the classical beaver is the type of rodent that delights in the details of how a major american orchestra operates. when i first heard that a semi was gonna drive the band’s gear cross-country to nyc, my mind’s eye immediately conjured up the image of maestro carlos and president elaine hopping into the peterbilt cab with a bottle of no-doz, exchanging a massive high-five from their bucket seats, sliding now that’s what i call music (vol. 37) into the cd player, and setting off on I-84 for the roadtrip of a lifetime. then i snapped out of it. determined to get more realistic deets, i contacted susan nielsen, director of operations for the oregon symphony:
how big is the truck and who the heck is driving it?
It’s a 53’ truck. The truck departs Portland late Sunday night with two drivers. They will drive non-stop to NY arriving by 8:00 am Thursday morning.
53 feet?! wowee. what’s going into this big rig?
Instruments and wardrobe cases, plus various miscellaneous items.
various miscellaneous items? hmmm… the beaver suspects any musicians who wanted to save on airfare are gonna be ridin’ dirty in the party trailer. okay, i know you’re busy, so one last question: what’s one interesting fact about the great symphony truck trip of 2011?
Since we’ve not been on the trip yet, the only truck story I have is how stable and smooth the ride will be. On a previous job, one of the drivers happened to leave a cup of coffee just inside the trailer. At the next stop, the cup of coffee was discovered intact – not a drop had spilled. Now that’s a smooth ride.
indeed! susan, thanks so much for all the work you’re doing ~ for what it’s worth, the beaver appreciates it. (also, if it’s not too early, can i be one of the drivers on the 2013 trip? pretty please?)
the classical beaver 
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