Ed Cridland, a 94-year-old truck driver, died in a house fire in Altadena. His life was marked by a deep love for his home, his country, and the open road. He lived in the same house his entire life, caring for his parents until their deaths. He also found companionship and adventure in his many years as a truck driver, taking long road trips with his best friend, Dennis Chapman. The article explores Cridland's life through Chapman's memories, highlighting his unwavering loyalty, adventurous spirit, and simple joys.
Ed Cridland, left, and Dennis Chapman on the banks of the Mississippi River during one of their road trips Ed Cridland’s 111-year-old home in Altadena, shrouded by towering oaks and thick shrubs, wasn’t much to speak of.
And if the burned-out walls of his modest cottage could speak, they would tell the story of a man who cared deeply about his parents, friends, country and the open road. One story involved a close encounter with a hail of enemy bullets as he charged in a Jeep to the top of a ridge, Chapman said. After his discharge from the military as a sergeant, Cridland served in the Army Reserve until 1960. He also jump started his trucking career hauling anything that didn’t “breath, spoil or blow up” along Interstate-5 and State Route 99 stretching the length of California, Chapman said.
In 1991, two years before retiring, Cridland convinced Chapman to join the Downey trucking company where he worked. Chapman remained with the firm for 11 1/2 years and went on to work for several other trucking companies before retiring in 2020.Untethered by the constraints of their full-time jobs, Cridland and Chapman took long road trips together, navigating old trucking routes in 26 states, including Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, Wyoming, New Mexico, Texas and California.
“Ed drove until the day he died,” Chapman said. “He had less accidents than me and I always felt safe.”Cridland and Chapman usually spoke by phone at least twice each day. Their last conversation was at about 7 p.m. Jan. 7, when they talked about breaking news reports of the Eaton fire that had erupted less than hour earlier in a nearby canyon.
OBITUARY TRACTOR TRAILER TRUCK DRIVER FRIENDSHIP MILITARY SERVICE HOUSE FIRE CALIFORNIA
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