Which will get here first? Fitzgerald or the Transformer?

Which gets here first?

  • Larry Fitzgerald. After all, he was Green's ball boy and an all-around swell guy.

    Votes: 26 40.0%
  • The transformer. You can't hope to contend with a blistering 3 mph.

    Votes: 39 60.0%

  • Total voters
    65

Renz

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Giant transformer crosses into Arizona

Jonathan J. Higuera and Laura Houston

The Arizona Republic

Jul. 29, 2004 12:00 AM

After a California travel leg beset with mishaps and delays, the huge transformer being brought to the Valley to ease the power crunch crossed into the Arizona desert Wednesday night.

"If it's a little slower than planned, that's fine," APS spokesman Damon Gross said.

"We just want it to get here safely, both the transformer and, more importantly, the people bringing it here."

The 380,000-pound behemoth is expected to give Valley residents and businesses some relief in the ongoing energy crisis created by a July 4 fire at a Peoria substation.

It crossed the Agnes Wilson Bridge over the Colorado River about 10:40 p.m. Wednesday night.

The bridge is about 10 miles south of Parker.

From there it will travel through the Colorado River Indian Reservation as it winds its way to the Valley.

The California portion of the trip has been tortuous for both caravan crew members and California drivers caught in traffic backups.

On Wednesday afternoon the transformer restarted its journey after a 21-hour delay.

That delay occurred after Caltrans asked Precision Heavy Haul, the Tolleson-based company handling the move for APS, to switch the transformer to another tractor trailer.

That request was rescinded Wednesday morning.

Here's a rundown of the major delays experienced so far:

• On Saturday, the tractor-trailer got caught on the asphalt while negotiating a steep curve coming out of Victorville, Calif. That led to a two-day delay.


• On Monday, the caravan traveled about 80 miles after using a special trailer to negotiate the curve leaving Victorville.


• On Tuesday, the caravan made two precautionary stops when it came upon a few more high-grade curves.

Later, it pulled over in what turned out to be a 21-hour delay while Caltrans mulled its requirement to switch the transformer to a special hydraulic trailer.

The state Department of Transportation will help it on its way through Arizona, ADOT spokesman Doug Nintzel said.

It has already approved the route and checked the capacity of bridges it will be crossing.

The combined weight of the tractor-trailer and transformer is nearly 800,000 pounds.

"The state is assisting because it's important to get this thing done," Nintzel said.
 

AZCB34

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I chose the transformer since Rod Graves has nothing to do with it getting here...couldn't resist.
 

KingofCards

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I thought "The Transformer" was some nickname for Dockett.


:bang:
 

Renz

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I think this is going to go down to the wire!

Transformer odyssey nearing its conclusion

Laura Houston

The Arizona Republic

Jul. 30, 2004 12:00 AM

APS officials expect the answer to the Valley's electrical woes to roll into the Valley by Saturday.

The 190-ton electrical transformer that has slowly zigzagged across California and into Arizona should arrive in the Valley late today or early Saturday to replace one of the five West Valley transformers destroyed by a fire, APS spokesman Damon Gross said Thursday.

"This is all subject to the hauling company doing the prudent thing and waiting if need be," Gross said. "If we have to stop or if the hauling company has to stop or slow down to negotiate through areas, that's what they'll do, and we'll support that."

The Phoenix metropolitan area has faced the threat of rolling blackouts since a July 4 fire, and APS officials have asked citizens to conserve energy until the new transformer is running in mid-August.

The transformer has had plenty of company on the road since beginning its journey July 11 from an electrical substation near Kent, Wash. It moved by barge to Long Beach, Calif., and since then a caravan of more than 20 vehicles has guided it through rugged California desert and mountains. The 19-foot, 7-inch-tall transformer is hauled by one tractor at the front and two at the back, moving an average of about 10 miles an hour.

The trip has been plagued by frequent stops while the crew has waited for oversize-load permits, California Highway Patrol representative Shannon Stumbaugh said. The crew also has stopped for trailer repairs caused by the shifting load.

After crossing into Arizona on Wednesday night, the caravan has stopped just long enough to swap drivers or to stabilize the load while negotiating curves, crewmen said.

By 3:30 p.m. Thursday, the transformer was moving east on U.S. 60 and had passed Aguila. The caravan was expected to stop Thursday night to give crews a rest, APS spokeswoman Sheri Foote said.
 
OP
OP
SECTION 11

SECTION 11

vibraslap
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I heard this morning that the crew bringing it over has to take a mandatory 15 hour break? I know that you can only drive for so many hours, but 15 hours?
I dunno. I think it's going to be the transformer by a watt or two.
 

kerouac9

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I voted for the Transformer. I just get the feeling that There's More Than Meets The Eye about it. Any possibility that it's a robot in disguise?
 

MastersofCombat

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The Transformer definitely because Poston will ruin his first year in the NFL. Besides Johnson should be the man anyways this year, I have thought from the day fitz said he would hire poston.
 

earthsci

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MastersofCombat said:
The Transformer definitely because Poston will ruin his first year in the NFL. Besides Johnson should be the man anyways this year, I have thought from the day fitz said he would hire poston.

Thank goodness Eugene Parker is his agent.
 

Second Deck

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Looks like the Cardinals continue their losing streak by being routed by the transformer. Lets just hope the transformer did not get hurt on the trip and is able to play.
 

Renz

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Transformer Arrives!

Dan Carlin
The Arizona Republic
Aug. 1, 2004 12:00 AM

The 21-day journey of a 190-ton transformer ended around 2 a.m. today, as a long-awaited caravan pulled into the APS Westwing substation near Peoria.

A tractor lugged the 282-foot rig onto the gravel and dirt road leading to the substation off Loop 303 a few hours ahead of schedule and carried it by moonlight through the last 400 yards of an epic voyage that crossed three states.

In all, the huge device, which was shipped in to replace a transformer damaged in a July 4 fire, traveled nearly 2,000 miles.

It was first hauled by boat from Tacoma, Washington to Long Beach, California, then transferred to a 282-foot suspension rig, and finally pulled by a tractor across California and Arizona.

"The Arizona leg of the trip went as well as we could have planned," said APS spokesman Damon Gross. "We didn't expect the transformer to arrive until 5 or 6 a.m. today, but flat, level roads sped up the moving process."

The small jump on the schedule was welcome news for APS and its Valley customers, after a series of delays and mishaps postponed the arrival of the much-needed machinery.

Last Saturday, the transformer slipped off of its trailer and crashed onto a highway in California. The accident caused a 2-day hold-up while hauling crews brought in heavy cranes and a new trailer to replace the broken equipment.

The transformer's 20-vehicle convoy crawled through much of California at 3 to 6 mph, barely covering 50 miles in a 12-hour stretch. But yesterday, thanks to low-traffic and flat roads along its final, 80-mile route, the convoy traveled at an average speed of about 20 mph.

Now that the transformer is in place, the arduous process of linking it to the main grid and restoring the Westwing substation begins.

"This is the beginning of the solution," Gross said. "It isn't quite the solution, yet."

APS will need three weeks to connect and install the new transformer, at which point the substation will operate at two-thirds capacity.

By 7 a.m. today, workers from APS and Precision Heavy Haul of Phoenix had already begun the laborious work of transferring the transformer via crane to a smaller rig, and from there to the transformer pad where it will soon be connected to the power grid.

"A mid-August run date for the restored transformer still looks realistic," says Gross. "This will provide a tremendous amount of relief for our customers."

Since the July 4 fire, the Westwing substation, which services both Tucson and the Valley, has operated at one-third capacity, creating the threat of rolling blackouts throughout the Phoenix area.

Once the new transformer has been installed, APS should be able to meet peak demand, says Gross.

The substation will probably not be restored to full capacity until next summer.

APS is waiting for third-party investigators to examine the four other transformers damaged in the fire before replacing them.
 

vince56

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Brian in Mesa said:
What do you expect from the Arizona Republic?

They can't even get the date right. :D

Maybe they pulled the article from Gray's Sports Almanac. You know, that's how old biff from the future got young biff the money to build the arizona republic, right? :D
 
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