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Is there any particular reason you don't want to see their doctor? Sleep apnea concerns maybe? I'm genuinely curious why you would rather pay for a physical than have your employer cover the costs. Some doctors are more lenient or more strict when it comes to testing for sleep apnea that's why I ask. In my area there's a few doctors that have a reputation for being lenient which is likely why my employer sends me to the doctor of THEIR choice.

I can't pinpoint any specific regulations but it's basically industry standard at large companies. Most companies provide a new DOT physical during orientation regardless of how much your previous card has left. Yes, it can be irritating waiting for the office to setup an appt but you're still saving $100 or so.

Hard to believe I went over 6 years driving truck, starting my day between midnight and 2am, and got a deer 2 months ago when I initially posted this. Well, this morning I got a two-fer. I was headed down I35 once again heading to Lawrence KS. I'd just went under the bridge for exit 48 in Missouri when I nailed another one. This time I hit it centered and boy did it make a huge mess. When I pulled over at the next exit to inspect my equipment I noticed an unborn fawn that was ripped from mama resting next to mama's intestines lodged in my grill. Absolutely disgusting so I'll spare you guys the pictures. Entire underbody on my tractor and trailer are covered, ACC sensors busted along with my fog lights. I'd just got my truck out of the shop before leaving for new steers (wearing uneven on outer edge, unsure if related to last deer strike) worst part was I still had an hour and half drive to get to Lawrence then drive back 4 hours after getting my backhaul in Topeka and due to the ACC system being smashed to crap I had no cruise! Company policy is a drug test for anything over $1,000 damage regardless of fault so I'm sure I'll be asked to provide a sample after our shop looks at it.

Once again I needed to fill out an accident/incident report per company policy. I stated that "At approximately 3:17AM deer failed to yield right-of-way. We made contact in the center of my truck resulting in damage to the ACC system as well as fog light assembly."

If only these dang deer would learn to cross the bridge so generously provided, or the DOT stop placing the deer crossing signs in high traffic areas such as the interstate we could improve safety on our roads!

Brett out of curiosity what is your first hand experience with being a union member. I understand your families past but were you personally a member. If so, was it trucking and for how long?

I'm pretty sure all the trucks that are customized are lease ops at Prime.

Hey all I don't mean to get the fire burning again, however I feel the need to apologize. I was wrong to post about another member who has positively contributed to this forum and helped many rookie drivers make it through their first year, along with training new drivers. I allowed my emotion as a parent to get the best of me and for that I apologize. As Brett mentioned we've had members here with a checkered past but we've still learned from each other and our past experiences help educate others that may be facing similar obstacles. Isn't the purpose of our legal system to make one right their wrongs and become a positive member to society? I hope we're able to move forward as a forum and get back to what really matters. I hope that anybody mentioned in this thread is willing to come back and leave all this drama behind. We may never consider each other friends but I hope our passion for getting more safe productive drivers on the road brings us together for a common cause.

Has anybody talked to Packrat? It isn't unreasonable to feel betrayed or upset learning that he lied to many of us. Has anybody taken the time to find out WHY? Is it possible there's more to this than the desire to be dishonest? I had the joy of meeting up with Packrat nearly 4 years ago and enjoyed our meet up. From our brief meeting, and interactions on the forum I don't understand it . It's no secret that our service members have seen and done things that they still struggle to process. There's a reason mental health is such a problem with our veterans. Is it possible that there's more than meets the eye and we could possibly help him see that something isn't right? Many of us have been around here several years. I'd hate to see everybody just write off a friend, or family member, because we may not fully understand what's going on. I would reach out to him, however I've changed phones a couple times and no longer have his number.

I’m looking for local around Buffalo New York, I know it’s gonna be difficult with my last speeding ticket only being two years old so they’ll see the other three, I’ve since learned my lesson, and hope to be hirable at some local job

I did a very brief search on Indeed.com and seen Sysco is hiring drivers that are recent graduates of a truck driving school and no more than 2 moving violations in a rolling 3 year period. You could inquire with them if they have a program to get your CDL. Just keep in mind Sysco is very labor intensive and the risk of accidents is quite high due to the areas you'll be expected to get your truck.

Also seen HD Supply is hiring for delivery drivers that do not require a CDL. That may be an option as well, though that experience probably wont count as experience when going for a Class A job.

Have any of you thought about scheduling your drive on April 8th to be off the road during the upcoming solar eclipse on April 8th (if you are in its path)?

Back in 2017 there was one that blocked about 90% of the sun in my area. There were some people that pulled off the road but it wasn't anything too crazy. Most people were off in safe parking areas. Driving defensively, maintaining safe following distance, leaving yourself an out and other basic safe driving behaviors should allow you to continue driving business as usual. In the area of totality you're likely to see travel impacts so it's something to keep in mind but in my opinion not something to keep you off the road for the day.

2 cities everyone should visit 😆

There's a city just off I35 south of Des Moines by that same name. I shared pics elsewhere on the forum of the the bar in town having merchandise that says "I love " with the town name

We're opening another DC just off 35 there in June. They happened to also just open another gas station under our brand of "Fast And Fresh" on the edge of that property. There's gotta be a joke in there somewhere

Only thing that’s a little hard is their policy is you have to be out at least 3 weeks at a time.

Do the loads have plenty of time on them that you don't need to push your 11/14 every day? If the load has plenty of time are you able to shut down early and get a rental car to explore a bit?

my current setup will allow me to be debt free in about a year if I maintain a reasonable budget and make around what I made last year or more.

Try your best to push through it, keeping your eyes on the prize of being debt free. Trucking over the last 5 years has allowed me to pay off $40,000 in credit card debt while being in a single income household with a family to support. I felt a great sense of relief when I didn't have that burden any more. I was spending probably close to $1,500 a month on only minimum payments.

Look at what your monthly minimums are and how long it would require you to make those payments at just the minimum to be debt free. Once you're debt free and have more disposable cash you'll be able to pursue something that makes you happy without the worry of it not paying the best. With the money you'd save monthly on those minimums you could afford more vacations, or a bigger/nicer house while also building a nice savings and retirement accounts.

I'm going to double down on being flexible and easy to work with, not argumentative or combative (which I'm generally not anyway).

But I think an extra few seconds of slowing down when you're frustrated and waiting before saying or commenting to your dispatch might be a good idea.

One thing we often forget is dispatch or load planners are just trying to do their job of getting loaded assigned but more importantly giving them the best chance to arrive safely and on time. Many of us are out on the road to make the most money we can if we're away from our families. It's easy to overlook that dispatch may have reasons for making you sit longer than other drivers in the same area. These could include keeping them closer or trying to route them to the terminal for upcoming service, setting them up for their home load or a variety of other reasons. Various members here have mentioned being stuck in certain areas in inclement weather such as Wyoming. If it's real bad they've likely got drivers shut down and not available for dispatch but other loads still need to get moved. It's also possible your company is setup to use brokers and they're accepting those loads because the margins are higher due to less drivers (O/O) willing to go. It could also be simply that you've demonstrated you're a safe and efficient driver that can deliver the results needed to satisfy a customer or in some cases prevent them from losing the contract. There could be a variety of reasons. If it bothers you, talk about it professionally keeping emotion out of it.

With anything in life if you want positive results or others to want to help you then don't be confrontational when it's not needed. I've been vocal with management when I've been unhappy and we're able to come to a mutual understanding. We don't always agree but we're able to discuss it and often times we both walk away with a better understanding of why it's a problem, or why it's our best option. It's easy as a driver to grow resentment about your assignments or lack of. Take the time to find out WHY things are the way they are.