Comments By Troubador222

I have rarely felt unsafe, but...... one never knows. I noted this and it sounds like a great idea.

I am a funny guy about the whole thing. When I was younger, I hung out in biker bars and partied on the wrong side of town. But I also never carry or flash around large amounts of cash, I am always situation-ally aware. I posted in here that we stayed in TA near Dallas where a driver had been robbed and beaten to death. The thing that struck me about the place was, there was one over head light for the whole parking area, and when you went to get out of your truck, you could not see between the trailers. Every place is different and every different place requires you to be aware.

I went with CRST and went to their driving school, got my CDL, and have jest worked through the 8 month contract to pay for that school. CRST Expedited is team. I met a guy on the bus trip up from Florida, and we roomed together and then worked out the contract together. He is still with CRST, but plans to move to US Express after the first of the year and will team with his brother in law there.\

OK, Teaming is tough. We had both great times and bad times. My co driver, who is single and never been married, had some boundary ideas that did not match mine and a couple of times, he got into my business where he should not have done it, and caused me to react in a bad way. Once involved actual business issues with the company where I inquired about a position with my FM, and he actually contacted the FM while I was asleep and then informed me I did not qualify for the position. I did not react well to that. And it got to a big argument, and he started screaming at mne to shut up, and I told him to pull the truck over and shut me up. Sounds fun doesn't it. We both cooled down and talked it out, and he came to understand how he had over stepped. He apologized, and I apologized and we went on. The bottom line is, we probably got along better than most team drivers did, be cause....... we were both serious about wanting to work and make money. We were both over 50 and around the same age and had lots of work experience in other fields both good and bad. And we were both mostly flexible and willing to go into the team situation knowing it would not be perfect. We also both went into working knowing within a certain time period, we would be doing something else.

You can make some good money with a good team. Expediting in airfreight requires some long miles in short times, and solo is never going to get it done. Personally, I could put up with it to fulfill what I had to do, but, going solo is what I always had in mind, and the type of driving I want to do. I did my time with the teams and now, I have the choice to go solo.

I am looking to get experience under my belt. I could have stayed at CRST, and perhaps should have, but....... the driving without rest in the team environment is a problem. I did it to fill out the contract. I am a man of my word, and I made it work. The reason I decided to go to Werner is their sign on bonus, 5000 paid over 2 years. That works out to about 500 dollars every 90 days. A 1000 one time at a year. I am giving up hazmat, which at CRST, I would now be paid .04 more a mile for. I dont care, because to me, hauling hazmat is not worth the trouble. Every time I have been pulled in for a spot inspection, it has been because I had placards on the truck. Getting the endorsement is not hard, but then you find there are a million rules that your studying for the endorsement did not prepare you for and just having that placard makes you a target for DOT. That plus we dealt with some companies that would try and slide stuff through. They would not get the ticket if we were stopped so they did not care. I will even name names. Conway! Three times, they gave us loads, that if we had not been vigilant, we would have been in violation. My co driver got a ticket for running lights being out on a trailer one day in Ohio. The officer pulled him off the road because he had placards and wanted to do a level one. We had pretripped it, and all the lights worked. This was early in the morning, and the officer could not see that the running lights he cited us for were working. We stopped at a Petro 40 miles down the road, got out of the sun, and all those lights worked. Mow my co driver has that on his CSA points, for a BS thing that was not true. He is appealing it, and has documentation from the repair shop that the lights worked, but, it is a shot in the dark to get the points off. The bottom line is, it was the HAZMAT that made us a target.

On the flip side, i was pulled in one night in OK for a level 1 because I was pulling a placered load, passed and got a 25 dollar bonus. We since had level 1s we passed in Utah and WA, and both times were with HAZMAT.

There is CRST Expidited which is dry van and reefer, (the reefer is new and not very big), and CRST Malone, which is flatbed. Malone is only O/O or lease. It is a separate company, but still under the umbrella, if that makes sense. Right now, I will not go lease at all, though...... I have offers. I did not mention it in my other posts, but Transam Trucking, which is also lease, has been trying to get me to sign on. Lot of promises and big pressure, but I do not have the experience running a truck to even think about it at this point. My trainer at CRSt was a lease operator, and just recently leased a second truck and hired drivers to run it, and also offered me a spot at 40 cents a mile if i wanted it, along with me becoming a partner with him, leasing my own, then leasing others and being a small fleet owner within CRST. Well...... I am not ready and I do not know if I ever will be. Brett here cautions against leasing, and you have to be very careful. I have met some Malone drivers who are doing very well, and talked with them, and EVERY one of them told me, if I want to do that, first work a company truck as if you are an o/o, keep up with all loads, miles, fuel and expenses. I plan to do that, then I will make a decision on that. There are a handful of other tucking companies out there that have a lease based program that takes off the top, and pays you as a percentage of the total line haul. Sammons is one, and I have heard that Shnieder gives that as an option. That prevents you from being in the negative paycheck realm. John Christnor also has a lease program tha is supposed to be based on miles, so you dont pay if you sit. If I had 10,000 in the bank, I would try Malone flat bed with their lease, but....... I dont have that.

I drove for 15 years and never once put chains on my tires. And I'm from Buffalo, NY. I can drive in snow with the best of em. But I know when it makes sense to push through and when it doesn't and that point is different for everyone. Do not push through in conditions you're not comfortable with. You tell dispatch it's far too dangerous to drive and you have to shut down until conditions improve. Keep them updated regularly. That's the biggest thing with dispatch - communication. Make sure they know what's going on.

But you're the captain of your own ship out there. You make the calls. Don't let anyone push you into doing anything you feel isn't safe.

That is exactly spot on. My trainer told me, if its time for chains, it's time to get off the road, and I believed him. I have about half time winter driving experience. I have not had to put chains on, but I have driven through some serious snow storms, and been shut down just because of road closures, usually in WY and NE on I 80. Early on in driving, I shut myself down one night in WY on bad roads, and got a message back that I had done what all the other drivers were doing. I shut myslef down as much because i was exhausted for driving in the bad winter conditions as anything. It would be clear for 10 miles, then ice storms for 20. At one point, the freezing rain on my windshield got to the point where full heat defrost on the truck and wipers, could not keep the ice off the windshield. I came up on a Flying J, and said that was that. Never put chains on, but at that point I had been creeping at about 30 mph for 2 hours. And once I got stopped, I got word that I 80 was closed not far ahead of where I was. I was pretty green then, and the next time I face that........ I will probably shut down sooner.

11/16

Current load: Florence, SC to Rochelle, IL - 899 miles plus 180 deadhead miles. Total weight- 73,000

I have 10 more days on the road before hometime. I sure can't wait! I've been very slow lately and it's just making the days seem longer.

I woke up today and did all the morning things. I woke up and it was extremely foggy outside, I was in no rush to start driving so I took my time. I put my tandems at the 40' mark yesterday, today I woke up and put them on the 41' mark because that's the maximum allowed in the states I'm driving through. I reweighed myself and it looks a slightly better. My drive axles are now 29,380 and my trailer tandems are 31620. That's as close to even as I can get.

The fog has cleared and I think I'm ready to start driving. I fuel at the Pilot but only 50 gallons since that was the maximum my Qualcomm told me to get. Once again, I'm in no hurry because my load has all the time in the world to deliver. I start driving and make a stop at Abbots Farms in SC. They had a small area for truck parking and traffic made it slightly difficult to get in there. I had to run a curb. They had fireworks too but I can't buy any of that. Since basically every firework is illegal in CA unless its one of those boring ones made for a preteen. CA residents have no idea what a real firework is. I hate living in CA.

Anyways where was I? I bought a jar of organic, non flavored, pure honey for my wife's mom. It was honey but in the center of the jar it still had that bees wax in it. That bees wax is so delicious. You haven't lived if you haven't tried it before. She will love it!

I continued driving 25 miles to my next fuel stop and filled up about 75 gallons to top myself off. I spent about 12 minutes fueling today in total. I have a chat with a local tanker trucker, well he talked to me first. I spent about 20 minutes at this fuel stop in total and I was on my way. I kept driving through the mountains and the sharp curves. I hate having a trailer where the product is stacked all the way to the roof. It feels like it wants to flip over at every single curve and turn even though I'm well below the speed limit. On those curves the speed limit was 50 I was going about 45mph. I got passed by a US Express driver and he must have been going 60 because he passed me just as quickly as a FedEx or UPS driver does - except FedEx and UPS travel at 75mph not 60. 15 miles later that US Express driver has a cop behind him. I didnt let him pressure me into speeding and risking me flipping over. Take your time folks, it'll save your wallet and maybe your career/life. The load that I'm under you have absolutely got to take turns and curves very slowly, it will easily flip if you don't.

I drove about 337 miles today. My day started at 0900 and ended at 1800. I was in no hurry because this load has three days on it. Three days to do 800 miles. I will wake up tomorrow whenever I feel like it and drive whenever I feel like it. There's no chance I can drop it, I already asked. I miss my old dispatcher so much!

I'm very worried if ill make it home on time. I deliver in Louisville, KY on the 19th and ill be ready for a load on the 20th. That's 6 days to get from Ky to Ca which is roughly 2600 miles. I honestly don't think ill make it home on time for Thanksgiving. And if I don't, I promise ill stay away from TT that day because I'm going to be so angry that I won't be home with my wife. That's the only day she has off that week and I won't be a happy driver if I miss it. Combine that with firing my DM I won't be happy with my company.

I gave dispatch a friendly reminder today of my hometime and they said they are working on getting me home. We'll see how that goes. I am honestly doubting them because I don't see me going from Ky to Ca in 6 days unless its just a 2600 mile straight shot load. With deliveries in between I'm inclined to doubt I will make it. But I have to try to trust them which is very hard to do.

I would like to include my hours for the past 8 days:

11/09: 123 miles driven. 2 hours 28 minutes worked

11/10: 0 miles driven. 0 hours worked

11/11: 176 miles driven. 4 hours and 15 minutes worked

11/12: 503 miles driven. 9 hours and 15 minutes worked

11/13: 157 miles driven. 3 hours and 45 minutes worked

11/14: 315 miles driven. 6 hours and 37 minutes worked

11/15: 205 miles driven. 4 hours worked

11/16: 337 miles driven. 6 hours and 30 minutes worked

This last week I have only done about 1500 miles. Disappointing.

Ouch. Low miles. That is my biggest fear about going solo and something I have been preparing myself for. Once I start with Werner, if they do that to me........ I wont be able to stay long. We had a great FM, (at your company they are DM's) at CRST. He was younger than my kids, but was just so easy to work with and really cared about his drivers. I read where your's was fired. Tough break. I see you are planning a move to Prime.

Daniel...I'm sorry that you are on the road while your wife is dealing with her medical issue. It happened to TSB and I. He went into the hospital on the road...I flew to GA to be with him, and drive the truck to deliver the load. I broke my leg fishing (I know, I know, and no I didn't catch anything) and had to have surgery, and 3 more surgeries after that. TSB panics when I get hurt and he isn't home...so it was hard on him. And a year ago I broke the same leg (femur this time) while laying vinyl. Another surgery, and he wasn't home. So drivers have to remember that life goes on at home without them sometimes. And they don't need to feel any guilt about not being there. Drivers are out there doing the most important part of being a family. They are keeping the weather off, and the food on...and in the end, thats far more important than alot of other stuff. Your wife is in my prayers for healing, and you both, for financial mercies.

Wait a minute......... broke your leg fishing? I am an avid fisherman, both freshwater and salt. I have all sorts of alligator, shark and sting ray encounter stories I could tell you, plus jelly fish, drunk idiot and stepping into holes and almost drowning. I have to know how you broke your leg fishing. Fishing is supposed to be relaxing.

We had a boat for years. Just a 16 foot open skiff with a 25 horse Mariner salt water engine. Down here in Ft Myers, we have miles upon miles of inloand salt water grass flats, and the fishing is just great. Plus the wildlife you see is better than a zoo. Just beautiful waters and the islands give you great protection from the weather. My wife blew her knee out stepping down into our boat off a dock at low tide, and had to have it rebuilt. Freak thing, the boat went out from under her, and she fell in the water. I was terrified, because the dock supports are covered with razor sharp barnacles. She missed all those and came up laughing, and did not even realize she had injured her knee. The next day while walking, her right knee just gave out, and she fell on her face. Ended up having to have it rebuilt, and that took her about 2 years to get back to normal. We love to vacation in the mountains, and go on hikes, so it took her a year before she could walk up and down hill in the mountains with just a cane.

Not making fun of you, and I know how it is. My worst scare in fishing was about 10 years ago, I had gone about 3 miles up the coast into a wild area, and waded into a tidal creek trying to find some of our local big game fish. (Called a snook, it is an inshore fish that is just dynamite on light tackle.) I ended up walking into quick sand and sunk to my arm pits. Now, quick sand is not like the old movies, but the danger is, this was low tide, and I looked at the water marks on the trees and saw that it was about a foot higher than where my nose was. There is an old trick to getting out of quick sand, and what you do, is lay down in it, and use your mass to give you leverage to work your legs out. I did that. I came out covered in mud and slime, and left one of my tennis shoes in the muck. When I got home, my wife, who never curses, told me I was a @#$^%ing moron for going off like that by myslef.

OK, dont want to hijack Daniels excellent thread, and thank you and Old School for your guys blogs. Good stuff. When I get out solo, I am thinking about doing one of these too. I love this site, and all you experienced drivers. You folks helped me get where I am and I would love to give back! Keep trucking Daniel. Good info.

They were great. We got to the terminal Thursday, and my flight out was not until Friday, so my FM kept me on the clock so I cold stay in the truck overnight, and not have to get a motel. He and a couple of other management people I talked too, all told me that if my new gig did not work out, I had a place at CRST. I told them why I was leaving, that going solo would be best for me, as I did not rest well in the moving truck. There was nothing but good will and best wishes. I have orientation set up with Werner for this coming Wed, in Lakeland FL. I also have some other leads, including a good one I got hanging out in the airport in Cedar Rapids, waiting for my flight back to Florida. It pays to talk and network, and I am amazed how, with my 9 months experience, with safe miles, and no tickets, gets people interested in me. It pays to be professional, give notice, and treat your company with respect.

A couple of people have PMd me from here, and I promise i will catch up with you this weekend to answer questions about CRST. I can tell you here, they sent me to school, and asked me to work for them for 8 months to pay for that school. I did what they asked, and they did everything they said they would, and they kept me working. I had a great fleet manager, who really helped me as a newbie, to get me working and get me paid. If you go to some of the other trucking forums, you are going to see people posting that CRST is the evil empire. Well, it is just like Brett and others have said here, those drivers whining in those forums are the ones who cant get along with co drivers, turn down loads, are not safe and cautious. If you are looking for a company school and a chance to get your CDL, and you want to work, CRST can and will get you out there. In my 9 months, I have driven close to 100,000 miles. They just gave a 3 cents a mile raise for their new students, and at 6 months, you get a raise to 32 cents a mile. If you have hazmat, you get an additional .04 a mile for those loads. And they have started a performance bonus system based on total miles in 90 days. It is tiered to how many miles you run and even at lower miles, you can earn a bonus. We were on track to get the top one, which would have been around 1500 dollars. My co driver, who stayed on with them, will probably still get that.

CRST is a great place, and if they had a way for me to go solo, I would have stayed with them.

I started driving school at 52. I have met many drivers my age to yours and older. If you can pass the DOT physical, you will do fine. And as to being a bit over weight, I lost 45 lbs, which I set out to do. I went in with a BP problem and could only get a 1 year med card. I lost the weight to try and get my BP down. Its not that hard. There are subways in a lot of truck stops, if you dont bring your own food. We would stop at Walmarts about every 2 weeks and buy turkey and ham for sandwiches. If you hit places like TA's and Petro's, they usually have really good salad bars. I still want to take another 20 lbs off, and now I am going solo, I will be able to add some exorcize time everyday. I love to walk. As a land surveyor I walked for a living. Working on the team truck, I rarely had time to do that, because the truck just never stopped. Now I can add that, plus I plan to pick up a couple of 25 lb dumbells. There are magazines in the truck stops that usually have good tips on driver health and good programs to work to that.

There is a guy in my class here in Indiana that lives in Florida. I believe it was the Werner recruiter that explained their new program for Florida truckers. They have a bus, painted up and looking cool, that they use for the program. Basically when it's time to go out they load the drivers on their bus and take them to Georgia. The drivers do their time OTR then return to the yard. The bus then takes them back to Florida for home time.

I'm 99% sure it was Werner but I have had so much info thrown at me in the last week I could be wrong

Woody

That is Werner. I am due to start orientation with them in Lakeland this coming Wed. With my 9 months experience at CRST, they offered me an otr position with a 5000 dollar sign on paid out over 2 years. Knight will hire out of any city in Florida, as will SRT. I have talked with both of them. CRST is offering sign on bonuses for drivers too out of Florida and if you already have your CDL, they will stick you on a Cat dedicated run with home time every 2 weeks. yesterday, when hanging out at the airport in Cedar Rapids, waiting for my flight home, I et a guy who is an exe with a small trucking company out of IA. We started talking and I told him my experience, and that I was wanting to get into flatbedding, but none of the big companies hire out of my area. He gave me the info for a friend of his, with a small flat bed company that does runs from Florida to California. and promised me he would call the guy to let him know I would inquire. I am calling Monday. There are trucking jobs out of here in Florida. You just have to hunt for them. With CRST, we delivered in Tampa, Lakeland and Miami, and occasionally Jacksonville. A lot of people do not realize it, but Florida is one of the top 4 cattle ranching states in the US, and there are lots of trucks carrying cattle out of here. A old and good friend I did surveying with drives cattle trucks out of Florida. All the major ports here in Florida, have been widening their channels to accommodate the bigger ships that will be coming through the new canal in Panama, so that should also increase freight out of here. There are plans for some huge shipping warehouses in places in south Florida as a clearing house to handle the expected on coming freight. Seriously, you can find a job out of here. You may have to make some allowances. The job with Werner I am pre hired into will work out of Atlanta, and they have that bus to bring me home. It will be slip seating, but I dont care since my biggest desire is to go solo. If they give me the miles, I will do alright. If they dont, I have other choices. Knight wanted me pretty badly as did SRT.