CB Radio: The most important tool in your truck

[jamwadmag]

Originally Posted by DanJ

Well, true, but somebody is bound to be near the jerk, and it sucks to be that one. Usually they are going the other way, or pulling away from you, so soon enough you will lose them. If I have somebody near me that's sticking close, I turn the volume down and keep checking every few minutes to see if there is anything going on, then turn it down again. I only do a linehaul, but the highway around Toronto is some of the busiest in North America and I like to know if the typical several times a day accidents are going to mess me up. Plus there are usually a lot of OTR guys coming though that need help getting around the trouble, so I like to offer any help that I can.

We need more drivers like YOU. Good Man! Let me give your 'Man Card' a punch!! LOL

[johnday]

One of the things I was always told at CDL school, and at my orientation at the company I drive for, was to turn off your radio at truckstops. Do I do that? NO WAY!!! You will hear alot of BS and #### on it, but if your backing into a bad place, you can usually get an assist from another driver, and you should do the same. A great percentage of #### you hear around big cities appears to be from some illiterate on a base station. Not saying there isn't, but if a driver is paying attention to traffic, how many can actually be flapping their lips causing trouble? I personally know two idiots in 4 wheelers that intentionally cause problems with us big truck drivers. They think it's funny to throw out racial slurs and such, just to cause havoc. Those kinds of distractions are not needed, and I've learned to filter them out.
Most of the drivers at my company don't use their CB's. It really irritates myself, when trying to find out if they are alright [on the shoulder], you're met with silence.

[jamwadmag]

Originally Posted by johnday

One of the things I was always told at CDL school, and at my orientation at the company I drive for, was to turn off your radio at truckstops. Do I do that? NO WAY!!! You will hear alot of BS and #### on it, but if your backing into a bad place, you can usually get an assist from another driver, and you should do the same. A great percentage of #### you hear around big cities appears to be from some illiterate on a base station. Not saying there isn't, but if a driver is paying attention to traffic, how many can actually be flapping their lips causing trouble? I personally know two idiots in 4 wheelers that intentionally cause problems with us big truck drivers. They think it's funny to throw out racial slurs and such, just to cause havoc. Those kinds of distractions are not needed, and I've learned to filter them out.
Most of the drivers at my company don't use their CB's. It really irritates myself, when trying to find out if they are alright [on the shoulder], you're met with silence.

I like that sig quote! One thing that gets me, is all the 'old hands' feel that you 'have to have your CB on' at all times. It's like they got a 'handle' on you and you MUST respond to them!! If it's off, they comeback with a 'he's too good to talk with me' answer!!

[lil daddy]

Correct, squelch controls the amount of back ground noise and will eliminate your ability to hear people far off. Most of the time you need only be concerned with whats happening within a 2 mile radius anyway. 2 miles allows you plenty of time to react to hazzards.

[ragtopjr]

Being a fairly new driver I agree that the CB can be a very helpful tool.

I will alert drivers of accidents, and immediate hazards on the road as a direct blast out.

When it comes to letting drivers know about Speed Traps I ask for the oncoming to respond, and if I get a response I will gladly tell all I know.

I also feel if the oncoming traffic cannot take the time to acknowledge me on the Cb I wont waste my time with a report.

I also acknowledge reports coming from the oncoming traffic with anything I know about bear reports, accidents, hazards, as well as coops being open or closed.

[Otter]

Calling the police on morons who run illegal amps is a waste of time, the police can't and won't do anything about it.
I was stopped on the interstate several years ago in an ice storm. Another driver asked if anyone had something to drink, I told him if he came to my truck I'd give him a bottle of Mountain Dew. He came and I did.
A short time later the highway patrol blocked the road in front of me and told me they were going to hold traffic until they got a grader out to scrape the ice off the road. We were parked for several hours. I asked the troopers if they wanted coffee or anything, my YL and I had everything we needed and didn't mine sharing with the troopers.
After several hours I heard someone calling for help, a woman was having a heart attack. I asked where he was and told him I had a trooper right in front of me.
When the driver tried to tell me where he was, the driver I gave the Mountain Dew to keyed over him saying the Highway patrol was useless. again I asked where the driver who needed help was and again the guy I gave the soda to keyed over him.
I went and got one of the troopers and told him what was happening, he came to my truck to use my radio. I let the trooper use my Kenwood HF rig, I turned on the recorder and the trooper called the driver calling for help and identified himself as a trooper.
Again the guy I gave the soda to keyed up and covered the guy calling for help, bad mouthing the trooper and covering the guy calling for help. I got it all on tape.
I told the trooper what truck the moron was in, and how I knew who he was. The trooper sent his partner to get the guy away from his radio. After the guy was removed from his truck the trooper found out where the woman who was having the heart attack was at.
He got an ambulance to come out and they lifted the woman over the centre guardrail and took her to hospital where she died.
I gave the trooper the tape from my recorder and they arrested the moron. The State's Attorney turned the case over to the United States District Attorney and the moron cut a deal for 2.5 years in federal prison, 2.5 years home confinement.

It's nice to know some morons get their just reward. But it took intervention from the U.S. Attorney's office to do it.

[CURTWAYNE]

Wow, Otter, that's quite a story! Just what did they charge him with? Interfering with government operations?

Yes, the cb can be a useful tool. But, sometimes when there are drivers out there just bs'ing away, you cannot get through to alert these fools to some important information. So, not only are those who turn their cb's off, but also the loudmouth's who won't shut up, that delay or totally keep important info from reaching everybody.

[Otter]

Malicious interference to emergency communications

[rjones56]

Originally Posted by Otter

Malicious interference to emergency communications

Serves him right.Gotta say up and down the eastcoast it is next to impossible to squelch out all the B.S.-I`ve tried different brands of radios,antennas,etc.
Not getting useful information is the only thing that keeps the c.b. on in my truck.Hate to get waylayed by a traffic jam because I had it off.
On a lighter note-yesterday for about 200 miles the radio was very quiet,I couldn`t get a response out of anybody but didn`t think much about it.Then I came up on an old friend who runs ch.25,went to change channels only then realizing I was still on channel 5(shippers channel),and not 19.Felt kinda stupid.

[squirrellsgnwild]

Originally Posted by MACK E-6

There are signs up on the interstates here in MD saying "Police monitor CB ch 9". I can never get one. I asked a state cop about this one day, and he said they pulled all their CB's to make room in their cars for computers.

why keep the sign up if they don't have a cb???