Older male Starting Out...?

It wholly depends on who you go to work for. Most otr jobs...most.. are mainly what's referred to as no touch freight. A lot of dedicated routes, LTL, local jobs require you to tailgate, meaning you get in the trailer and physically move the stuff to the end of the trailer for the customer to unload. Flatbed loads you have to tie down and tarp. Some companies may require you to actually unload and count the load. So in a nutshell, ask upfront when you are interviewing what's expected of you.

Most of the major carriers don't want you unloading since you'd be ticking off your drive time.

 

Surely, you did not mean to slam any women drivers by your statement - but no, you are not too old. But it's not just about your ability to lift weight/physical aptitude that increases your chances of success and happiness as a driver - it is about your mentality going into the profession and your mental strength once you kick that door open. This can be a very difficult job IF you are not prepared to do things that may have normally been out of your personal comfort zone - whether it be a hand unload to keep your wheels moving, or chaining up, sitting in traffic, waiting somewhere just to have the wait successfully burst any bubble you may have had (and the list goes on....). But the rewards dominate for sure - if you regard them as rewards rather than expectations - beautiful sunsets, full moons, wildlife, lightening storms in the horizon, wonderful people that you meet....anybody can make a paycheck - being rewarded for that is something you have to make yourself! Good luck in your future endeavors!

 

Hi jj, well, yes and no. Some aspects of trucking do require lifting, not necessarily heavy lifting, but certainly repetitive. For example, many van/reefer loads could be floor loaded, and would require you to put the product on pallets, or take a layer off existing pallets or transfer from large pallets to small. Some freight outfits may require you to load /unload your trailer, and some places may or may not have a dock. Tanker, you'll have to shlep a hose around, sometimes those are heavy, flatbed with strapping and chaining and most of all tarping can be a challenge. I think the least amount of lifting, would be a dump truck, but I've shoveled on occasions, to get legal after a load had settled. At 59, I may be forced back into trucking, and would only do a "line haul", where you take a trailer to a certain destination, drop and hook another trailer, and return home. Good luck.

 

Hi Allow Me, I slightly beg to differ, it's been a while since I've trucked, but could see when I quit, with the cost of pallets, and with the BS of your pallets are junk, while the ones we give you are perfect( hardly), many companies are going to slip sheet, or floor loads to get around the pallet dilemma, and heaven help you, when you get to a warehouse with a slip sheet load, only to find out, "Oh, sorry dude, our slip sheet machine is broke". ( It's happened to me)

 

Well, yeah, kind of. You can get a lumper, but the day of the $50 lumper is long gone, and they work like turtles, so plan on being there all day.

 

Look for a carrier that advertises 100% no-touch freight, and have fun slammin' doors!

BTW, y'all kiddin' here... no spring chicken??? Youngstah!