Profile For DoubleCutter

Anybody who wants to see Tony better do so ASAP, as Tony may be finding a new home. The Louisiana Legislature recently passed a law prohibiting private citizens from owning and keeping exotic cats. The truck stop owner has appealed the law all the way to the Supreme Court, and the court has refused to hear the case. It looks like Tony's days of living at a truck stop are numbered. This controversey over Tony has been going on for years.

If you are in that area and have your heart set on seeing a live tiger, you could go to LSU's campus in Baton Rouge and see Mike the Tiger. He lives in quite an elaborate habitat, seems happy, and gets a sideline seat in his portable cage for every LSU home football game.

Louisiana Senate Passes Bill That Would Allow Truck Stop to Keep Tiger

May 14

Yesterday,  Tiger Truck Stop owner Michael Sandlin got the news he wanted to hear– the Louisiana Senate voted 20-18 on a bill that would allow Sandlin to keep his Bengal tiger at the truck stop.

Tony the Tiger has been a mainstay at the Tiger Truck Stop in Grosse Tete, Louisiana since 2000 where he is housed in an 40 by 80-foot enclosure.

Tony’s existence at the truck stop has drawn sharp concern and criticism from animal right’s groups for several years.

Due to the state’s new Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries rule, only an individual– not a corporation– can legally own an exotic animal.  Since the law went into effect, Sandlin has been fighting to keep Tony.  In April, the 1st Circuit Court of Appeal ruled that Sandlin’s permit to keep Tony not valid, since the corporation, Tiger Truck Stop Inc., actually owns the tiger.

The bill, Senate Bill 250, is sponsored by Port Allen Sen. Rick Ward.  Ward’s bill would essentially grandfather Sandlin’s ownership of Tony and allow the tiger to be returned to the truck stop.

According to The Times-Picyune, Senator Ward said that Sandlin “takes good care of Tony and other tigers he’s housed at the truck stop since 1984.”

Sandlin has other supporters, as well.  In October 2003, an online petition garnered 6,000 signatures in support of allowing Tony to stay at the truck stop, and 27,000 truck stop visitors signed the “Keep Tony Home” petition.

Senate Bill 250 will now move to the Louisiana House for consideration.

Good find Anchor, but that's not the whole story. Last week the lawmakers vote DID go against Tony being able to remain, but as in many things political, compromises were made and a new bill introduced that received the vote referenced in your story.

Basically, the lawmakers were concerned that since the permit issued to Tony's owner is the same as the permits issued to LSU for their mascot tiger and the tigers at Audubon Zoo in New Orleans, that if they denied Tony' s permit, the courts could also order the state to deny the LSU and Audubon permits.

There is some good info on Truckers Report. You just have to wade through the BS. And ignore certain posters.

And take any company recommendations with a grain of salt, as there are some on there that embellish their experiences to try to get you to put their name on the application so they can get the referral bonus.

Anybody who wants to see Tony better do so ASAP, as Tony may be finding a new home. The Louisiana Legislature recently passed a law prohibiting private citizens from owning and keeping exotic cats. The truck stop owner has appealed the law all the way to the Supreme Court, and the court has refused to hear the case. It looks like Tony's days of living at a truck stop are numbered. This controversey over Tony has been going on for years.

If you are in that area and have your heart set on seeing a live tiger, you could go to LSU's campus in Baton Rouge and see Mike the Tiger. He lives in quite an elaborate habitat, seems happy, and gets a sideline seat in his portable cage for every LSU home football game.

Old School, you were in my neck of the woods at Port Fourchon, I live about an hour and a half north of there.

In my local newspaper this morning there happened to be an article about the economic impact Port Fourchon has on SE Louisiana and the whole country. According to the article, Port Fourchon has 250 companies that have a presence there supporting 8000 jobs. 90% of the offshore Gulf of Mexico oil and gas drilling is supported out of Port Fourchon. 13% of the country's crude oil supply is pumped through the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port's facility at Port Fourchon. There is great concern that if a major hurricane had a direct hit on Port Fourchon and knocked that facility out that there would be profound economic reprecussions for the whole country.

I have been fishing down there many, many times. If you drive all the way to the end of the main road ( can't bring a semi that far) it ends at the beach. We drive west on the beach to Belle Pass, where the waterway those boats are in enters the Gulf. Usually May and June are prime fishing months for the beach fishing, so I will be going some over the next few months.

If you pass up Port Fourchon and continue south on La. 1, you will come to Grande Isle, the only road accessible barrier island in Louisiana. There are many summer homes, a large beach, and great fshing. Some call it the Cajun Riviera. Lol.

Congrats Old School.

Do you have raw numbers for the last year?

I.E.-- how many miles you ran?, how many states did you visit?, how many days out and how many days off?

Serah, I know a girl who has sleep apnea. She was a little overweight and drank a few beers almost every day. She lost 25- 30 pounds and quit drinking beer and now she doesn't have sleep apnea anymore.

There have been allegations that a major nationwide clinic that many trucking companies use, are pushing sleep apnea testing as a profit center in their business. A friend of mine that drives for a private carrier was sent to a local location of this clinic and he was told that he had to get a sleep study done. When he went back to his company office and gave the safety guy the results, the safety guy blew a gasket and said that the last 5 or 6 drivers that were sent there were told that they had to get a sleep study. The company sent my friend to another clinic that is locally owned and nothing was said about a sleep study.

I am thinking about enrolling in a company sponsored cdl training program for a local and regional dry bulk carrier and all I can get out of them about pay is that the drivers get 25% of the load. Can anyone tell me what the average pay is for this type of company?

What company and location? That info would probaly help to get an answer.

Well it's certainly more difficult and dangerous to do a blind-side back but there will be times there is no choice whatsoever.

It might just be my imagination, but I could swear I saw or read about remote control mirrors that adjusted out enough to allow the driver to see the trailer in the passenger mirror while doing the "blind side" back-up tango . . . now I don't drink or smoke dope so that's not where I got this impression . . . Is there such a thing or am I gonna get rich creating them? (I thought of it first!!)

Jopa

When I blindside back, I'm constantly adjsting the mirrors.

He works for Celadon, IIRC

So six states are teaming up, but only five are patrolling?

******There needs to be a reform in the distribution of wealth. Don't ask me how - it's not a simple problem. It's gigantic. But it's unsustainable. I think 2008 was nothing more than a shot across the bow. What lies ahead will be another Great Depression if we don't change course.

*******

Brett, the ACA (Obama Care) is going to result in a huge redistribution of wealth. There are no easy answers for these economic problems, because often, what one person or group considers a problem, another group considers a solution.

Old School, I live in metro NOLA, and I've seen many, many flatbeds loaded with those aluminum billits. There must be a lot of them coming into the port.

Do you try the chargrilled oysters? Its where they grill the oyster still on the half shell over an open flame while brushing on a butter, garlic sauce. I hardly ever eat them raw anymore and just get the grilled.

If you don't mind me asking, how old are you? I've kept up with your adventures/ misadventures and I've always wondered about that.

Dylan, under the drive hours you were told about the Maines school, it would be impossible for all four students to get 100 hours of pure drive time. Four drivers at 100 hours each is 400 hours. If the school is open 10 hours a day, five days a week, it would take eight weeks for all of you to drive 100 hours each.

I guess it would be possible if they ran the truck 24/7, but that's not probable.

At the school I went to, there were 4 of us students and we got there at 7AM and ended at 3PM. On some days we would do 1/2 day class and half day driving. On those days we would each drive maybe 45 minutes to an hour. On full driving days we each got about 1-1/2 hours driving. It was a six week class, 240 total hours (class and driving), so there was no way we each got 100 hours pure drive time.

You will also spend a considerable amount of time behind the wheel practicing backing. I would say that I spent more time behind the wheel backing than actual driving on the public roads.

BTW, I saw a Maines truck unloading this morning at a Wendys in LaPlace, La.

Has anyone heard of this company? They pull all kinds of tanker products and and seem to own a lot of other company's. I am waiting a couple months so I have the (X) endorsement and TWIC and everything before I put in an application and start making calls. As always it's better to talk to the drivers than the recruiting staff. any information would be much appreciated.

They have a terminal in Reserve, LA, right down the road a block or so from the Schneider terminal. I see their trucks along I-10 in southern Louisiana all the time. But then again, you can see every tanker companies' trucks along I-10 in south Louisiana and SE Texas. It's a hotbed of tanker activity.

Congrats Jeff.

I figured if you gave this a little time it would work itself out. That's why I told you to take chill pill and relax.

Good luck and keep us posted on your adventures.

Ya know Jeff, I think you are starting to get paranoid about all of this. "Someone in the company has it in for me", or " a guy that was pampered all through orientation". If you start all of these accusations with this guy you are dealing with, he is going to think he's dealing with a physco with a persecution complex. This would hurt your case instead of helping it.

And don't tell them about a bad back, that would be a surefire way for them to send you back to their doctor and pry into the reasons why you have a bad back.

I can understand your anxiety about this situation, but you need to take a chill pill and jst wait to see how this plays out. It very well could be a temporary shortage of trucks. Plus it is the holidays, so things don't get done as quickly as usual.

Don't let this naw at you to where it ears you up.

Good luck and keep us posted.

Would be interesting to know how many bonuses were given to drivers and not management or office workers.

I was told today that if all your experience is driving automatic transmission trucks that manual transmission trucking companies will not hire you. Has anyone experienced this or heard of this?

"Almost any prescription meds will show up "

Brett, I don't think this is correct for the hair tests that the trucking companies do. If your prescription is in one of the five classes of drugs that are mandated to be checked by DOT, then yes it will show up. But, for instance, if you were taking acne meds, those wouldn't show on the analysis that the trucking companies pay for. For them to screen hair for every possible drug would be cost probibitive.

At least this is my understanding of it. If I' m wrong please correct me.