Profile For Old School

Everything Bill said is true. Just for clarification about the "cheat sheet," he's referring to the requirements of the ELD mandate. It is required that you have some written instructions in the truck with you on how to operate your particular system. Those directions should include instructions on how to present your logs to the officer during a roadside inspection.

I work for a large company and we've had these same issues.

Welcome to our forum Bill, and thanks for posting some great information!

I would say one of the most important thing is how much you have in your savings after you buy the truck.

That's a great point Sid - very wise advice!

That's really neat that you guys got to do something together like that. I've enjoyed meeting several of our members here while out in various parts of the country. Thanks for sharing the photos with us!

The ad for leasing was his 2017 W-2 from Prime. Gross pay $328,000. He readily admitted he only took home half

Two things here Jason. First, you never saw this W-2, because it doesn't exist. He may have told you some numbers, but if he showed you anything, it wasn't a W-2. Lease operators don't get a W-2.

Second, if he generated 328,000 dollars, I doubt he took home half of it. I realize he thinks that and says it, but my accounting experience tells me something different. What you want to know is what he reported on his tax return as his income. I doubt you'll ever hear him refer to that number. That number is going to be much closer to 70,000 dollars, if I know what I'm talking about.

Focus on knocking out that next 10,000 miles. You're getting way too distracted with this obsessed trainer, and you have only his side of this "Prime really screwed me over" story. It's all wasted efforts on your part to be involved in this.

I had a similar trainer who was always trying to get me involved in his own personal drama. It will speak well for your ability to focus on the task at hand if you can figure out how to extricate yourself from these distractions. As a driver, there will be things every day that potentially can steal your focus. Start learning now to discipline your mind to focus on what you need to get the job done. Everything else can wait.

Don't Be Fooled By Owner Operator Math

Red, we just don't advise truck ownership for a lot of reasons. I will say this, I'm not familiar with Canadian dollars, but I'd be reallly nervous about my ability to succeed here in the states if $14,560.00 was my projected monthly revenues. That sounds really tight. I generally produce twice that as a company driver. I'm not so sure you've got your expenses covered either. I think they will exceed what you've listed.

I suggest you join OOIDA. They can help you formulate a better business plan or give you some help and advice.

This is my habit whenever I go to a shipper or receiver...

I'll log myself "on duty" for approximately 15 minutes to check in and do any paperwork. Then I log myself on "sleeper berth" while waiting. This gives you some options if there's some confusion or delay at the shipper/receiver. Let's say your wait ends up being six or seven hours. Once you're loaded/unloaded you can delay leaving until eight hours has gone by and you'll have the same amount of hours available to you as when you arrived. This is one of many time management strategies that Top Tier Drivers will incorporate into their daily routines.

Professional Drivers have to be opportunistic in their approach to the adversities of this job. I am always taking the problems or obstacles I face and changing them into opportunities to improve my results. It's all part of the challenges we face out here. It takes a different mindset, but once you've trained yourself to think differently from the mass of current thought among most drivers you'll find yourself much more happier and productive out here.

Most drivers view a lengthy delay like this as wasting their time and keeping them from making money. I see it as potentially allowing me to extend my clock which allows me to get more done after the wait is over. If needed, I can just do two hours in the sleeper for my next break, but it's not required. This gives you a lot of flexibility in controlling your own schedule and your own results.

It's always great to hear from you Rick! Thanks for speaking up on this one. Like many other things related to trucking, per diem is oftentimes misunderstood.

I read your post twice, very carefully. I don't have a clue what you know. It sounds as if you know nothing. You certainly don't seem to know enough to refute some silly statement about DEF being related to the brakes.

Here's my favorite thread about DEF. Watch the video. It's as entertaining as it is informative.

How DEF Works In A Diesel Engine

That's great news PackRat! We are all pulling for you. Thanks for the update. We were all getting concerned about your status and well being.

Congratulations Chris! I think we had another driver start with Gypsum Express years ago, but we never heard much from him. It would be great to hear a little bit of your experiences with them as a new rookie driver. I see their flatbed trucks often when I'm in the Northeast.

I feel it needs to be shared, since I was shocked at what transpired at the end of my employment with them

I just now came across this interesting turn of events. How in the world are you shocked?

You went against everything we labor over in here. You went against the very contractual agreement you read and signed. You let greed for a few more CPM as an unproven rookie influence your very poor decision. Now you want to act appalled? Give us a break - please! What kind of fools do you take us for? You made a bad decision, now you're reaping the consequences. It seems like with all your education you can't seem to learn the simplest of life's lessons.

I want to say more, but I'm restrained by other commitments today.

You just reinforced everything we teach in here. I can thank you for that. You did a great job on that level.

Hello Mike, and welcome to our forum!

Are you currently driving for Knight? Are you a driver, or are you just doing some research into where you want to work?

There are a lot of different types of jobs offered out of their Phoenix, AZ terminal. Some will cover the lower 48 states while others will be more regional. You just need to specify what you're interested in when speaking with a recruiter.

We knew you could handle this. Congratulations!

Remember some of the things I stated earlier. Trucking is a test almost everyday. Just keep passing those tests and things will keep getting better all the time.

Congratulations Marc! That's great news!

I think it looks great. I like the way you put the belly straps in it, and it looks like a sufficient number of straps overall.

There's going to be time's when you need a strap directly over a tire. I use a 4" hand ratchet instead of the truck mounted winches in that scenario. If you can keep 2 or three of those on board they work great and won't interfere with the tire.

Moses, there's considerable effort that goes into being a top performer in this business, and it's hard to understand it all as an outsider just considering this career.

Drivers have a lot of influence over how they are dispatched and handled by their managers, and therefore how much they actually earn. Their performance recommends them as a driver who can be counted on, and there is a lot more to what establishes them as top performers than just driving all they can each day.

Here's an article that might help you understand it a little better.

Show Me The Money!

Lil Triscuit, these are great detailed posts - thanks a lot for doing this!

You will soon discover that only a very small percentage of those who started this journey with you will even come close to finishing it. We tell people this all the time, but it still surprises them how many just don't have the Commitment to see it through. Trucking is a great playing field, but only a few are able to compete at the level required for success. Our hats are off to you for taking it seriously, and getting off to a great start.

Congratulations Daniel!

That's awesome, thanks for sharing the photo with us. You da man!

You don't need to contact him. Ask your questions here in our forum. That way a bunch of other people will learn something too. That's the whole purpose of doing this. If you have questions, fire 'em off. Big Scott is always checking in when he can - he will give you what you need when he can.

Almost every company will require a new medical exam. I think the FMCSA requires this when you switch to a new trucking job. Typically they will pay for it, but they are also going to choose the physician. They are allowed to have higher standards than the FMCSA for their physical exam when they are going to employ you.