Comments By Brad C.

My fault, I should have kept my opinion out of this topic. (Especially since I am studying for cdl still)... how do y’all feel about the proposed changes up for comment?

My apologies for the lack of clarity. The proposed changes most likely won’t increase or decrease the number of accidents. My opinion of the fact hours of service should be unregulated and at the drivers discretion would increase the number of accidents. If a person functions well with less sleep than the average person then they should be able to utilize that ability. If a person functions on an average amount of sleep they should have the sense to shut down when they are tired. I understand the reason the regulations were put in place(including eld’s) and that is because in the eras before hours of service and eld’s people abused the freedoms the system allowed and put lives at risk in the best case scenarios.

My answer? Not in a million years.

The answer you should give? Well it depends. Factors include but are not limited to 1. Do you value your life? 2. Would you be able to live with the fact you killed someone else because you crushed their car like a soda can? 3. Can you afford to pay the fines and your bills for the next couple of years while you are learning a new trade on account of your instant gratification mentality?

I swear by waterproof CAT boots. They fit like a glove, have a non-skid sole and are very comfortable.

I didn’t have any luck with CAT boots. Only took 3 months for me to practically walk out of them.

Boots at Walmart are OK if you’re in a pinch needing something to get you by. Not moch else.

Best boots I have ever bought are Redwing boots. They seem to last better than most and if you ever need them fixed you can hit one of their stores. I won’t lie about the fact they are really pricey. I think the lowest price I have seen was about $175 on clearance. They can get custom insoles made to your foot.

I want to hear some of the veteran drivers opinions on this one. IMHO I can see arguments from both sides of the fence. I used to drive a tow truck on call 24/7. The fatigue can be cranked up to a level that would drive most people crazy from time to time. I had a great time at it for quite a while. Just to be honest I think it should be left to the drivers discretion and made very clear that the driver will be held legally/financially responsible in the event of an incident found to be their fault. To quote someone from another thread “21 is the general entry into the industry. We’re all adults here.” I’ll say let’s accept the responsibility for our own actions. I won’t forget about the devils advocate view on my opinion. But the number of accidents will skyrocket! I agree with you 100%! That’s why the government has issued the rules we must follow. People abused the system out of greed and ruined it for those who responsibly pushed themselves. It all goes back to the argument of common sense(which seems to be lacking these days) and the fact some people either don’t use it or have it.

Again, I appreciate everyone’s responses. I stumbled across this and was a bit concerned even though it didn’t quite add up. Neither the video nor the article mentioned any companies which raised a red flag for credibility. I figure if it where a valid story such as what was published about the port drivers at least one company would have a black eye. Just checked in here for confirmation seeing as the whiners usually get shut down pretty quick. I will head back to the shadows for now until I either have a nice chunk of humble pie in school or a diary for training. Thanks again, have a great day!

Mr. Aquila for the win. I’ve gotta say I am impressed with the response. I was thinking in the back of my mind, “Could this be?” Just wanted to touch base and see if there was any validity in the accusations that where made. Unfortunately I have not had the chance to decipher the good(honest) from the bad(misleading at best) in trucking publications. I know no one is perfect but TT has to be the best I’ve found so far. I appreciate everyone’s response and may you all have a great time ahead.

I'm not sure which concerns me more, the fact that someone would say that or the fact that anyone would believe it. It makes no sense on any level.

You are absolutely correct when you say it doesn’t make sense. I say informative because he covers a lot of the same stuff covered here and it pretty well matches up. Had he not referenced an article entitled Bus and dump from Fleet Owner magazine on the same topic I would have dismissed the idea. The fact is I don’t know the credibility of the source and the details are kinda scarce in the article. I have been a member here for a while and have been lurking in the shadows for the most part. I believe if any forum can help shed light on the subject it’s here. Thanks for the enlightening info. It is actually all the resources here that have pushed me to feel comfortable with getting into the industry.

So I’ve been back at doing my due diligence for getting into the industry. There is a video fairly recently released from an informative YouTube channel and a published article that has raised a concern for me. Apparently companies have stooped too getting potential hires to company orientation then dumping them with no reason sometimes leaving them stranded in an unfamiliar city. Has anyone heard about this practice? If so can we get the worst offenders names in the open for the people who must protect themselves falling victim to this practice. I understand there are a whole host of reasons one might get removed form a pool of applicants.