1st Company And Would Like To Haul Reefer...

Sorry to double post. I meant to mention the reefer was useful and a double edged sword. Loading/unloading was usually a few hour process but it was flexible. I picked up building materials in that once or twice to get me out of FL.

I’m not one to chime in, but experience wise it’s not that much different from dry van. Setting the reefer was a five minute demo and my trainer was dry van. I enjoyed the drone of the reefer after the first month but I don’t miss it.

Don't worry about double posting. I am simply thankful for the information provided.

As far as companies providing everything that I am seeking, Pride Transport and May Trucking are probably my two favorite. I want to run all 48 pulling reefer. I want to be able to have a dog on the truck with me. I want to run out to CA. Most of the companies that I am considering can meet the majority of that list but miss on either the pet policy (Tyson Foods) or the running lanes (Dutch Maid Logistics and Western Dairy Transport).

I have no doubt that if things work out for being hired on that May Trucking would be a great place to start (possibly even finish years later) my career.

~Kerry

Hey Kerry,

I don't know why I didn't catch this post earlier. Knight has several refer options. Knight refrigerated, Kold Trans. And a few other companies I've seen with their trailers at our yard. They have the things that you said you were looking for in a company above. My classmate when I was in school went refer for a lot of the same reasons. pay is a little bit more than dry van , training and school is the same as I detailed in my diary, with the exception that in training they obviously train you on the particulars of a refer trailer and loads.

Just some info for ya.

I am.trying to catch up on months of posts. Sorry.

One thing that jumped out at me is "reefer has longer loads". This is false. And everyone's idea of "longer" is different.

Some months my average load is 475 miles. Others the average is 700 miles. Tractor Man is working dry van at Danny Herman and averaging 1000 to 1200 miles per load. Reefer loads are time sensitive and the long loads go to teams.

Hey Kerry,

I don't know why I didn't catch this post earlier. Knight has several refer options. Knight refrigerated, Kold Trans. And a few other companies I've seen with their trailers at our yard. They have the things that you said you were looking for in a company above. My classmate when I was in school went refer for a lot of the same reasons. pay is a little bit more than dry van , training and school is the same as I detailed in my diary, with the exception that in training they obviously train you on the particulars of a refer trailer and loads.

Just some info for ya.

Knight is a company with which I submitted an application. They would be higher on my list, but thus far the recruiter has not really shown as much interest in me as other companies. I am going to reach out to the recruiter once I am back in the US. If I end up with an offer from Knight, then that certainly puts them in position as a top company for me.

I am.trying to catch up on months of posts. Sorry.

One thing that jumped out at me is "reefer has longer loads". This is false. And everyone's idea of "longer" is different.

Some months my average load is 475 miles. Others the average is 700 miles. Tractor Man is working dry van at Danny Herman and averaging 1000 to 1200 miles per load. Reefer loads are time sensitive and the long loads go to teams.

Thank you for the feedback. I suppose this may vary from one company to the next because having talked to different people from lots of different companies, reefer tends to have longer hauls versus dry van. Also, reefer more often has all 48 states where the dry van companies I have seen that hire trainees are more regionalized. Of my preferred companies, the average length of haul is longer than dry van companies into which I have inquired. Some companies put more emphasis on teaming than others.

Rainy, I really respect your opinions, having been a follower of your YouTube channel since I think December '19. I definitely don't want to sound like I am trying to tell you that you are wrong. You can most definitely find number examples to show me that my statement is not correct. But, as it relates to the companies with which I have an interest, reefer having longer avg length of haul seems to be the case.

~Kerry

May will have you in CA. Not sure why that’s desirable as a truck driver, haha.

I would say you might have better luck on miles with another company. My average trip was 1000-1200 miles, but the downtime is May’s big problem. I think I got around 9000-9500 each month for those three months.

Freymiller is a great company to look into

Ok, so I am looking at choosing my first company, and I believe reefer will be my choice as far as what to haul. The following are the companies that I am considering, so I would appreciate any insight that can be offered to help me in the decision-making process:

Bulkley Trucking Butler Transport CFI Hogan JBS Carriers KLLM Kold Trans May Trucking National Carriers "the Elite Fleet" Navajo Express Pride Transport Sweet Express Tyson Foods

I know that some of these carriers haul more than just reefer, or more specifically, some don't have a division just for reefer.

Just watch your reefer light AND MAKE SURE TO TURN THE THING BACK ON IF YOU TURN IT OFF. Had someone I worked with before that didn't turn theirs back on and when they got to their next stop the product was 60+ degrees and rejected. Driver fired immediately.

Not delivering a load at the proper temperature is definitely problematic. Delivering a load with the trailer not even on is serious negligence. If I were that careless in my job, I would expect to be fired.

Curious as to why Swift isn’t in your list, they are recruiting reefer heavily and they just gave us all a hefty raise in dry van ($0.11 a mile), but I’ve really enjoyed my time at swift, granted there has been a few problems, but that’s gonna happen at every company.

I don’t pull reefer because cambro logistics is the devil and I don’t like them.

I just can’t stand being backed into a door and waiting 1-10 hours to get unloaded, which is what always happens at every grocery warehouse except Walmart.

Swift will certainly get you to all 48 too.

Not sure of your location. Check out Continental Express.

May will have you in CA. Not sure why that’s desirable as a truck driver, haha.

Born and raised in Southern California, so that's the reason I desire to work for a company that runs to CA. It's a preference and not an absolute requirement for the company that I ultimately choose (assuming I have options).