tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2975910734413273727.post2326839139239121188..comments2023-03-28T12:51:14.909-03:00Comments on TruckinEd: I Was Gonna Buy One Of ThoseEdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02904624066020701354noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2975910734413273727.post-75977093992246348972014-04-07T09:49:04.966-03:002014-04-07T09:49:04.966-03:00That is a really nice truck! I understand why it e...That is a really nice truck! I understand why it elicits such reactions from such people. I agree, too, that having your own bathroom in the truck is one of the best features of a vehicle.<br /><br /><a href="http://gpartsinc.blogspot.com/2014/03/exhaust-systems-automobile.html" rel="nofollow">Shaun Stille</a><br />Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09469329382320973270noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2975910734413273727.post-32478718992158507022013-02-07T01:13:12.060-04:002013-02-07T01:13:12.060-04:00ELH,
There is another thing I left out in my reply...ELH,<br />There is another thing I left out in my reply: It is easy to go from owner operator to company driver, but it is hard to do the opposite. Truck drivers who just hold a steering wheel and get from point A to point B don't need much training and will work for cheap. It is hard to compete with some of them because many of the people that do that job are used to making peanuts working an entry level hourly job. That is what is wrong with the industry as a whole. <br /><br />The powers that be would rather eliminate all competition by mandating EOBR's and adding surveillance gadget after gadget so they can basically micro manage the driver and cut their wages than have actual real informative training that allows the driver to be able to react to dangerous situations. Paying the driver more money is last on their list. <br /><br />I hate to say it, but there are some drivers who don't bathe, don't take care of themselves, and have little to no regard for their health or the general safety of those around them. This is who the average trucking company recruits and this is why we are dealing with all these new regulations. All you can do when coming into trucking, is be educated about the industry and choose the path which will allow you the brightest future. <br /><br />Salena tells me that every industry is the same, but I know trucking and I don't know about every other industry. The real problem in trucking is lack of training and a general beating down of individuals who seek to start their own companies. The companies only pay drivers the minimum amount that they can get away with because every day they are getting a new batch of students who don't know any better and will get the trailer from A to B for cheap. It is unsafe, unethical, and unprofessional, but it is legal so it continues and every year the CEO of one of these companies writes out a nice fat check to themselves for at least a million and a half. Meanwhile the drivers are bending over backwards to make 50K a year. In some cases it is like the work camps in The Grapes Of Wrath. For those who want to learn a better way, there are voices out there guiding them. And then there are the thousands who choose not listen. Sadly, they are the problem. And I don't see that changing anytime soon.<br />-EdEdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02904624066020701354noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2975910734413273727.post-744418096711583842013-02-07T00:37:36.629-04:002013-02-07T00:37:36.629-04:00Yeah, I bet having your own bathroom on the road i...Yeah, I bet having your own bathroom on the road is worth the cost of the sleeper. Maybe small sleepers will go the way of the cabover.Scottnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2975910734413273727.post-47736016583295750232013-02-06T18:40:20.627-04:002013-02-06T18:40:20.627-04:00Thanks Ed, I knew you'd have some insights on ...Thanks Ed, I knew you'd have some insights on that..the 75K company driver clain sounded a little to good to be true,as most company drivers claim just the opposite..<br /> not enough income for hours away, yet i personally still don't get why carriers won't increase the compensation to their safe reliable drivers so as to cut down on the huge turnover rate..<br /> if the economy ever starts to heat up and drivers start leaving the industry in droves, what the heck are these carriers gonna do, and how will that look to their clients??ELHnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2975910734413273727.post-69265697969793434832013-02-06T11:58:43.162-04:002013-02-06T11:58:43.162-04:00ELH,
There are a few jobs that pay 75K a year, bu...ELH,<br /><br />There are a few jobs that pay 75K a year, but for the most part those drivers are subject to the whims of their carrier. They have an accident or get too many tickets and they are down for the count. As a self employed driver, you do what you want so long as you can get customers. <br /><br />Also the turnover rate is over 100% so those high paying jobs are being sought by all the other drivers and if you slip up, they will pounce on the opportunity. In addition, those jobs require you to be away from home most of the year and you don't get to take time off whenever you need or want to. <br /><br />There are high paying trucking jobs, but they usually have many restrictions. I know of a run that would pay a team 500,000 NET a year, but we tried it and it beat to hell, kept us up too many hours driving, and generally was a miserable experience and THAT is trucking. The higher the pay the more BS is involved. Be leary of any trucking job that pays 75K a year until you read the fine print.<br /><br />Also that 500K a year job will NEVER be available to a company operator. NEVER. I might buy a truck and hire someone to haul that freight for say 2K a week and the drivers would be happy have it, but being an owner opens up a whole line of opportunities that a company driver will never have.Edhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02904624066020701354noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2975910734413273727.post-48414180294560173662013-02-06T11:45:51.581-04:002013-02-06T11:45:51.581-04:00Scott you are right. I like to shoot the breeze w...Scott you are right. I like to shoot the breeze with my fellow truckers and there is usually some good information to be heard in the truckstop as well as a new friend or two. Since we have everything we need, we don't have to find a parking spot at a truckstop or watch what someone else is watching on TV. We don't have to eat what the only restaurant is cooking. We don't have to wait in line for a shower. We can haul the same weight or more than some other trucks and we can get in and out of the same places. <br /><br />The higher cost is the main issue, but there are some really good deals on used big sleeper trucks and even if the truck has high miles on it, these trucks can get more than 3 million miles on the frame. If I were going to do this all over again as a team, the big sleeper is the only way to go. The basic needs are all met. <br /><br />The biggest feature is the shower/toilet. I don't have to stop on two people's schedule to use a public toilet anymore and I am not using a porta potti or a bucket as many drivers do. Plus the shower can be used anywhere so when I have finished strapping and chaining a load at 2 PM when it is 100 degrees outside and I am sweating like a pig, I can jump in the shower and go on with my day. <br /><br />I think that all team operations should have these big sleeper trucks even at big trucking companies. The truck manufacturers should be thinking about 96 inch sleepers instead of 70 to 86 inches. That extra foot to foot and a half will accommodate a small kitchen, shower, and a toilet. And the truck can still go to Canada. <br /><br />At the end of the day it is the drivers who set the tone so they don't have it because they don't fight for it. Simple as that.Edhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02904624066020701354noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2975910734413273727.post-38874995608425985462013-02-06T11:44:33.137-04:002013-02-06T11:44:33.137-04:00ED, some of the "you tube" yappers are c...ED, some of the "you tube" yappers are claiming to be making tween 70-75 k a year as company drivers, dont know if thats really true or not?? But if it is???, thsts a pretty nice income without having all the responsibilities of being an own/op.. not everyone can handle that, nor wants to. And if they really are msking that, I can understand.. you and Salena are very driven, organized and determined folks, not everyone, dare I say only a minority of folks, have those skills.. so a potential own/op may say to themselves how much more could I really make and is it worth all the risks and heafaches for not much more income wise..one of your past posts was very informative about this topic and people should pull that ud and read in that you discussed the ups and downs of own/op..great post, ELHnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2975910734413273727.post-42082608022128975362013-02-05T13:54:48.418-04:002013-02-05T13:54:48.418-04:00I'd imagine the comfort level makes you able t...I'd imagine the comfort level makes you able to sit and wait for better freight. Otherwise, you'd need to wait it out in the TV room of the Flying J. <br /><br />It might be more money up front, but the marginal cost of running a bigger sleeper may not be a big deal if it doesn't affect your fuel mileage or load capacity.Scottnoreply@blogger.com