Comments By Villain

Well I am back behind the wheel after about a year off. I left Tommy Freight. I told them that I was willing to drive 650 miles per day. Even told them I could do without the 34s. That wasn't good enough for them. I was burnt out. I gave TransAm a try. 1 week, 2 trucks, 2 breakdowns and 270 miles. I thought it was time to do something else.

Settled in rural Georgia. Unless I was willing to commute 2 hours each way the jobs were hard to come by. Made a living for 3 months playing underground poker games until the state took umbrage. But all this time I never got rid of the itch to be back on the road.

Now I've been with PTL for about 3 weeks. What a night and day difference! I actually enjoy my job. The routes are plotted at 50mph. After what I went through with Tommy, it feels like a part time job.

I hope everyone is doing well. Brett, PackRat, Old School, G-Town, Susan D., Errol, Rainy D, and others. You guys were my mentors and trainers. I will always appreciate you guys getting me through the beginning. I hope to continue to learn from you. :)

LMAO! I thought I was the only one confused about who this Dan guy was always quoting but never commenting. I looked at several posts and there's Dan smiling and quoting but never commenting. I thought he was trolling

@ Rainy: I didn't pay for the mechanic. The boss' 1st plan after Freightliner said it would be tomorrow was to have another driver 2 hours away come & help me do the repair (my hard line hose in the coolant system). So I was going to do a repair that came out to $354 on the house, or so he thought.

My company has about 10 trucks I believe. As far as the elog, some guy back at the office alters them however they want. I work EVERY day no 34 restart. They only worry about the elog when I'm in the Western States (OR, WA, etc.) I sat in the truck outside the Freightliner Service Center in SLC waiting for the mobile mechanic because Freightliner couldn't service the truck until tomorrow. I didn't have the option to leave the truck & do anything else. I'm with a small company because it was the only opportunity that came my eay due to my felony record.

I don't know if what I'm about to describe is just the normal stuff that goes on in most small companies & I just need to get over it. But things have gotten to the point that telling myself over and over again to just make it through 1 year at this company isn't working. It was only my 1st or 2nd week solo. I was coming from Yakima, WA to Carlisle, PA. My boss calls & tells me that the appt time has been moved from 5am Sun to 5am Sat. Means that I have to drive about 1100 miles in one sitting. What's worse is that while I'm driving, he texts me a trip sheet for a pickup at 11am Saturday. Thank God that when I got to the destination the original appt time was the correct time. This hasn't been the only time that I've driven over 1000 miles in one sitting. I'm at the Goodyear Tire Center. My boss calls me over to show me a steer tire that was finally being replaced. Tells me that it was ready to blow out at any moment & that it was important that I do a daily PTI, implying that I wasn't doing them (I PTI daily, perform a walk around & thump test every time I stop, & inspect every post shift) . I reminded him that I had informed him 3 times that most of my tires where bad, the 1st time being the morning after he dropped me off at the truck for the 1st time. His response then was lets get on the road & make some money & then "we'll" replace the tires. Yesterday wasn't the worst day but it was the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back. I had a pick up in Syracuse, UT 11am delivering to Keller, TX (1239 miles) at 7pm Sun, It was 7am & I was unloading at SLC. After loading taking I80W, the truck decided it had had enough. I spent 6 hrs on break down not earning a cent, at 1point was told that another driver was on the way to help me play at truck mechanic for free, replacing the hard line hose beneath the driver's wheel well. That never happened but the bill from the mobile mechanic was $354. My boss must think I'm a hell of a generous guy. I love the job, despise my employer. I'm ready to drive to my terminal in Chicago and hand the keys in. Only thing stopping me from including a punch or two to the jaw is I'd like to get my last check.

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Okay, I've looked at this post several times and didn't feel comfortable replying because of my lack of experience. But the comments about taking the descent in auto mode when the weather is good begs the question : if you don't learn how to descend in manual mode in good weather, then what happens in bad weather? Learn on the fly? I always descend in manual mode. It seems that the Descent Mode in my truck is faulty. Tried it twice and the damn thing upshifts like I was on a flat road & wanted to accelerate. I couldn't find the page to provide a link, but these newer transmissions are made to rev above 2k rpm on a descent.

I started driving in April when daytime temps were cool. Never noticed how many places have a sign at the entrance that states No Idling. I don't know how many enforce that policy, I was at a Wal-Mart DC with a No Idling Sign and was told don't worry about it we don't expect you to bake in the truck. About 2 weeks ago I had a security guard knock on my door and tell me I couldn't idle. This is the only issue that would make me walk away from trucking. I don't see myself sitting in a 100+ degree truck for hours waiting to load/unload. And I live & die with the split sleeper birth provision. But if I'm not actually able to sleep then what's the point.

Told my boss/owner about being told to shut off truck. He said the solution is simple : get a dog, places don't care if you bake to death but tell them you have a dog and they will let you idle. Is this true? I know some places no idling is a matter of the law. But in the cases when it's just company policy, does having a dog get me a pass? I'm thinking of ordering one of those service dog harnesses for better effect.

Well I'm going to be the killjoy. Just celebrated my 47th birthday. Means I'm one year closer to my last breath, same holds true for this great experiment in self rule and determination that we call The United States of America. Can't point to a day on the calendar and say yep that's when it started, but government stopped being of the people, for the people, and by the people. Read a book, Empire by Orson Scott Card written in 2006. Twelve years later the Afterword is more appropriate than ever. Haven't heard the words "Social Contract" in two decades. People wait on the next IPhone or next Pokémon Go while things are falling apart around us. Countless people made the ultimate sacrifice for America and yet here we are like a spoiled kid that blows his inheritance on prostitutes and drugs.

Choosing to back in at the truck stops instead of pulling through is good advice. 2 1/2 months in and the only time I pull through is when I'm making a bee line to the bathroom. Funny thing is that I have more problems at the docks when it's wide open! One thing that really helped me understand steer/counter steer : until I'm straight, I'm not counter steering I'm just steering less and less. Example, I'm 45° to the trailer, that's how much turn I still have left until I'm straight. Don't know if I did a terrible job of explaining what I mean. Also try not to stop, you'll get a better feel of how the trailer reacts to your steering and it makes it easier to project its path.