That would be my only problem with working for any flat bet out fit. Their not sending new drivers out with trainers for at least a couple of weeks.. Good luck to RC, and all the other new drivers who have never flat bedded before...

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There are only three women in this world that mean anything to me and they are Karen, Krystal, Amanda..

Maverick does train you...and it is very thorough training (hands on...in "the barn")

They do still have driver trainers...but they are not training anybody these days.

Not saying their a bad outfit, but I would feel better getting trained with a trainer. Sure they have thorough training, but when your out on your own, you might have questions, and might forget a thing or two..

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There are only three women in this world that mean anything to me and they are Karen, Krystal, Amanda..

Good for him! It is nice to hear when someone gets treated well!

Good for Redcoat and wish him all the best in his new venture!

One thing about flat bedding, and I only did a little of it, I always remember that the status of the load is constantly on your mind as you head down the road. I hauled bagged cement on pallets, sometimes shrink wrapped, sometimes not, and you stopped periodically to check your straps and all...it was nice to get to your destination and see the load, intact and not shifted all over the place.

I remember a few years ago, seeing a flatbed lose his load of 5 gal. bukets of drywall mud on the LIE (I-495) on a bumpy section in Maspeth, NY. Half his load was all over the road and the poor guy was standing there looking..

Latest update.

Redcoat made it to Gary around 0200 Thursday morning. He tossed his stuff in the truck, started it up to warm it up and went to sleep for a few hours. He called me later in the morning to let me know he made it. I asked him how his truck was and he said, "Well...it's maroon." Ha. Good one. Typical British ... master of the understatement.

He has a 2006 with a little over 500K miles on it. It was only a little dirty inside but not even close to the pigsty he was given when he went dedicated at Covenant. He said it could use a good cleaning but sleeping in it didn't make his skin crawl or anything. He said his version of the QC is the middle version. Evidently Maverick has 3 different versions of QualComms. The oldest version like what Covenant uses, then a newer one which is the one he has and then there is a newer one than that.

After he got up and started moving around he went to take care of personal grooming, and then inventoried his equipment on the truck. Everything was there with a few extra so nothing was missing. That completed, he put himself on the board for a load.

Allow Me was right ... Gary means coils. It wasn't too long until he got a load to be picked up in Chicago headed for Jackson, MS. It was one HUGE coil (Redcoat said it weighed a tad over 41K). It took him about 2 1/2 hours to chain it down and tarp it. Not the world's fastest record but a thorough job. He said another Mav driver was there and that man finished about an hour before RC did. Redcoat said he's sure he'll develop a system once he gets used to tarping and that he'll get faster at it. All in good time. Once he got started down the road he noticed that there was one area of the tarp that was flapping so when he stopped for fuel he put another bungee on it and that took care of it.

Redcoat's FM told him that he could go through the house with this load because it wasn't due until Tuesday morning. So RC is going to stop by my mom's house to get the rest of his stuff loaded and to wash the truck. He says it's all dusty from sitting in the Gary yard which is not paved. He plans on leaving Monday afternoon to get down to Jackson by Monday evening so he'll be in position to deliver on Tuesday.

He told his FM about me living in North Carolina and his FM said she'd try to get him a load in this direction. That was good news and cheered him up considerably. I told him not to do it next weekend because I'm taking the rig up to Petersburg, VA to spend a week with my son and his family. They just had a new baby girl last week and I'm going up there to help out since they also have a two-year-old. I don't get to see my son too often since he's in the army and they were stationed at Ft. Riley in Kansas for the past four years. But he's going to captain's school at Ft. Lee and after that he has orders to Ft. Bragg in Fayetteville just down the road from me here in Raleigh so I'll be able to see him a lot more often.

When I get back I'll probably be in North Carolina at least until March so hopefully Redcoat's FM's will be able to send him over this way a couple times a month.

For now, RC is making his way down I-57 in Illinois on his way to Tupelo for a couple days off and then back to work on Monday. One thing he has noticed is that the thingy that warns him of being too close to a lane stripe is not working on the left side. The right side works but the left one doesn't. So he's going to have a look to see if he can find the sensor once he gets to my mom's house to see if there is anything obviously wrong with it.

Y'all have a nice holiday.

Stay tuned.

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It's not how bad you screw up; it's how well you recover.
Do or do not. There is no try. --- Yoda
All men are not homeless, but some men are home less than others. --- Henny Youngman
When you come to a fork in the road, take it. --- Yogi Berra
Thanks to the Interstate Highway System, it is now possible to travel across the country from coast to coast without seeing anything. --- Charles Kuralt

Congrats to him! Sounds like things are working out for him.

For those times...they give you a phone number where the trainers can be reached (24/7). The same guys that do the training in Little Rock carry that phone...AT ALL TIMES.

Congradulations on getting your truck! Sounds like you have a load going down to double D. One good thing about Maverick, once you are given a truck it's yours until they are ready to trade it in. Since he got a 2006 with 500 thou. he should get a new truck next yr. All the new trucks have APU's. Two hours sounds about right for a newbee, he will get it down to 30 min. for a single coil. Just be careful with the single coils they are mighty top heavy, your not pulling a box any more. I have been pulling flats for over 30 yr. wouldn't have it any other way! Tell Redcoat, if he wants I will PM you with my phone no. so if he has any questions on loads or directions, consignee, etc. he can fell free to call me. And once again welcome to Maverick.




I AM A FLATBEDDER, I TRAVEL WITH ALL EQUIPMENT NECCESSARY. CHAINS (FOR THE UNRULEY ONES), STRAPS (FOR THE SEMI-UNRULEY ONES),...

Let me see if I got this right does RC live in Tueplo Ms? Also Ive been pulling flatbed for almost a year and it still takes me two hours to chain and tarp a coil. I should say though I have only pulled about 10 so far mostly lumber and treated lumber. I too wouldnt go back to van after doing this.