Just another new drivers experience with TMC

I'm Rick's first trainee. It's all going very well. We are hauling different types of
loads 500-600 miles through different areas of our country.

 

Day 2-3-4 Both of us driving almost round the clock with 1000 mile loads. We usually shut down at 3am and up at 6am to unload. We crossed 10 states this week. From Chicago to Tennessee to Virginia up to New York. Days are long but that is the life. Learning tips and tricks to maximize available drive time on the E-Logs. Hauled steel plate, vinyl fence and two large coils of cable.

 

Day 5 - Friday. Woke up at consignee. Someone banging on door b4 dawn that we could pull onto their lot but they were all leaving for a meeting (hurry up & wait). We untarped and removed most the securement. We were up so we took the time to organize our equipment in our storage boxes.
After unloading we received our info the load we were to pick up for Monday and get us home for the weekend. We picked up a load of stick lumber (no tarp) and bounced to the trainers home and my car.
On my way home 2pm Friday.

 

Week 2 w/trainer - Our Monday drop had the trainer driving by my house, so he picked me up on the way through Sunday evening. We got to consignee by 9pm and trainer got points to increase his percentage pay by being at shipper the night before so when they unload you Monday morning your 14 hour clock is reset and an empty 11 on the drive line.
We unloaded outside Knoxville then an hour bounce south to load bulk bag sand then off to Lynchburg, VA.

 

Week 2 - Day 2, 3, 4 - I drive almost all miles this week. My trainer is bored to death in the right seat and drives the bounce miles sometimes. From Lynchburg to Lancaster, PA with pipe then we dropped our trailer at a yard. Moved all of our equipment from our trailer to the pre-loaded trailer, minus the securement used on the new trailer. The new trailer landing gear was down half a foot too far and we couldn't hook. Took 90 minutes to get a forklift to take the pressure off to raise the landing gear so the trailer would sit lower. Now we are off to Ohio with 2 metal coils. We get to unload that night and sleep till dispatch shows up for work. 2 1/2 hour bounce north east to Cleveland for shingles headed to Cumberland, MD.

 

Week 2 - End of week. Well I drove across PA in an ice storm at night last week, but that was wide open interstate. Thursday night I crossed a mountain, up one side and down the other, in a snow storm on a small 2 lane road. #### fun. Glad I'm a mountaineer that's lived with the snow and mountains my whole life. We make it to the consignee and park up. We pull most of the securement when we arrive before it has a chance to freeze solid. We microwave dinner, talk to our wives a bit then hit the rack for another early morning.

 

Yes, and it seems like this is a slow time of year for loads. My trainer's net for last week was over $1,200. This week will be more like 8-900. He said it was a bad week.

 

Week 2-Friday. Woke at the consignee and ready to unload when they open. A total of 5 TMC trucks with shingles. 3 arrived the night before and backed into the tight unloading area. The first 2 and we had to drop a steer tire off the pavement on the opposite side of the road. We were in 579s. The last two were in 379s. We looked in mirror and the next truck had all three axles off the pavement. He did get backed though. The last truck had his entire tractor in another business' front yard. He could not get his truck in and had to be unloaded in street.
They gave my trainer a load that did not make sense to get us home and paid crap. He refused it and we waited while we watched the other trucks. They came back with a 3 stop load that paid very well and went all the way to Kansas but the first drop is 2 hours from the house so we don't leave till Sunday evening. Awesome. Should park the truck before dark and I be home by 6pm Friday.