, and then I finally let it out.

“GUESS WHERE THIS GIRL’S GOING? ANTARCITCA!” I yelled. 

And then I made a fist pump into the air. 

For those of you that don’t know what a fist pump is. Here’s the Wikipedia definition: The fist pump is a celebratory gesture in which a fist is raised before the torso and subsequently drawn down and nearer to the body in a vigorous, swift motion. The fist pump is sometimes carried out in parts of the Western Hemisphere, Europe, and Japan (where it is known as guts pose) to denote enthusiasm, exuberance, or success and may be accompanied by a similarly energetic exclamation or vociferation. The gesture may be executed once or in a rapid series.

And if you still need further definition, here is a photo example:

I then sat down on the couch that sits in the corner of the kitchen and attempted to bring myself back to my normal morning peaceful quietness. But all efforts were lost. My mind was whirling, my heart was pattering uncontrollably. I was like an A.D.D. child. Every co-worker that walked into the kitchen that morning was greeted with an enthusiastic, “I’m going to Antarctica!” 

My foot was officially in the door. 

Now, to clarify that statement. When I say, my foot was in the door, what I really meant was, I had the barest of a toe hold into the world of Polar Services. I had been offered a job, but I still had a whole lot of clearance to wallow through before I was in the clear.