Comments By Indy

Hi everyone! I am a 25 yr driver with no OTR experience. I drove for 21 yrs with a union job doing local work in the Tri-State area (NY,NJ,CT,PA) My union job closed its doors in 2011. After that I decided to work for a non-union company to get away from the union crap. For a while things were pretty sweet. I was collecting a pension from the union job, and was making $21 hr doing container work at the piers with the non- union job. Before you start to think I'm trying to make some kind of Non-Union/Union debate here, let me assure you I'm not. The only thing I will say is that while there is a lot of things I HATE about the unions, if I had a choice, i'd go union. There's positives and negatives on both sides of the aisle. nough said. Anyway, the reason I am now thinking of going over the road is because the second job went from good to Horrible real quick. I went from doing pier work to making retail store deliveries, in Long Is. and Manhatten. I finally quit. I was traumatized, LOL. I will never touch freight again, LOL. So thats why Im considering OTR.

In my area there is local work (which almost always means handling freight), there is Line-Haul which means working the night shift (12-8), Regional, and OTR. Being that I'm single now, with grown kids, I thought it might be interesting to go OTR for a while to see what its like.

But here is why I'm slowing down on this idea, and here is where I need some input from you experianced OTR drivers. I can't believe how DESPERATE companies are to hire new drivers! I'm to the point where I'm ignoring phone calls and emails. It's getting to be annoying. I'm still not ruling it. I feel it might work for me because of my circumstances. I have to say though, if companies are this desperate for drivers, it can't be a good job, not for the long haul anyway. You would think that if its SO hard the get drivers, the companies would have to sweeten the pot, but that doesn't seem like its happening. Not if they continue to have such a shortage of drivers.

I just want to work for about 5-6 more yrs and then retire completely. So should I run from this idea, or give it a shot?

Your thoughts please.

Mike

I think the main reason OTR companies have such a hard time keeping their seats filled compared to local companies is that the pay, when considered on an hourly basis, is much lower for OTR than local. You can still make good money otr but you'll have to work more hours to make what you have in the past.

If you're primarily thinking of doing it to experience the lifestyle then I'd go for it.

Try this. Turn the steering wheel all the way in one direction while the truck is running (make sure you're parked and not moving). Hold the wheel all the way to the locked position and then turn the truck off. That kick back in the steering wheel is almost identical to the initial kick off a steer tire blowing.

Great advice from all... and I will definitely try this.

I never got to use a simulator during any of my training. Anybody know if you can you experience a blown steer on a simulator?

I've seen a couple of frightening videos of this happening... and now it's something I think about a lot when I'm driving. Anyone ever had this happen? Or know anyone personally that it has happened to? I'm just wondering how common of an occurrence this is. Is it something that is likely to happen to a driver at some point over the course of a long (say, 10+ years) driving career?

Any advice on how you'd handle such a blow out would be much appreciated as well...

Do you have to learn to change headlights when you're on the road

I'd say yes... You should be prepared to change a headlight. Always have a spare headlight on hand. They are usually pretty easy to replace... Probably won't even require any tools. Open hood and find back of headlight assembly on the hood... You remove old lamp from back of assembly and replace... Pretty straightforward

On another OOIDA Page Of Industry Facts they state:

Owner-Operators averaged net income is $39,927

Now that's what they made before taxes.

On the website for the Bureau of Labor Statistics they have a page titled Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2014 53-3032 Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers where it states:

Mean Annual Wage: $41,930

So when you're using verifiable data you'll see that owner operators make about the same as company drivers overall. When you ask an owner operator what they make they'll almost always give you their revenue figure or some relative statement like, "Way more than a company driver" or "Five times what I used to make as a company driver" - that kinda stuff.

Net income is after taxes. You're comparing o/o's net to the gross average of all truckers. Not an accurate comparison.

I've learned enough online and in person from drivers with actual experience as o/o's to know that hard working and smart o/o's can and do make more than company drivers. It's a business and like all types of business most who give it a try fail.

There is a greater range in income for o/o's than company drivers so those numbers don't reflect what is possible if you're among the best (most successful) o/o's.

Listen John, I totally understand where you're coming from. In my 20s I smoked heavily for years, primarily for the same reason as you: I thought it enhanced everything I did into some kind of awesome experience.

But what I finally realized is that it doesn't let you experience a more profound life, it does exactly the opposite. It removes you psychologically from the profound life experiences you could and should be having.

Video games and TV shows are not what life is all about, they're just a distraction designed to keep you numb and unproductive. Life is much more beautiful when you are clear headed and engage life in a positive and productive way.

I hope you don't think I'm being preachy, I want you to understand that I went through exactly what you are going through and I feel like I have some wisdom on this issue that would really benefit you. It's totally up to you if you want to take advantage of it or not.

For a very long time, my life was basically getting high and watching TV/movies and playing video games. But that Mary Jane is a devious b***h. She tricked me into wasting a good portion of my prime that I will never get back. Do I miss her? Sometimes. But believe me, I have so much more without her.

Trust me. Just let her go.

Great answer!...badge?

... Our instructor keeps emphasising that the brake test needs to be said and done word for word as we're being taught and if you miss any on the brake test it's a failure. Stressful but the more we do it the easier it gets. Good luck

The school I attended required us to write out the 4 pt brake check, word for word, exactly as we were to say it, 3 times every night for homework. That ended up being about 75 times total. We all could recite that thing in our sleep by testing day. Rote memorization... It's trendy to bash it... But it works!

Everybody who writes any review (whether truck companies, baby seats, or restaurants) writes from a motivation. The problem is, anger and frustration and the desire for revenge is what motivates most reviewers. The ones who are happy with the experience are happy with their experience and don't feel the need to shout it from the rooftop.

Yes, when I read reviews for anything, I read several reviews. The "bad" reviews that have a legitimate complaint really do sound different from the "I'm out to get this lousy company" ones.

Yes. Exactly... It is possible to separate legitimate complaints from b.s.. Believable complaints about anything usually contain specific details that can be verified independently, for example

For the record, I don't think I've ever said any particular company is a "bad" company. I would probably label companies that bring in young, rookie drivers to orientation and give them the hard-sell to sign a lease agreement .... I would call them "bad" companies. At least one of the major carriers, (i won't name them) has been known to do this. Rookie goes to orientation thinking he is going to be a company driver. Gets there and company proceeds to pressure him to become a lease operator. Tells him they don't have any company trucks available at this time and he will have to wait weeks to get one if he wants to be a company driver... but he can be driving tomorrow if he leases a truck. That would be a bad company.

If you want to go over-the-road, and home-time is important to you, I would look at Schneider. They have lots of regional/dedicated jobs that will get you home pretty much every weekend.

But, wait a minute Indy!

There are a lot of bad reviews about Schneider, and in particular I've seen a lot of them that say they won't get you home very often. How do you reconcile those differences in what I'm seeing?

And for the record, I'm not being a smart *ss... I'm still working on illustrating a point here.

OS, I have no disagreement with what you just said to Allen. I believe that with any of the major carriers, anyone with a good work ethic and attitude can be successful.

To answer your question... I spent a lot of time researching companies when I was at the stage that Allen is now. Relative to some of the other major trucking companies, I found Schneider to have a more positive online aura (if you will). But, not being satisfied with just what I read online, I sought out "in person" comments. In the case of Schneider, I know someone that used to work for them, and had a very good experience. Regarding home time, he was home every weekend, if he wanted to be.

So, to really answer your question,... how to reconcile those negative reviews... I'd have to say, simply, common sense. Schneider is a very large company. They employ thousands of drivers. Odds are, a significant number won't cut it, for one reason or another. And, odds are, that out of those that don't cut it, there will be some that feel the need, for whatever reason, to go online and publicly blame the company for their failure. So, negative reviews were expected. What I find is that in comparison to other similar large carriers, Schneider has relatively fewer complaints. In addition, they also have relatively more positive comments from drivers posting online. Hence the more positive "aura" that I sense.