Location:
Aurora, CO
Driving Status:
Experienced Driver
Social Link:
Davy A. On The Web
Old guy. Road race motorcycles, musician, freelance writer, general smart a$$, Happy at Knight Transportation
richard.cranium666@gmail.com
Posted: 18 minutes ago
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As a whole, this community and site are a wealth of information on how to get a good start in this industry.
I'd highly recommend going to the CDL diaries section and reading the diaries. There are a number of folks who documented their journey through Werner. There is a lot to be learned bothbon what to do and what not to do. There's also a section here for women that drive as you face some experiences that are different that guys.
There's also informing that is just just plain foundational stuff here. It's been my experience that people who become active on this forum and listen to the advice have a tendency to build solid lasting careers.
Truck Driver's Career GuideBecoming A Truck Driver: The Raw Truth About Truck Driving
Posted: 26 minutes ago
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Drive schedule to fit in April 8th solar eclipse?
I honestly have no idea where I'll be that far out schedule wise. The freight market eclipse is wreaking havoc on my already chaotic schedule.
Posted: 23 hours, 23 minutes ago
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I could use some career (and maybe a bit of personal) advice
Youve gone through a bunch of changes lately, and those changes take time to acclimate to. One of the things that comes to mind though, is the length of your loads. While Im OTR, my average load length is about 550 miles. Company wide our average length is 428 miles. Ill usually pop a thousand or 1500 mile load every other week or so with shorter runs in between. One of the things I love about OTR is the constant change. I go completely nuts driving the same route every day. I really struggled with it when I was doing the Lowes dedicated. It literally puts me to sleep and puts me in a really bad mood, so I can Identify with the struggle.
Im wondering if it might be possible for you to run more series of shorter loads, somewhat like regional for them, but more like connecting smaller loads, perhaps at least multi stop loads. Again, with us, once I get in a certain region or lane, they will keep me in that area for a few days to a week.
I know part of it is where I run too. Running on the interstates kills me, especially through somewhere like North Dakota or Wyoming, at least driving in the wind is interesting. In general though western states offer challenging terrain and weather conditions, which you know well. I find myself being very attentive when Im driving through twisties in the mountains in incliment weather or on a tight two lane road with no shoulders, no guardrail and 8 percent grades. Also, the scenery is phenominal. Perhaps it might not hurt to ask to run certain areas more than others. When Im in the south and midwest, I take the US highway system and state roads most of the time. I love seeing the old towns, and the trip planning is interesting. I also find weather forecasting fascinating and constantly am checking myself against my plans and weather.
I too listen to a ton of music, but I also have entire days go by where Im just having interesting conversations with myself as well as obsessing on company policies and to work around financial issues at work. One other thing I constantly obsess on is if Im making my distances at the times I projected at the start of the driving shift. Now, talking to oneself so much might not be healthy, but Im usually happy as a bug in rug on the road.
There are also some struggles that are just endemic to OTR. Ordering things off Amazon and such is almost impossible. Meeting people is difficult, you never know if you will be back through town or not and when, especially with the wounded freight market right now. Setting a schedule for many things is very difficult, even more so if you have any hint of ADD or OCD.
Getting off the truck at stops is also vital, some runs we can, some we cant. But that love of exploring new places and going to places you havent been to, at least in a long time, should resurface after a bit.
Posted: 1 day, 18 hours ago
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Paper Transport Inc: Hair Follicle Test (a few questions)
Rusty, first of all you need to change your name here. The term FF is not allowed and does not belong. I’m surprised it got through the filters.
If you are worried, get your own private test so you know what shows up before testing with any company or for a DOT physical.
I'm not sure on that either. I'm going to ban him for the time being. Not sure how to let him know he needs to change the name, or if he's able to after the ban. I'm not banning for content or to be punitive, just to maintain standards.
Posted: 1 day, 18 hours ago
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Couldn't agree more. As unfortunately as it may be, in terms of driver vs carrier, the odds are stacked heavily in the carrier's corner right now.
Even within the historically bad market there are turns. For the last 6 months or so, I noticed an uptick in certain areas, and generally had preplans stacked on me. The last two weeks have been a return to extended times on loads and not as much availability of loads.
Basically it's a time to mind ones P's and Q's. One of the things I've asked for, or rather volunteered for is to run in whatever markets seem best for the company, whichever will generate the most revenue. Meaning if they need me to return to the frozen tundra of Wyoming, no problem. In light of the dumpster fire thread, I'm going to double down on being flexible and easy to work with, not argumentative or combative (which I'm generally not anyway).
But I think an extra few seconds of slowing down when you're frustrated and waiting before saying or commenting to your dispatch might be a good idea.
Posted: 2 days, 3 hours ago
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Interesting, I have to apologize to Scott as well. But, also, feel compelled to point out, that from a driving standpoint, are we more concerned with people's private life than we are with their performance?
The industry is full of convicted fellons, addicts business failures highly successful people. And everything in between. I'm generally more obsessed with pushing acting as a professional driver than I am with if you've made some poor choices in life. Especially if you're trying to recover or have recovered from those choices.
What would this thread look like if it was a driver we didn't know? We would most likely try to get that driver to see the pattern of them getting fired and see if they could change it. We also would probably assume there was more to the firing than stated. Perhaps this is a lesson for us to not be so judgmental.
I'm not making a judgment call either way on it, how could i? We all have skeletons in our closets. Hell, I make no bones about being in recovery and my colorful past with speeding and traffic tickets. My past doesn't dictate my present nor my future.
If, as PackRat said, he was simply fired for complaining about the loads and not being a team player, it's a valuable lesson. We talk about driving the brand. I know I'm very vocal about Knights bad points and it's something I need to examine. I'd hate to get canned for it. While I don't see it on the radar, also not wise to bite the hand that feeds you.
Posted: 2 days, 13 hours ago
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We started to delete Big Scott's low and mean spirited comment, but decided to let it stay. It will help others get a handle on who he is. He put himself out there for us to see.
I'm confused as to why Scott commented like that. I definitely feel for PackRat. I wonder if it was a political hit. Whatever the case, it's a bummer and serves as an unfortunate reminder that the companies will force their upper hand. I'm pretty vocal about my complaints on certain aspects of my company at times and have had to delete a few of them.
I definitely think that Scott's comment was out of line.
Posted: 4 days, 1 hour ago
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I'd like to become a driver, but having trouble finding what I need...
Yes, I regularly stay in my truck at our terminals. I'm currently doing laundry in our terminal in Fontana CA. Another perk of going with a large carrier is the resources like terminals and repair facilities. Times I've had where due to service, I couldn't stay in the truck, they provided me ubers and a hotel as well. Many times.
Posted: 17 minutes ago
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First trucking job
Please pardon my ducking autocorrect typos.