Winter Driving Will Cause Delays

Discussion in 'Experienced Truckers' Advice' started by Pahrump, Sep 20, 2014.

  1. Pahrump

    Pahrump Medium Load Member

    OK you got a CDL and you are a Professional Driver.
    Winter is here as well as year round there are hazardous driving conditions caused by bad weather,,wind,rain etc.
    When driving is bad weather SLOW DOWN GO EASY AND TAKE YOUR TIME!
    Driving in bad weather is dangerous,, many times other drivers crate dangerous driving for you too.
    Some days you will not get all the miles you want,,your earnings in winter will be reduced, that's the way trucking is. Expect to make less in the winter or when having to deal with bad weather,, delys are normal.
    When you pick up a load and each day when you change out of your PJs plan your day,,plan your route and check the weather ahead.
    If you run into bad weater slow down,,take a break and let the weather pass or for the road conditions to improve, If you have to shut down early,
    If you are being delayed or shut down because you feel IT IS SAFER TO DO SO DO IT!
    Notify your dispatch and tell them you are being delayed and that you will do your best to deliver on time WHEN YOU FEEL IT IS SAFE TO CONTINUE!
    DO NOT BE INTIMINDATED BY YOUR DISPATCHER TO CONTINUE DRIVING IF YOU FEEL IT IS SAFER TO STOP. IF YOUR COMPANY FEELS THE LOAD YOU ARE HAULING IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN YOUR SAFETY THEN FIND A NEW COMPANY.
    It is better to have a delayed delivery on your DAC than an accident and you hurt someone or your self.
    Last winter in a 100 mile stretch of I-80 in Wyoming 5 Swift trucks had single vehicle accidents in a 3 hour period. Don't let an accident ruin your career,
    You are a professional driver,,act like one and take your time to be safe.
    I have always gotten a kick out of the jerks blowing by me when in bad weather I have slowed down to 30 MPH or less and then a few miles down the road I pass them after they ran off the road in a ditch.
    Weather conditions will sometimes kill you pay check but if you don't have a wreck you will be there an other day to earn a living. REMEMBER A WRECK CAN KILL YOU, SOMEONE ELSE AND YOUR CAREER!
     
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  3. joseph1135

    joseph1135 Papa Murphy

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    What horrible advice. Slow down? Shut down? Learn how to work kid! That load has to get there. And it's your job to get it there. Hammer down like the Ice Road Truckers do!!!!






    Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha :biggrin_25523:
     
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  4. joseph1135

    joseph1135 Papa Murphy

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    That's 44 years and millions of miles of experience. Plus 44 winters. Good words. Heed them.
     
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  5. xsetra

    xsetra Road Train Member

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    Slow down and be safe, but get out of the hammer lane. Those 30mph trucks in the hammer lane are the cause of a few of the accidents. Just because you have flashers on does not give you the right to drive slow on the interstate. Minimum speed is 45 on most interstates. Drive safe and get off the road and park if you are not comfortable doing the minimum. Yes I have pulled off in the truckstop until the storms pass. I feel if you need chains on the truck to get down the road. I don't need to be on the road until it is clear to run. Be safe.
     
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  6. BrenYoda883

    BrenYoda883 Road Train Member

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    This is a good a timely thread

    One thing I would add.. is winter is no time to skip on your pre trips.. it may be cold.. but it is better to do a thorough pre trip in the cold then be stranded on the side of the road waiting for Roadside Service. .

    If you dont already know what your company's guidelines are for winter... their policy and procedure for fuel additive. .. then now is the time to get familiar with it... if you put it off you will get caught off guard..

    Also, if not already.. get familiar with your truck. .. those who take their trucks home for the weekend or hometime have a plan.. where to plug in your truck, maybe a trickle charger... no fun starting your week off with dead batteries or a truck that wont start....

    Also, stock your truck. . Warm clothes, blankets, food and water. ... you may not be able to get to a truck stop and fi d youfself parked for a day or two.... you need supplies...
     
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  7. Mark Kling

    Mark Kling Technology Contributor

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    Don't set your trailer brakes if freezing outside. The pads can freeze to the drums. All you will do is drag the trailer around.
     
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  8. thelushlarry

    thelushlarry Road Train Member

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    The more trucks you pass the more that is behind you helps your chances of getting help if you get in the ditch. No need to ever be late with that doggone freight!:biggrin_25523:
     
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  9. PackRatTDI

    PackRatTDI Licensed to Ill

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    My truck has traction control so I can drive fast in ice and snow.
     
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  10. STexan

    STexan Road Train Member

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    When the deep freeze portion of winter does get here, keep your DEF topped off even if you don't need it if you're some place "warm". A lot of places, especially in the south, the DEF will freeze at some pumps as warm as 20 degrees. Don't find yourself at near empty on DEF, then expect any truck stop you may find, when it's been 10 degrees or colder the last 2 days, to have working DEF. But we're a long ways from that, I suppose. Deep freeze issues for trucks are another subject for another time.
     
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  11. ramblingman

    ramblingman Road Train Member

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    This whole shutdown for safety thing seems a bit overstated to me. It's also annoying that the truck stops are full by 3pm everytime a snowflake hits the ground. Why not focus on teaching people to drive in Adverse situations rather than just shut down. This whole last winter i ran all areas of the lower 48 and parts of Canada in every kind of weather imaginable and never shut down for fear of unsafe conditions. 500 miles at a time on solid ice was not uncommon in Eastern MT or Wyoming. Full whiteouts down on I-80 driving by the rumble strips. Snow storms in TX and a foot of snow on the interstate and still coming down in PA as i ran through the night to make my delivery on time bypassing the closed down section of interstate due to a multi-truck pile up. .

    It can actually be fun if you make a challenge out of it instead of just shutting down. Before trucking my passion in life was Extreme Off-road truck racing and i loved the challenge of trying to climb over a rock wall,over a bunch of boulders or up a 40* hill covered in loose sand and rocks with a 100 ft drop off on the side and a mountain side on the other. I'm lucky enough to live right next to the host of the Top Truck Challenge and have a massive OHV park to practice at. It's all about assessing your conditions properly and then creating an execution plan and then of course executing it while being willing to improvise when things go awry.

    It's very stimulating and challenging for the mind as you constantly decide which lines to take up/down the steep icy grades. Your mind is constantly taking in hundreds of different types of input from all your senses and making countless amounts of decisions per second varying throttle position,Steering wheel position and brake application. Your adrenaline rushes, but you have to calm yourself or else you will get impatient and make a fatal mistake. I've driven in road conditions where a slip of the pedal would likely have caused a high potential for a jack knife situation. This shouldn't be thought of as an inherently dangerous situation IMO though as it is perfectly safe as long as you don't make a fatal mistake and that is always the case in truck driving to varying degrees.

    If you jerk the wheel to hard on dry ground you will roll the truck. If you jerk the wheel to a much lesser degree on ice you will jack knife. Either way a mistake is made and a dangerous outcome is the result.

    These trucks fully loaded are very capable of operating in extremely adverse conditions and can be run through the majority of weather conditions if the operator is willing to work hard to push the trucks to it's limits rather than limit the trucks capabilities with the operators incompetence. Your skill level as a truck operator will never reach the trucks capabilities if you shut down when the the going gets tough.

    Just a different approach to this issue. Now you guys can get to flaming me...
     
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