Comments By Joanna

Wow, thanks for all the beautiful pics! That looks so amazing. I bet the bike ride back down was a lot of fun. I can't wait until I can start doing this myself. Until then, I will have to live vicariously through you.

Bud,

I am in the EXACT same situation with my job now. My boss handles things just like this, and I've been banging my head against a brick wall for the past four months trying to figure out how to deal with it. I tried every approach I could think of to resolve the situation, but nothing worked. I am still learning how to deal with people like this. I finally made the decision that I gotta do what is best for me and turned in my letter of resignation. I have four more days left at this job. Man, I am counting the hours!

I just don't respond well to fear tactics. Does anybody? I never understood that mentality. I would think you would get more out of your employees by recognizing their strengths and using positive reinforcement, just like with kid and pets. Give them incentives to reach goals instead of threatening them. So many companies don't approach it that way, though.

Kudos to you, Bud, for being a stand up guy. Prime will be lucky to have you.

Cool story. Thanks for sharing!

Women who work in male dominated jobs have to work twice as hard to prove themselves, so it's no wonder Lisa is at the top of her game. Go, Lisa!

Boeing would be a great company to work for. Something to keep in mind for those of us who live in the PNW.

Hey Diana!

Good to see another lady from Oregon interested in trucking. I am researching these same questions myself. The only other scholarship that I know of so far is the one offered by Women In Trucking. The deadline for that one has passed but it doesn't hurt to keep an eye on it in just in case something changes.

Women In Trucking Foundation Scholarship

Hey, Sandman! You're not intruding at all. I've never seen a sliding tarp trailer like that before. Pretty cool! It looks like it would be a lot easier to deal with despite the somewhat limited visibility. I didn't realize Knight had a flatbed division. They sound like a good company to work for. Too bad training is all the way out in Phoenix, though. That would be one long ass bus ride for me! I'm assuming that's the transportation they would offer. Would be nice to get the paid training, though. And I hear they have pretty decent equipment. Thanks for the pics!

Wind and winter are the worst for flatbedders. But I still prefer it to any other type of trucking. You NEVER have to put your tarps on the tops of your load....at the shippers or receivers, they usually have a guy on a forklift who does that for you. In all the years I pulled a flatbed, the tarps were put on the top of the load by a fork lift. Are the tarps heavy ?? yeah....tho our lumber tarps were closer to 75-80 pounds...and we didn't have the REALLY lightweight ones. But it would depend on the type of flatbedding you do. We seldom tarped, and got paid well to do it. But if I was going into trucking fresh, I'd pull a box for awhile, then try flat bed...and see if that was the deal for me...

Good to know that tarps get put up for you. That would be a huge help. What type of flat-bedding seldom tarps?

Heavy C, thanks for taking the time to paint a picture of what local work is like. It's great to hear that, with enough persistence, a newbie can get local work. I'm not counting on this being a possibility for me but I am definitely going to make several phone calls and scour the local job boards before I take the plunge into OTR.

I HATE BOSTON! I know that area and I don't think congested is the proper word for it. How about... Hell

OMG....yes. I got sent up there all the time years ago and it was pure hell. Thank God this never happened, though!

Obviously the brake story is complete BS.

I was about 50 when we changed to skateboard...and I can throw straps with the best of them...but I cheat, and use a dog toy to get'em over the tall loads....its a trick another lady flatbedder showed me...And in the years I did flatbedding, I have never thrown a chain over a load. we used a strap, threw it over, then hooked the chain to it and drug the chain back over. And to get chains in and thru some stuff, we use a "chain weasel"...nifty thing a friend of ours came up with...works perfect. But we also have a husband/wife who flatbed, and they run their own trucks. She weighs in at an amazing 97 pounds, and about 5 foot and a smidgin'. So don't let size, or age, or anything else scare you out. Get some experience OTR pullin' a box trailer. Then if skatebaordin' is still callin' to you...give it a try. If you don't like it....change back. And for the record...I have been to ALOT of load sights with dozens of fellow flatbed drivers. I didn't see ONE knuckle dragger there. I have always been treated with respect as a fellow driver. Sure, they will sneak a peek when they see me throw my straps with a dog toy...but wht the heck, it works !!! And when I made a ladder to crawl up the sides of the truck to hook bungees on high hooks, my hubby boo hooed it...but then he saw other drivers come over and borrow it...Invision a big tough trucker...hooking a HOT PINK 5 foot ladder to his rub rail so he can get up to reach his D rings with bungees.....I think that anyone who wants to work in a particular area of trucking should give it a try. But I also believe that if you can't do the job as well as anyone else, and you are always asking for help, you need to go do something else.....

Hello, Starcar, so nice to finally hear from a lady flat-bedder! Love the pink ladder story, that's hilarious hee hee. Lots of great info here. I agree with MG, if you ever have the time to start a diary like OS and Daniel B have done it would be a great read. I think I will do what you suggest. I'll probably start pulling dry van to get back into the swing of things and then switch over to flatbed later if I still want to at that point. I definitely think I can handle it though. It's all about having the right tools for the job and being creative, like you said. Thanks for all the great advice.

Yeah that sounds like quite a struggle. Old School told me in another thread that his tarps weigh 135 pounds each. I never imagined they would be THAT heavy. Everything else about flat bedding sounds cool but I don't think I would be able to wrangle a 135 pound tarp. Sounds like it might be a deal breaker for me. Thanks for the info, Idaho :)