Comments By Hookemhawk

Has anyone heard anything about the Western Express refresher course? Any idea what the terms and conditions are?

Here is a couple other suggestions. Cactus and Aloe plants.

Cactus and aloe absorb CO-2 and release oxygen at night. Might help you sleep better.

Also the aloe plant leaves will get spots when the air becomes too toxic with CO-2 and carbon monoxide. Also all the healing uses of aloe are a plus.

Have read about the increase in the need/requirement of CPAP machines. Is a CPAP machine you get at company X going to be an acceptable machine when you get a new job at company Z? Considering the high turn-over rate, shouldn't something like that be standardized?

Also, anyone with a machine out there, what make and what model are you using? Company required or Dr. prescribed?

The best to everyone.

Daniel,

Thanks for all the helpful information/insights this thread covered. Reading your experiences provided an idea of what drivers-to-be, like me, will deal with once on the road.

Glad you got home for Thanksgiving. Enjoy your holiday.

Happy Thanksgiving to all.

The easiest way to know if something is tax deductible is to ask if you were home would you still have the same expense as being on the road?

That sums it up. I don't n-e-e-e-d a smart phone at home. I guess the argument will be that I do need a smart phone on the road. It is more of a necessity than a convenience. Map tool, company paperwork tool, apps tool....you know the necessity more than I do.

Thanks.

Here is what my expectation of tech usage on the road would be. I checked out data usage calculations on AT&T and Verizon and figured mine to be around 6-8 Gig per month while on the road..... I am probably off by a mile.

My expectations:

Phone use: 1) Phone and text home to honey. 2) Calls/texts to dispatcher and other service or emergency needs.

Laptop: 1) Surfing the net....TT, other forums, YouTube 2) Playing DVD's

Tablet: 1) Google Maps GPS for those "moments of need" 2) Surfing the net....TT, other forums, YouTube 3) Facetime or Skype 4) Reading

You guys have the real life knowledge. How big of a data plan do you have? Has the data quantity met your needs?

One more question. I have to ask, is any amount of a wireless bill a taxable write-off for a company driver?

Anything else you can add, it is appreciated.

Thanks.

Thanks guys.

I checked out YouTube looking for apps like Old School uses and found out how many other apps are out there. My gut is telling me it won't be too long, after I start driving, that I will finally take the jump and get a smartphone.

Time to start researching phones.

I have a laptop, an Ipad, and my trusty Razor flip-phone. Do I need a smartphone? For a driver, what are the advantages/drawbacks for using these on the road?

Thanks.

My answer to "Situation/Question of the Day".

I'm with Eddie. Get the load delivered on time. (that one day run looks like a risk) Take the two days to do it, then manage your time to get you home.

Daniel, what average mph do you use when trip planning? How many minimum hours per day to you try to run?

Thanks for sharing your experiences.

Enjoy your holidays.

Excellent questions Steven.

I don't believe a company would ever be able to get away with claiming that getting hit by a tornado was avoidable. I mean, have you ever tried to avoid a tornado??? I have. It's really, really hard to do!!!!

Now to contrast a tornado to other weather-related incidents - take a snowstorm for example. If you get caught in a snowstorm and wreck it is most certainly going to be an avoidable accident. Snowstorms don't spring up out of nowhere in a matter of minutes like tornadoes do and they don't hit so hard and furiously that you couldn't safely get parked. So your company would expect you to handle snowstorms and thunderstorms and other more predictable weather situations. But I would say things like tornadoes and lightning strikes are most often unavoidable.

I think Brett's point about having an accident during a snow being "avoidable" and count against you is another reason to get off the road during snow storms. An earlier post by Daniel evaluated the struggle and stress of poking along at 10 mph during a snow storm earning essentially $6/hour (give or take).

Once I start driving I won't even think twice about pulling over during a storm when these variables start becoming issues:

1) some one else's safety

2) my safety/health

3) vehicle safety (preventable accident)

4) earning power (drive for $6/hr ??? No!!)

Few pros, MANY CONS to get off the road during the snow storm.