What's Your Favorite Run/lane?

Drivers have different preferences for where they like to run or maybe certain customers they service. In a standard OTR setup you're not likely to frequently get the same assignment as dedicated or local but I'm sure it happens.

For me, I enjoy a run a route I occasionally will take Wednesdays and/or Fridays. It typically consists of leaving Des Moines for 1 store in the Kansas City metro before going to Lawrence KS for 1 store and 2 gas stations with a backhaul in the KC area. It's a pretty laid back drive, rarely run into other drivers, the stops in Lawrence are easy and ends up paying about $500 for 12 hours. I have to hand unload at gas stations (with employee help) but it's usually 50ish cases and the exercise is nice. The only downside is the drop/hook backhaul frequently, but not always, paired with it. They have you check in then assign you 1 of 4 offsite locations to drop it a couple miles away. Go drop your empty and come back to grab your loaded. It takes about an hour so it's not terrible but it's 42k of butter we pick up. Fortunately I've done it enough I have a sheet of paper I've written down load weight and tandem placement for various heavy backhauls. I still hit a scale to double check but it saves time. Yesterday I scaled legal with 11,880 33,180 32520 with a total of 77,580.

What's your favorite?

Rob, great topic. The replies will be interesting.

My favorite route is a meat load from Cargill at Friona, TX or Dodge City, KS going up to Butler, WI. That delivery in WI is near where my grandson is going to college in Whitewater, WI. So I get to visit with him whenever I get that route. Easy drive to boot.

In the winter, I like any assignment that puts me on Interstate 20, either east from Dallas or west from Dallas. Of all the Interstates I drive on, I20 is my favorite.

On the flip side, I just did an assignment straight from central dispatch in Hell. Re-powered a trailer from Eureka, MO to Passaic NJ. Passaic is horrible. Then up to Troy NY. Not as bad as Passaic, but bad enough. Then down to Bethlehem PA. Very difficult roads. Hilly, curvy, slow. After Bethlehem, it took me 2 hours of crappy 2 lane roads, at night, to get 50 miles up to I80 and head west. If I can get on with Walmart, I hope to go regional and not do the east coast trips anymore.

This one is rather specific bc it is a load that I only ran while training students in the TNT (team driving) phase while at Prime. It was a trip from Ben & Jerry's in St. Albans, Vermont to Henderson, Nevada. Simple drop n hook at both ends. Plus free pints from B&J at the start. It was a lot of miles and left a lot of freedom to choose whatever route you wanted to take from VT to NV.

With CRST we'd hit everywhere, 4 corners of the country. Really, I hated getting north on the 80 anywhere! Especially, during winter lol, it was good though, for the all around experience those 22 months there. Any NE states blehhhh, NY, PA, Ill, Mass, etc. Did 1 run to within 20 miles from Cape Cod. Seemed when we had runs down south on the 40, or I-10, my fave's...But once we'd get routed north using the 80, we kinda would get stuck there 4-6 weeks running back n forth. The PNW, Oregon, Wash I wasn't a fan of either, but that was the job, suck it up n Git R Dun lol

Now, with Legends, those 4 months, I liked a LOT better, ran mostly the I-40 out to OK, and back. Was supposed to been on a Home Depot dedicated, but wasn't, which was fine by me. Sent me to grab an empty @ a HM DC, the guy was rude, and flat out would NOT gimme an empty period! But most of my loads were to the same places, with a few odd ball runs thrown in here n there. And I was mostly left alone to do my own thing, because my 2 DM's I'd had, young guys, knew I was gunna run it hard, back n forth.

Now, if I'd not planned my early retirement to leave the states, I'd hoped to finish out my working life driving for Legends. They were actually, a great company to drive for, and I made bank there!!.....Any bonus's like the $10k signing bonus parts I'd gotten, were paid on time, every time.. And they marked em as reimbursements, not added to my gross, so was no taxes taken out.

So, in my 3 years driving, I should'a got into trucking years earlier! Sure made way more money, than ever did "bustin' nut's & bendin' wrenches"

Avenue of the Saints through Missouri and Iowa is my fave.

Also, like going over the Mackinac Bridge and taking 75 into Ohio and lower Michigan.

Depends on the season. I love OR 58 over Williamette pass in the summer. Just stunning drive. Also really enjoy CA 89 in the summer.

There's some backroads that I've stumbled across that I dig. US65 in LA goes through Transylvania, LA. Beautiful lake there, never had time to explore it.

Love tripping around the Nevada desert as well.

Also in the summertime, Glenwood Canyon on 70 is amazing as is Wolf Creek Pass. Also really dig Monarch Pass on US50.

Des Moines IA easy drive down 80 to first exit on I-35 get off terminal is close to highway. Nice big easy yard there, drop and hook then drive back. Right around 11 hour day most of the time, pays $535ish.

Toledo area down to the DMV , and South Jersey, by extension, with a backhaul out of Wilmington, DE up to SE Michigan. Both runs I can do in a single shift. I get an east coast bonus on the load out there without any substantial east coast driving issues. The backhaul puts me close to home, for when I want to take a day or two. I have done this run 4 times the last 2 weeks (on backhaul now), and it's a great nighttime run.