Comments By Yep

1. Remember you need to turn the wheel before it gets to the point you want it to be at. It takes time fore the trailer to respond.

2. if people get in a hissie fit, consider showing them your four-figure-minus bird.

3. Dont wing it, plan it out ahead of time.

Got Beard?

Yes I do and its about to go bye bye. Stopped shaving my first week at Prime, 1 week from a year ago. Looking for a job that has more home time and free time. Figure it will be best to shave this poor excuse of a beard off prior to doing any more interviews. Had an interview with MBI energy services in ND over skype, thinking the shaggy hair may have been part of the reason I got a no hire. Website said they have a no facial hair policy.

I have some new info for all of you. I started TnT in August and started solo in November. Not sure exactly from which point Prime times this, but I have been given a 1cpm raise. I now make 0.35cpm.

Additionally, I have participated in two prime programs. The driver health and fitness program and dedicated driving.

First, The Driver Health and Fitness Program is a onetime only $300 program meant to keep you health. It lasts for 13 weeks with weigh in dates on the 4th, 8th and 12th weeks. All 4 weigh ins are done on the road. The only time you HAVE to go to a terminal, Springfield or Pittston is for the orientation. The orientation is a one day event where they explain the program and give you your supplies. The supplies consist of, at the time of my joining, an armband, collection of books & DVD and a watch. Along with the supplies you are told the basics of the program and how you will be interacting with your trainer. the point of the trainer is to advise you on how to make your diet healthy and suggest which exorcises you should be doing. For the diet you are essentially left to your own devices. They will suggest carb/fat/protein amounts but the food choices are your own. As for the exorcises, they are primarily endurance based, which I personally hate. Again, like the diet, you decide what you will be doing so long as it gets you to your target heart rate. For me, I choose to use a thi boxing routine designed by Bass Rutten. You however may choose, walking, running or anything else that gets the heart rate up.

Now for dedicated driving, currently I am working out of Olney IL at the Wal-Mart DC. I believe this Is what is meant by LTL. Here my job is to take a load to 1-4 stops per shift. At each stop, Wal-Mart or Sam’s club, I go on to the dock and count each pallet that comes off. Unlike OTR you have to be on dock to count the pallets and to remove their tracking stickers.

To get a dedicated position you apparently have to live within 25 miles of the DC. However, I asked about Olney IL and Shelbyville TN. There are additional dedicated positions, but I have no idea if they have the same requirements. I just know that if I decide to stay here, I will have to relocate from Oregon. For now I am just helping out.

Pay wise you do seem to make less money. This past pay period I made roughly $470 before taxes. However, that was only 4 days of work. The rest of my pay check was OTR on my way to Olney. This next week will be a full 7 days. Also, you are paid on a sliding scale that ends at 250 miles round trip. At that point you will make $96 preload. After 250 miles you will go back to the OTR pay rate, of roughly $0.40cpm, with no per dium.

Thus far it has all been night work, although not very concrete shift wise. By that I mean, I could be leaving the DC anywhere from 1700-2300. For me, this plays hell with my sleep schedule and is a definite advantage of OTR, granted dedicated has far less paperwork. I am the type of person who can sleep for 4-5 hours and then be up for the next 12 fairly easily. However, I don’t know which load I will be getting till the afternoon and that makes it difficult for me to plan my sleep efficiently. Therefore, I am actually finding it harder to sleep doing dedicated. And I prefer night work!

I'm curious about how you guys find play time?

Surely your not playing every day. I just want to write my stories, play civ4 or total war when I get home, and I never seem to have time. I work 22 hour days, 12 shift & 10 off, but between sleep, eating and working out I am left with no writing time. Some times a shipper/receiver will take their time and I can write but thats rare. And the last restart I had was in February. I also have to take into account that I am just a naturally slow person too. Currently looking in to Prime's dedicated positions in hope that ill have more time.

Do you know the general locations of the places you lived? If so you could possibly use Google maps to locate them. Learn the street names and possibly figure out the numbers. You may also have to use general Dates for your various residences. For instance, I lived in a ladies basement for about 3 months. I don’t remember the dates so I just put down my move in dates for the 15th of the first month and the 20th of the last month. Then just alternate from spot to spot. However, if the company were to catch you doing this, they could decide not to hire you. Prime would be one of those.

As for employment, what did you do during job hunting? Any volunteer work? Schooling?

Ok, last week I was in Erie PA on my way to a TA after unloading. The rout the GPS chose went through a section of the city with a great many train tracks, one set was not the standard 2 lanes but 4!. And that 4th one was the one that got me thinking. When do you try to beat a train? Clearly you dont. That’s a stupid question. So ill be more precise.

Scenario 1: you’re heavily loaded and just past the point of no return and those red lights with their falling arms start. Should you floor it or hope to god you find a way to stop? (So far I’ve only been to 1 place in the SW where I was going at a pace that would keep me from stopping. so beyond that spot; I think it would be best to do whatever I could to stop)

Scenario 2: you are actively on the tracks, thereare cars ahead that may not be going fast enough for you to floor it across without hitting them {very fast oncoming train and why are you following so close!}. What do you do? (I am thinking your options are to get out and let the train hit your rig, hope those cars speed up or aim for the ditch.)

Down time? What is this of which you speak?

I have audio books and a speech to text program I use to write stories with. Also have satellite radio.

Don't see any one learning proper backing with out a trainer.

I'll add a question to this. At what point is it to bad to drive?

I've driven through monsoon rains in Florida with no issue. Cautiously crossed missive hills& mountains only to find otherrigs in the dditch. Even though I was not sliding. And what about days when you wake up, see nasty snow and ice, to only to have clean dry pavement 5 miles down the road. kind of hard to know the best course of action.

Once I get going I do 2000-2800. Could do more if I wasn't such a slow person. 0.34cpm + 0.08cpm perdium at my company. Heard of one guy making 0.50cpm but he has been here for over 8 years.