Swift Dedicated Brundige Al

Hey is anyone on here running the swift Walmart dedicated route out of Brundige Al? If so I have a few questions for you.

Running Bear I have been Running Walmart Dedicated for several years. It's likely I can answer your questions.

Well I was told that I would run between 2100- 2400 weekly is this the case? I'm supposed to be home daily is this true? How often will I have to do an overnight trip? Thanks for your help G-Town

Well I was told that I would run between 2100- 2400 weekly is this the case? I'm supposed to be home daily is this true? How often will I have to do an overnight trip? Thanks for your help G-Town

You will work hard. On walmart you run until you can't run anymore. Do a 34 and do it all over again. I really enjoyed it when I did it in Los Lunas, New Mexico. You should be home daily if you finish your drops in time and make it back. Unless you guys serve stores that have a round trip longer than 600 miles, you will usually make it back in time, but that home daily ends up being just about 10-12 hours and then you get back at.

Running Bear, Gladhand is correct. If you live close to the D.C. you'll slipseat in a day cab or baby 52" sleeper LW tractor.

Mileage on a Wally Account is not usually as high as 2400 miles. It depends how large of a radius the territory has. Most stores are no more than 200 miles from the D.C. and the goal is make it back to the D.C. every day.

That said; there is more than just mileage to consider. There is stop pay and dispatch pay on the regions I cover. A 300 mile, 5 stop day is a solid money maker but will require 12-13 hours to complete for an experienced driver. For our first year drivers pay is 46cpm, $20 dispatch fee per load and $15 per stop after the first one. Also $10 per trailer move if you need to do any housekeeping at a store. You'll need to understand how they pay a rookie driver in that D.C. and try to realize the bigger runs are something you'll earn as you prove yourself. $1000 per week is a reasonable expectation.

Any possibility of getting at least 3 months of OTR experience? It will make your life a bit easier on an account like Walmart if you have some seasoning, can handle your truck in close quarters and are slightly above average at backing.

Not a bad idea to search on my name and Walmart. Same for Gladhand, Kat and Miss Miyoshi.

C'mon back if you have more questions.

Any possibility of getting at least 3 months of OTR experience? It will make your life a bit easier on an account like Walmart if you have some seasoning, can handle your truck in close quarters and are slightly above average at backing.

This is a very important consideration for any local account. Those first few months on the road you're pretty clueless. You're terrible at backing, you really don't know how to manage your clock well, you're a lot more nervous and unsure of yourself, and there's a lot of added stress at that stage of your career.

To go OTR those first few months gives you an opportunity to get some seat time on the Interstates. You won't do as much backing, your schedule won't be as tight, and you'll get a chance to learn things at a more moderate pace.

These local gigs will really push you to the max.

Not to mention, the big "OMG" in this scenario is that you're pulling for the world's largest retailer in the months leading up to Christmas. I mean, OMG.

I wouldn't go so far as to say you should not take that gig right off the bat, but just be aware of the fact that on top of all of the stress that comes with being a green rookie you're going to have the stress of pulling loads for the world's largest retailer leading up to Christmas time. You'll wind up at home for Christmas time, but it might be a psychiatric home!

Brett wrote in reply to RunningBear:

Not to mention, the big "OMG" in this scenario is that you're pulling for the world's largest retailer in the months leading up to Christmas. I mean, OMG.

Great point. I agree, the 8 weeks leading up to Christmas and New Years is extremely busy. The added stress comes from a major uptick in traffic; on the roads and the Walmart parking lots. Many times the store staff is also stressed leading to possible delays while unloading. Driver Management and the Planners are also short on patience, adding to the stress level for a rookie driver. No one has time to help.

And above all else there are all the lay-away containers and blitz trailers lining the dock area. This begins in October and doesn't disapate until mid-January. At some of the smaller stores this is like a corn maze making ingress, backing and egress that much more difficult.

Definitely not trying to discourage you...but attempting to give you a true picture of expectations.

You may also want to look at WHERE Brundige is. Those miles you'll be running are not exactly sit back and relax interstate miles. But they are better than running Walmart into The WVA mountain towns. 😎