I just finished a book called "Driving a big truck or how I became a professional tourist" by Steve Richards.

The author doesn't seem to sugarcoat anything but implies that there are times on the road when one can essentially become a tourist for several hours or even a few days on occasion.

I'm not a truck driver. Nor have I been to school for it. But I'm thinking about going.

My question is, how much free time do you really have on the road? Do you get to do fun things? Stop and "smell the roses" once in a while? Or is it basically just driving, eating and sleeping for 2-3 weeks at a time?

It all depends on how you plan it. You can't really go off route or go out of your way with the big truck. If you are stuck doing a reset that is not your home you may be able to park the truck and explore with a bike or taxi.
However most of your free time will not be by choice. I was once laid over in some small town in Oklahoma where there was nothng. I took a long walk but still there wasn't much to see.

But you can however take in the positives if you are just running constantly. You can enjoy the scenery, enjoy a rest area (truckstops are lame), and maybe visit a couple of truck friendly tourist traps along the highway for a break or a meal.
This job is what you make of it. But it is a job.

More like the later. Most companies will not be happy if you want to take your time and putz around the country. You will have your down time when you don't want it, mainly when they can't find you a load. now if you don't want to go home ever you can probably find a company who will try to get you your time off in different locations you want if they run there

Join the Navy and see the world through a port hole. Or, drive truck and see everything for fifty yards on either side of the windshield.

yeah its not exactly like a tourist , your working, so what if we have a great window view

im sure that book sugarcoated it just by the title

There have been times when I have been able to go sight seeing. It's not always in the coolest of places. But some of them have been fun.

If you drive for a company like MCT out of Sioux Falls SD you might get to see ALL of the US because they can get you almost anywhere. I liked that about them. But since I only made 25 cpm (and this was last year) and I didn't have ANY benefits, I couldn't really afford to do anything even when I had a reset. And when you try to take that big rig offroad and pay your first $650 tow bill to get out of the mud, you'll never do it again. Let's see $650/0.25 = 2600 miles before taxes to pay off that oops.

I was very naive as most newbies would be about just how many places you can't stop into. Feel like Dairy Queen? I drove from Fort Worth Texas to North Platte, NE looking for one that I could get truck parking at. Think you can just pull over. Ya right. That place you always park at on the side of the road to take a pee will swallow your 80,000 lb truck right now. Remember that $650 tow bill???

Yes, I have seen a lot of beautiful country but that all stopped when I went with my second carrier because they ran me so hard I never had my eyes open while driving. Instead, I was sleeping. I also never got to go west of I-29 with my second company. I asked them a couple of times if they went west. They said yes. I signed on. I never got west. They didn't lie though. The senior drivers got to go west. They might have had 10 trucks west of Omaha at any given time out of 300.

I offer forth a couple of trucking photos. They are both representative of what to expect. The second photo is much more realistic of my experiences east of I-29 even though it was an accident backup in CA. First photo is on I-70 in Utah I think.

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We are going to drive for 5 years and make notes of the places we want to explore in more depth later! When you are driving a truck, it is a JOB and you have to perform as such and see the sights later.

[quote=bigredinternational;438611]If you drive for a company like MCT out of Sioux Falls SD you might get to see ALL of the US because they can get you almost anywhere. I liked that about them. But since I only made 25 cpm (and this was last year) and I didn't have ANY benefits, I couldn't really afford to do anything even when I had a reset. And when you try to take that big rig offroad and pay your first $650 tow bill to get out of the mud, you'll never do it again. Let's see $650/0.25 = 2600 miles before taxes to pay off that oops.

Who drives for .25 a mile??? Better yet, why?

If your a sports fan, driving truck can be extremely beneficial. I have been to numerous baseball games and a few basketball games since I have been driving. If your stopping near a large city and the home team is in town, grab a cab and go see a game or just take a bus. Get on the CB and see who wants to go to a game and split the cab cost. I love this job because of its travel advantages. I own a condo so I dont have to worry about the lawn etc. So, I also take a couple days off here and there to be a tourist. Truck driving is a great job if you take advantage of the benefits. Just driving, parking and watching tv, and sleeping, will make the job suck.