Comments By Ryan B.

This driver and his dog were at the yard today. St. Bernard and is just a pup. Still growing!

Saw a Prime driver being unloaded at a Kroger DC where I was the other day and this driver had 4 large dogs in his truck with him. Inside of that truck must smell terrible.

Today I thought I would look into a couple of the larger OTR companies. I gave recruiting a call and got a hurdle I never saw coming. To clarify, these were companies that provide CDL training. Because I’ve been retired I do not have any current working history so, even though I’ve driven truck for 25 years, I don’t qualify. I don’t know why this is but I’m sure there is one. My option now is to attend a private school forking out 5k plus and then sign on with a carrier that has a tuition reimbursement program to try to recoup some of that cash. I’m OK with this. I would rather have gone the other way but I believe this may be a test of my resolve. Thanks all for your input and ideas. I wish you all safe travels, a heathy life and dry pavement with the sun at your back.

Some of these recruiters are dumb. They send people to orientation who really aren't qualified, but the applicants don't know it. Other people get turned away by the gatekeeping recruiters because of "lack of work history." I am pretty damn sure that the work history requirement is meant to weed out people who can't or won't maintain employment. Someone who has been retired doesn't fall into this category. Anyway, that's one company. Most company recruiters are not going to shoot you down because you are retired.

Still working on those safety and fuel efficiency metrics. I managed to get to the number 8 spot, so my goal of breaking into the top ten has been achieved. Now headed for the number 1 spot.

It must be fierce competition in the top ten because the names move in and out fairly quickly. I dropped back to the middle teens from number 10 then back down into number 8, in the same day.

This week I was in the 20's. Weird. But on the whole, fuel efficiency has been going up.

I'll keep working at it. Probably gonna be one of those things where you get it dialed in then just keep it consistent and try to improve all the time.

Plenty of miles this last week. I let my FM know I'd be available for Saturdays, if needed, so he was able to accommodate and I put in around 3k, finishing up at home Saturday morning around 8:30.

A bit of a tough week, though, as my start times were in the early morning hours; which isn't too bad since I enjoy the lesser amount of traffic on the roads at those times. But the sleep schedule got a little skewed to accommodate the delivery times. It's all good. It's one of those challenges of driving.

I may have finished up my 6 month contract, as my safety bonus has increased as of this last week. Maybe a week early? I have recorded going into my 24th week this next Monday, the 17th. Yeah!

Pet peeve that has crept in is traffic merging into the highway. Seems they don't know how to press on the go pedal.

Another pet peeve is the auto brakes on the truck as they seem to have a mind of their own from time to time. I've picked up on that the radar tracks a vehicle further into an adjacent lane than my old truck, and if they're slowing down, my brakes may be activated. So I've adapted to that occurrence pretty good and keep a good eye on the tracking. It can be defeated by pressing on the go pedal.

Another time is those hard shadows from bridges that come out of nowhere and scare the crap out of you.

And if I'm too close to the vehicle ahead of me, and they start braking too quickly, those brakes may activate, which is annoying and makes my blood boil as I'm in complete control of the situation when this occurs. But I do have the radar looking as far ahead as possible, which is about a 10th of a mile. The fix is for me to react sooner to the following distance, and in most cases is just what I do, but occasionally you have some motorist jump in front of you and jam things up. Still, in the big picture, I need to adjust the following distance and all will be good. So I'm working on that so it doesn't happen that the brakes apply automatically.

Until later...

One trip into hilly/mountainous terrain can cause a significant dip in fuel economy. Do your best to hit that top spot, but know that where you rank may have more to do with who had longer stretches of straight/flat highway with no traffic delays. No matter where you fall in that ranking, you are a great asset to your company because you are focused on the right things. Fuel economy and safety are tied at the hip because the drivers who most frequently have the best fuel economy are the drivers who have the best safety record.

Only one way to find out.

Get that can of spray paint?

Only one way to find out.

Get that can of spray paint?

Hello Drivers, I retired from driving back in 2015 after 25 years behind the wheel. I was in LTL for 20 years, mostly in Linehaul and all regional (PNW). My last 5 years was also regional in the Northwest hauling HazMat tankers. In 2016 I surrendered my CDL because I thought I’d never do that again. Well, at 70 years old I’m finding out that even with a decent pension my desire to see the States probably won’t happen on my own dime. I don’t really want to go to a Mega Carrier to get my CDL back so my question is if I go to a local truck school and get my CDL would a large OTR outfit hire me as an experienced driver, just a little rusty, or would I be treated as a raw newby? I don’t want to go to the expense of forking out 4K plus to find out it will be difficult to get hired. I know this probably won’t mean much but over my 25 years I only had one chargeable accident (backing) and no citations, not even a scale ticket. I would also consider mentoring just to pass it forward. I appreciate your feedback and advice. Also, folks, spare me the “what the heck you thinkin’ driver?” Every once in a while I ask myself the same thing😂😂😂. Be safe out there!

Because of the amount of time that has passed since you last drove, on paper, you will be treated like you are just starting out. However, your experience will definitely give you an upper hand. I think May Trucking and Prime would be two companies with which to begin your search.

Not poorly timed at all... it was a good joke! Nothing like a little friendly banter between reefers-flatbedders-van drivers-tankers!

Davy likes to run, not sit at docks being loaded and unloaded.. .

I don't know if Davy likes to run or not, I suspect he does, but I do know this would read a whole lot funnier if he had written it!

This is undoubtedly true. Probably a poorly timed joke on my part. As for Davy liking to run, that was my assessment based on like 2 years' worth of comments from him. Apologies for disrupting the copacetic air of the board.

Davy, with Helwig I’ve been to Wyoming twice in 2 years. Both times to Cheyenne. In and out. Easy peasy.

Maybe you should consider jumping to Helwig. Am I recruiting? Maybe a little. Lol

Davy likes to run, not sit at docks being loaded and unloaded. Reefer life and running are like trying to mix oil and water.

Ryan, are you Davy’s spokesman now? I think Davy is very capable of operating on his own with comments.

However, reefer and running are not necessarily mutually exclusive. Last year I drove almost exactly 140,000 miles in 47 weeks. Just under 3000 miles per week average. And almost none of those miles were driven in windy conditions or even severe winter conditions. I guess mainly because of the lanes we run.

Chill. That was stated tongue-in-cheek.

Davy, with Helwig I’ve been to Wyoming twice in 2 years. Both times to Cheyenne. In and out. Easy peasy.

Maybe you should consider jumping to Helwig. Am I recruiting? Maybe a little. Lol

Davy likes to run, not sit at docks being loaded and unloaded. Reefer life and running are like trying to mix oil and water.