CVSA 2013

For loads that you know will shift during transit you have to drive them a little different. I have driven beef and pork from all the cattle and pic houses in Kansas and Wyoming and I have only had one shift. The first one. After that I learned how to drive for that type of load. You drive slower. Make turns slower and make sure never to hard brake. You have to be softer on the pedals and and do slow lane changes. This is the only way to do these types of loads.

Not telling you how to do your job or how to drive but since this has happened two times now I figured I would offer some advice and hopefully this will not happen again.

Dang i must have been a granny driver back when i did reefer bc when i hauled pork i never had a ld **** unless ya count a box that wasnt shrink wrapped in and it fell off the top of the stack. we were required to leave 2 ld locks with our trlrs and if we didnt the meat shipper charged us to use one of theirs,then we got all heck for that costly ld lock.

For loads that you know will shift during transit you have to drive them a little different. I have driven beef and pork from all the cattle and pic houses in Kansas and Wyoming and I have only had one shift. The first one. After that I learned how to drive for that type of load. You drive slower. Make turns slower and make sure never to hard brake. You have to be softer on the pedals and and do slow lane changes. This is the only way to do these types of loads.

Not telling you how to do your job or how to drive but since this has happened two times now I figured I would offer some advice and hopefully this will not happen again.

Well my driver manager sent out a message that states if the shipper is there, we need to ask if the load is secure, if NOT, we need to ask to break the seal, to put in a load lock, and reseal trailer. I bet that will go over like a lead ballon with some companies.

But, yeah, your right. I need to slow down, and take it easy on turns and (if people would learn NOT to cut off a tractor-trailer) take it easy on the brakes.

Dave

What's a bit weird to me is that, during my company orientation and OTR training not one word was said about load securement (dry van). Almost all of my OTR training was Drop & Hook. Never was anything secured by us as the drivers. When my truck was issued to me, the Operations Mgr. issued me certain items for which I am accountable including three van straps. I asked him what those were for and he replied they were for securing the loads, if needed. So far, (in three months solo OTR), I only use them when required by the shipper (four times to this point). Until reading this post and the other related one here, I had no idea that I could be ticketed for not using these straps, especially when dealing with a drop and hook , sealed trailer. It never occurred to me to break a seal in order to check how a load is or is not secured. Sometimes, I pick up a relay load at a Yard where the trailer is already sealed and there is no one around to authorize me to break the seal in order to check the load for securement. Of course, under those circumstances, the presumption is that the Driver who was there during the loading process secured the load properly. I have been fortunate, so far, that no loads have shifted on me or created a problem. About three weeks ago at a warehouse while being unloaded (bottled water), in the trailer at the door next to me, at the very front of the trailer, a pallet of water had laid over on its side. The Consignee did not blame the driver for it because, obviously, being all the way to the front of the trailer, he had no control over that situation. But, it did make me realize that things like that are very possible. My take away here is that I best be making more use of those van straps!