Profile For TractorTey

Thank you guys for telling me I was being a little B about it! Im getting it fixed now.

My first day on the road with F&S didnt go as I expected. Got me thinking I should call W.E. before things get worse. Let me explain.

Finished training in knoxville on thursday last week, friday morning I drove a rental to Brilliant, OH because thats where my assigned tractor was. Got to the terminal and no one had any clue that I was coming to get my truck, and no one knew who I was or where my assigned tractor was. A mechanic had to find my tractor for me because it was all the way in the lot, they were using it to move broken trailers around. FM calls me to see if I was there because he wanted to find me a load to pick up, ended getting a loaded trailer from another driver at the terminal(**** ASS TRAILER JUST DIDN'T KNOW YET). Before the driver left he told me he had the lights fixed on the trailer and there should be nothing to worry about(RED FLAG). Did my pretrip everything worked as it should, all lights were working, no loose/hanging wires. My drive from Brilliant to my house was only an hour. No issues on my drive home.

Fast forward to Monday morning. On my way to deliver my first load the ABS light was coming on after every bump, figured with all the weight its just what happens with F&S trailers(My first FB load, had 50k on my trailer, 3 aluminum coils). Made it to NJ from pittsburgh to deliver my first load on Monday morning with the ABS issue the whole way. On my way to my pickup location in Lancaster PA a fellow trucker signaled to me that my trailer marker lights were flickering. Its around 12pm driving on 76; DOT is everywhere. Dont want to get hit with a failed Level 1. I immediately pulled over checked the pigtail, all lights were lit and stable as I did a walk around. Started driving and the lights are flickering again. Pulled over again wiped off the pigtail and the prongs on the trailer connection once again all lights were stable and lit. Started driving and theyre flickering again. Called my FM(He didnt come in today, was assigned 3 new drivers last week and wasnt even there on our first day, more on that later), another FM answered they transferred me to roadside assistance. I tell roadside my issue, that I'm an hour outside Lancaster. Roadside tells me my issue is not worth them coming to me, tells me to spread the prongs on my trailer connections and just drive to their partner shop in Lancaster. So I pulled out the toolbox went to town on them prongs, all lights were lit and stable. Started down the road and they're at it again.

Pulled over and called the safety manager in knoxville(Supposed to be the head of all safety managers of the company), he basically told us during the training week they wont accept failed DOT inspections. So called him to see what am I supposed to do, no answer left a VM. Called my safety manager at the brilliant terminal, no answer left a VM. Left a thorough message on the company driver app that should go to all terminals, no response, no call back. Filled out a maintenance repair form and sent it directly to the brilliant terminal mechanics, no response no call back. So I called roadside back and told him that the prong trick didnt work, he gave me the address and number to their partner shop. Called the shop they said they close at 5(it was 3:30ish) and they said they wouldnt be able to help me until sometime in the morning. Told me they open @7 ad\nd they might be able to get to me sooner than later. I had a little over an hour left on my clock from all the stopping and getting fuel etc. They told me theres a mom and pop truck stop( Ruttters, nice little spot) a few miles from the shop. So I went there for my 10hr. Went off duty at 4:30. Had to drive here with the lights going crazy, it was raining so I had to have my lights on.

This was my first day driving FB and my first day driving with the company. FM told me to call him if i needed anything on friday and he called off monday. The other FMs didnt know what to do with me, Safety wouldnt answer the phone and roadside basically told me to F off. Felt like I shouldve had some type of back up or support. Still have not received a message or call back from anyone. The other two new drivers had issues as well, our FM sent too my drivers to the east so Driver #1 was stuck sitting at a shipper for 3hours with no load to pickup, burned out his whole clock waiting for a call back, had to call them back and they said oh yea just drive to a truck stop we'll find you something in the morning. Driver #2 delivered his first load then got a call from F&S saying they never got his results from his drug test, how TF was he allowed to take a truck all the way to indiana to deliver THEN they call and say that.

Not liking the way its looking, thinking I should get these lights fixed and go to a different company before it gets worse. I know its not good to jump ship but theyre not making a good first impression. Sorry for the long story just wanted to be thorough. Thoughts?

If you're running five to seven hundred mile loads, you would be picking up Monday tarping (2 hours on the ground) then driving the rest of that day and delivering Tuesday (1.5 hours on the ground). Then get another load on Tuesday that you have to tarp (2 hours on the ground) and then drive the rest of the day and try to deliver Wednesday or Thursday. So you're going to be spending a lot of time securing and unsecuring loads which leaves you not that much time to drive miles to earn money.

As far as equipment and the learning curve on securing that's a whole other issue. Coils are not the easiest load to secure. Not because they're that difficult to do but you just have to make sure that your securement is sound because there's a significant danger with hauling coils. Plus the coils are often different sizes. So, a tarping method that works for one set of coils is not necessarily going to work for another set of coils.

From what I understand Fraley and Schilling hauls a lot of metal products. So even if you're not hauling coils, you're going to be hauling other metal products that require moving blankets or other protection for your tarps which is more time securing.

Good luck!

Hey Brody thank you for thoughts! You're %100 correct, it seems like the majority of the loads come untarped from the research I've done as well. With me being new to FB I'm sure I'll be on the slower end with securement until I get the hang/more comfortable with it. With that being said I planned on trying to stay out 2 weeks at a time so I can make sure I get those Friday and Saturday(apparently they have cx open on saturdays)loads in: that's IF I have any clock left by that time haha. I read the securement thread on here, very informative comments in there, however I didn't know that the tarping could be different depending on the size of the coil!!

You're extremely welcome, Tey.

DEFINITELY read ALL you can! We're here for ya. I saw the citations.....I wouldn't sweat it, tbh!!

Now, GO READ!

LoLoL.... ttys!

~ Anne ~

That's a huge relief I was beating myself up over it! Yes ma'am I got my head in the "books" haha. I love this website! TTYL

That's awesome! Just a heads up you MAY have some difficulties with getting a mortgage if you're paid by the mile. Its not impossible but you'll find some lenders may shy away because your miles vary, sometimes dramatically depending on when paperwork is submitted. I'm paid hourly so it doesn't matter in my instance but when I bought my house a couple lenders mentioned they won't touch someone paid by the mile or piece without a year or 2 at that same company to get a decent average. It's worth noting I closed just after the Covid lockdowns started which may have been the reason they were so strict.

A couple good threads to read would be Securement and Flatbed variety

Thank you Rob, I honestly had that thought in the back of mind. I was told by rocket mortgage once I get a few months of consistent pay stubs and a headed letter from payroll basically projecting what my annual income will be then they'd be able to work with that. Obviously that's just one lender but I was hoping others would require something similar. Worst case scenario I can just rent(rather not) until lenders feel like I have enough to proof of income for a mortgage. I'll check out those threads as well I like to read so I'll be doing nothing but for the next two weeks in attempt to prepare myself as best as possible.

I'd suggest reading our flatbedders' threads; especially TwoSides ... who's struggling right now. It's real. Read any & all posts by: Old School, Chief Brody, Turtle, Solo, (Victor is new...check his diary, too....) and SO many others. Those are the more active ones; and I apologize because I KNOW i'm forgetting a few major players here. :(

I saw the pix of the citations; more on that later.

F & S is well known here in Ohio, they hail from 'Brilliant!' LoLoLoL..... they also pull reefers, jsyk!

Their 'Safer Web' snapshot is really decent. According to their website, they ask for 2 years of experience, so if you get in with them, that's awesome! (Look here: Safer.fmcsa.dot.gov ... and type in their name; make sure you select 'ID by NAME!....LoL...)

Best wishes;

~ Anne ~

ps: READ THIS: Persian Conversion.. VERY sobering.

pps: Here's a whole THREAD on a few to look into &/or follow: BEST stories / diaries !!

Thank you Anne, once again pointing me in the right direction! I've haven't read any of the diary threads yet, so I'll be doing that now. I was having issues with getting the edited photos to upload. Turtle took down the unedited photos due to all of my personal info being exposed. Not sure if they've made changes to their requirements but I've had my CDL-A for 2 years now. Just took me a little while finding a local/regional TT position fresh out of school(Had to be home to help and support with my newborn). I want flatbed because it puts me to work! I'm an athletic built guy that likes to eat and I feel like I'll turn into an overweight guy in no time driving reefer or dry van OTR haha. Orientation is on the 28th, I THINK I'm ready for the challenges that lay ahead of me. Once again thank you for your thoughts and I'm headed to the diary section now!

Hey fellow truckers, I got some good news! Even though I had a preventable accident earlier this month(Read my other thread about it), I took advice from Mr. PackRat and applied to every flatbed company that I could. To my surprise the offers starting flying in! After sending companies my driving experience and accident report; I've had a few who still felt like I'd be a good fit for their company. So now it was time to sort through who had the best options for me.

The two big keys to which company I chose was location(I want to move to Conway, SC) and home time(I have a 2 year old). There were a few companies that wanted me to stay out 2-3 weeks at a time. I can manage 2 weeks but I feel like that 3rd week would cause issues at home. I'm very invested in my son's development. With that being said I think I've made my decision to drive for Fraley & Schilling. They have regional routes that would get me home every weekend if wanted. Once my little guy gets older I plan on driving further to see more of the US and also staying out longer. They also cover/drive in the state of SC so that will allow me to get a mortgage in SC. I'm very excited I cant wait to get started and FINALLY become a skateboarder!!

What are your thoughts on this company? Anything I should look out for? Any tips for a rookie Flatbed driver so I can try my best to continue my trucking journey mistake-free? I watch try to watch alot of YT about flatbedding, I've notice some drivers have an enclosed(headboard?) box that they store all of their equipment in, How do I find one of those?

Thank you in advance!

Howdy again, Tay !!!

That's awesome that you are being courteous with PFG. Very commendable. Just wondering, before you 'switch up' companies. Have you looked into a linehaul position with PFG?

Not sure if you've read G'Town's threads, but ... he started with (and drove for) Swift .... and upon recently moving to Delaware, took a linehaul job with PFG. He's quite happy, to say the least! Almost 10 years in at Swift, loyally, too.

Abbey is the 'online' recruiter. If you go to the Western Express Facebook page, and click 'message,' chances are you'll be speaking to Abbey. She knows Brett and I from Trucking Truth, and she's awesome; and honest!

Can I be the 'best woman' at y'alls marriage, btw?!?!?! I've got SUCH a girl crush on her.....she's the epitome of awesome! LoL!!!

Best to ya, Tay.

Keep us in the loop.

~ Anne ~

ps: ALL Old School's blogs are the bomb, and spot on. KEEP READING! :)

Old School's Free Agent Myth Blog

Thank you for the best wishes Anne! UPDATE:: Okay I finally have the police report from my accident. Just have to figure out how to post it on here so you all can critique and give me an honest opinion on how bad it is. Thank you!

I wish I came across this thread before the 3rd of this month. Rookie driver here had to learn the hard way to slow down when conditions are not ideal. I though my truck being as heavy as it was that I was at a lot lesser of a risk of losing control in bad weather. BOY was I wrong! Lesson learned, it’s much better to slow down traffic than to not be moving at all in a ditch!!

Howdy, Tay!

I have a great friend in Cleveland that still works for GFS ... he's 'maybe' 30 now?!? Haha! Mike 2633 is his handle. He's even getting burnt out after six years....! Yes, they ARE very forgiving. He tore the 'lid' off his pup on a motel intake lane... 5 years ago! (I've got pix...) He left .. and came back, with open arms. They're good people, IMHO.

YES, Food service is tough stuff... IMHO, harder than tarping! If Western wants you, then YESS! (If you by chance do facebook, go to their page, message (dm) them, and tell Abbey, that Brett & Anne say hi! She's awesome.)

Look into Rob T.'s diaries ..... HE STARTED with PFG !! >> Rob T.'s diaries!

Also, PapaPig ... he was a 'Dollar Store' Dolly Dude! >> PapaPig's Plight!

AND .... Larry T . . not been back up in here, in a week... hmm!!! Hard arske stuff. Larry T. and PFG !

Back to your ORIGINAL question....if Western Express is interested in you, and your goal IS ... flatbed ... then HECK YEAH!!!!

Old School got HIS start there, and worked WAY BEYOND what was contractually obligated. You won't even HAVE THAT. Look up Western Express in the search bar, above (the big white bar) and you'll SEE SUCCESS!!

If you click on Old School's profile, where it says 'member xxx on the web' .. it's his BLOG. You'll love it.

Wishing you the BEST man!!!

It's a YES from me, and I'm not Simon Cowell, haha!!

~ Anne ~

ps: However ... Sofia Vergara, tho!!! LoLoL~!! Love her!

I agree great people! I have no complaints my plan was to gain experience and then leave once other companies felt like I've had enough class A experience. We get a lot of Cleveland guys coming in and out of the imperial yard; I’m sure I’ve seen him around if he runs transit! This website has GREAT STORIES! I love to just sit back and read about other drivers’ experiences, it’s starting to become a new hobby of mine. I’ll definitely check those guys out and see how the food service has been treating them haha. Thank you for the recommendation I’m getting excited! I’ve actually read a post where Old School was talking about how the internet is a terrible place to find out about a company because it’s normally the guys who fail who are blasting the companies giving them a bad rep. He’s been there so long that they have to be doing something right, it’s pretty easy for us drivers to leave a company and sign up with another so that speaks volume!! Western has been on my ass, they want me to start this month. I think I’ll try to start at the beginning of March to be fair to GFS, they’ve been nothing but great to me! Is Abbey one of the recruiters? I’ll be sure to relay the message!! I appreciate the wishes! p.s. Sofia is my wife she just doesn’t know it yet haha