As more and more large chain truck stops are popping up across the country, old-school mom-and-pop truck stops are closing down. And regardless of how you feel about small businesses or large corporations, losing parking spaces is a problem.
It sits just outside of Lincoln, Nebraska just off of I-80. Over the years it gained some partners and lost some as well. It changed its name once when a dispute between brothers caused a rift in the business. But for 50 years, Don and Randy Shoemaker’s Truck Station has been open to truckers looking for some fuel, some food, or a stay at the family-owned Cobbler Inn Motel on site.
Before the Shoemaker family bought it in 1969, it had been the Skelly Oil Co. truck stop. Now, however, it looks like it may be turned into something else entirely.
According to reporting by the Lincoln Journal Star, The truck stop, the Cobbler Inn, and the 23.5 acres of land they sit on are all for sale with a price tag of $3.4 million. The property sits right next door to corporate offices for Crete Carrier Corporation.
Source: gobytrucknews, journalstar
It’s not the new station on the south side of the highway, it’s on the north side I believe this is the one they’re referring to.
When they built that new shoe makers across the street that old one what the crap they didn’t have anything good to speak up to start with it was just another place to park a truck and that one across the street that new one it ain’t much better yeah they got it restaurant but the food there sucks
And you can hardly find a place where to park there anyway to be called all the local trucks got it blocked up
They have some of the best fried chicken any where on the road.Yea the truck parking is sparse but it is everywhere these days.
Good. Let’s get another Pilot with a McDonalds. There is only 1 in the country and I don’t think that’s fair to that healthy restaurant.
If you’re talking about a pilot with a McDonald in it? There’s one in Mebane NC.
Up in Oregon on the I5, know exactly where you’re talking about
That place has been little more than a trailer drop yard since the new one was built
What shame in the day when REAL TRUCK DRIVERS drove trucks that was a great place to eat,fuel and talk to another driver,….. Another one Bites the Dust…. Ok Subway, hardies,mc dees you can move in and wreck another landmark….
I guess “REAL TRUCK DRIVERS” does not include you…
This response says you’re not a real driver.
No I was out there driving for 51 years the truck drivers are no more now there just steering wheel holders lol
So how did you steer without holding the wheel? Do you want a medal for driving 51 years if you actually did it. The one thing you old people forget is that YOU ALL CAUSED THIS MESS! We are heavily regulated because you just had to get that load wherever. Now thanks to you old drivers we now have eld because you just had to run four or five log books!
Amen
And I hate to break it to you but these new regulations are because of the new breed of idiots that now hold CDLs. You have no respect, your inconsiderate, you don’t pay attention to what’s going on, lets not even discuss your foul mouths on the radio. Most of you don’t even know the actual laws your required to follow.
Amen
You ain’t got a frickin clue dude about you’re talking about. You load a load of produce on Wednesday in the valley, and they’ve got you an appointment in Atlanta Friday afternoon, you better be there or they will refuse the load. Don’t run your mouth about things you know nothing about.
Running 4 or 5 log books? Really? ELD mandate had nothing to do with the number of log books a driver ran. It had to do with accidents. It was a failed attempt to cut down on accidents by a group of people that had no clue of trucking and still dont.
At least us old timers can keep our rigs in one lane, can back into a parking space at a truck stop without taking 30 minutes to do so. Us old timers fuel and pull forward, unlike you guys who think its okay to park at the fuel island to go take a 30 minute dump, or an hour shower!
Are you freaking crazy or just a smart mouth kid fresh out of driving school. Before you start with that ” ok.boomer ” crap , which by the way is just another cop out for you inexperienced young kids , you need to educate yourself to some trucking history . Old school truckers put in the miles and made the sacrifices which paid the way for you disrepectfull ungrateful self centered and narcissistic ” steering wheel holders ” of today .
Of you had a clue you sir would still be clueless. We did our jobs safer faster and better than the new breed is capable of. We helped each other had time to talk to each other over a good meal now thanks to spineless politicians and socialist idiots we and our once proud industry are me-too clones.
Erich you nailed it . I remember when trucking was a brotherhood . We looked out for each other . This new generation of ” drivers ” don’t understand how things were . We used to keep each other company on the radio , now most of these guys run backup radios because they don’t want anything to do with anyone .
No old drivers knew how to drive a truck and do a logbook new drivers very rarely know how to back in without hitting things and I could never use a paper log we did the jobs at new drivers can never do reason for new regulations because you drivers do not know how to be responsible and the courtesy of the road
Bob Lee Bro I worked with truck drivers at a Loves Travel Stop in Rolla Missouri… They’re a different breed entirely and all around pretty well humored.. And for you to sit behind a computer an dare to question another person’s occupation is kinda offensive and makes you ask what kinda person you are.. The American man as bad as it is to say are getting shunned for immigrants because of cheap labor even still and more so in the trucking industry.. So go ahead and dawg on your neighbor but youre still sitting there on your computer trolling all day asking yourself what you wanna be when you grow up
Thank you Bob.
Keep driving that weiner mobile u r future of the industry at 25 cents per mile
Lol typical new age driver blame the old for the new problems.. no u ahole the elds were brought in by government wanting more control over us . U r so stupid go back to school .. and if it was for us old guys who can drive a REAL TRUCK not an automatic
I have been a PROFESSIONAL DRIVER for 39 years now, for you NEW MILLINIAL CDL HOLDERS that cannot do the math, which is probably about half of you out there nowadays, that means I have been out there since 1980. I was taught by a few OLD TIMERS before me about RESPECT, COURTESY and HELPING OUT YOUR FELLOW DRIVERS and I will never forget them for taking the time to do that for me and will always remember them for it.
Yes, we may have had 2 or at times 3 log books, but the amazing thing is, we also had COMMON SENSE, which seems to be lacking greatly among a majority of the NEW MILLINIAL CDL HOLDERS of today. For the most part, if we got that tired and could not push any longer, we had the COMMON SENSE to pull off someplace to take a short nap. Matter of fact, I believe there were a lot less accidents out there despite us pushing ourselves back then than there is today. There use to be days I would travel down the highway and not see a truck wreck, nowadays I cannot make it a day down the highway without seeing 1 or 2 truck wrecks, usually involving a mega fleet driver.
There use to be a time when you saw an Owner Operator, you knew and had confidence that the driver behind the wheel of that truck was a PROFESSIONAL DRIVER and knew how to drive that truck. Nowadays, you see an Owner Operator, you have to be just as cautious around him as you would a Mega Fleet Driver because you no longer know if a PROFESSIONAL DRIVER is driving that truck or one of those NEW MILLINIAL CDL HOLDERS are driving it. Apparently these Mega Fleets and so called Driver Training Puppy Mills teach these NEW MILLINIAL CDL HOLDERS, (I will not even give a majority of them the respect of even calling them a steering wheel holder because at least a steering wheel holder can change lanes), are told or taught to run the middle lane, the passing lane in most states for tractor trailers because it is, “ The Lane Of Least Resistance”. It does not matter if the speed limit is 70 mph or 75 mph and they have a 61 to 65 mph truck, they remain in that lane despite the fact that they are not passing anyone and the right lane is wide open for a mile, refusing to allow a faster truck by.
You say us OLD TIMERS are the cause of all these New Regulations, get your facts straight! A lot of these New Regulations became effective after the NEW MILLINIAL CDL HOLDERS entered this Profession because they came in with their ME ATTITUDE, lacking Courtesy, Respect and the Willingness To Help Out Their Fellow Driver and treating this Profession as a Job, not a Profession. I thought this Profession took a turn for the worse back in the beginning of the New Millennia but have seen it take a drastic decline since 2010 and I for one cannot wait till I am able to retire from this once ver enjoyable and respected Profession in another 5 years due to the fact of what this Profession was allowed to become due mostly on the part of Mega Fleets, Lease/Purchase deals and the apparent upbringing of these NEW MILLINIAL CDL HOLDERS.
No truck driving reject, it isn’t the old drivers fault but hey Super Trucker you know everything right?! DOT regulations went up because greedy 4 wheeler thought every truck on the road was a potential million dollar payday. But I forgot your 3 weeks in truck driving school taught you everything. “Real truck drivers” are almost a thing of the past. People who took pride in there work and made this country a little better and safer for all. Now you have people like this moron who has no pride, has no clue and probably drives around on his phone all day and will never know what it is to be a professional driver. Good luck STUPID, you took being called a steering wheel holder literally instead of the insult in which it was intended. Wow I don’t think you even rate a steering wheel holder. They will let anyone with an IQ of 100 or more.
No get it straight these damn millennials are what has screwed it up for everybody. I remember when I first started to drive it was a brotherhood. If you saw a truck broke down there would be 1-3 trucks being him helping out. Or you would actually COMMUNICATE on the radio. Now days it just seems everybody is just for themselves. We just need to bring back that brotherhood again.
The regulations are because of today’s wannebes accepting wages that make them have to work 70+ hours a week to survive. They whine ELDs “make” them drive without rest.
They need to grow a pair and stop letting dispatchers pressure them to make impossible schedules.
Drivers used to be professionals and they could make a good living running legal hours. They were men that could work 12 hours a day without needing a nap in trucks that didn’t have luxuries like power steering, a/c, air ride suspensions, or cruise control.
Driver abuse is self abuse caused by gutless drivers allowing themselves to be pushed around, asking how high when told to jump
That’s because we “old driver’s” got the job done, unlike today’s driver’s who aren’t smart enough to run even one logbook let alone two. Today’s drivers don’t have a clue as to what being a trucker is, they have no sense of pride. Hell, most can’t read a road map and have to have GPS machines tell them where to go and aren’t smart enough to realize the GPS is wrong when it takes them down a muddy dirt road or on a sidewalk. Now this doesn’t cover all of today’s drivers since quite a few grew up in trucking families so at least they have a clue, but for the majority of new driver’s, well, they’re just steering wheel holders and there’s no way around that.
AMEN, Bob Lee! All us “New Breed Truck Driving School grads are suffering because all of the old school drivers didn’t get off their air seats and fight for what’s right…
Bobby Lee, it’s not the older truck drivers, it’s the Fed agency that makes the res, yet none of these fed employees have ever driven a truck.
That’s far from the truth pinhead. Back in the day we stopped when we were tired. You useless newbies are the ones causing this mess today. Can’t drive a stick so now we have to do automatics. You don’t have enough sense to slow down in curves. Most of the so called trainers can’t back up do that leaves the student not being able to back up. I know there’s more traffic today but the accidents went up dramatically because of you super truckers who’s telling the outrageous stories when they’re still on their trainer truck. So no it’s not us old timers that wrecked the industry it’s the little snot nose know it alls like you.
No, the reason why we are regulated so much is because no one, new or old would take a stand against the government and just say no. Quit putting the blame on others when you yourself like the rest of us let the government run us over and just stood by and watched.
Ok boomer. Lol
I driver oversize and use a Pete 389 long hood 18 spd I drive in all weather, and I’m not a “real truck driver”? I guess having full control of my truck an excellent safety record and no accidents while being courteous doesn’t qualify me as a real trucker. Lol. I guess I’m just some steering wheel holder despite being exactly like the old school drivers the only difference is I’m bound to that damn elog.
I couldnt agree more with you. I have ben in it for 20 years we use to be family. Everyone is in it for there self anymore it’s sad. It really got bad after the ELOGS went in effect and the quality of drivers there putting out of the schools isnt the same.
Sounds like he jealous, we drove hard, safely and had fun spoke English, and delivered on time , talked to each other new when there was trouble ahead took care of our own,
Come on the trucks have changed but you still have that responsibility and manuvering skills to deal with! Life is easier with newer trucks! Nothing wrong with having a inverter & fridge in trucks! The quality of food at mom & pops has gone downhill! It’s a different world yes but not everyone can do this job so give credit to where credit is due!
It’s a shame to see another mom and pop truck stop close been doing this for 40 years. 90% of you guys wouldn’t have the faintest idea what being a real truck driver is.
I got everything I need my truck to fix my own meals price of food got so high and truck stops and the qualities got so bad it’s not even worth eating and I’m anymore
I rather they put a,Popeyes in their, then I can stab u for butting line trying to get a chicken sandwich
Exactly
I can honestly say I shop the mom and pops.Even if it is to buy my water, lottery tickets, tie downs or whatever…I may fuel 50 gallons here and there at the big boys, but Gaul quite heavy loads and top off as I go at the mom and pops. I never stay somewhere and not buy something. And I never trash a lot. Drivers will sit there and pour piss cups out right next to their trucks and think they are big boys!! Seriously, a person use to be able to sit on the ground and clean and shine their tires. Not anymore. Just a bunch of babies to scared to walk in like men and go…Or at least put it in a bottle with a lid, put it in a bag and in the trash. This alone speaks of the intelligence of the new driver out there!! They can’t figure out basic care and respect for others around them. I wish the Shoemakers well. They always kept a clean store and a well stocked salad bar and amazing showers!!
Boy it looks like most of the Mom and Pops are going away and Chains or Foreigners are buying them up. They go from good places to crap over night.
Local is looking better and better!
Is Bill’s Truck Stop in North Carolina (I-85 mm86) still open?
I used to LOVE stopping there and getting a good meal, and visiting the “massage parlor” behind the parking lot…
Gosh sounds like I’m reading a statement off a channel 19 CB conversation??? Supposed to be. Trying to find a way to get a hold of loosing these ma n pa truckstops, nope haven’t forgotten that truckes Creed!!! Must argue with other truckers first.. lol
That is if they even speak English
It’s not cracked up to what they say! I see drivers getting home at 11pm or they have to work 12 hour shifts straight through you can’t take a break like OTR
Hmmm… might be in Crete’s best interest to purchase it.
Terminal fueling, Hotel for Orientation, and extra parking.
I sure wish Crete would give me back the $ 212.00 it deducted from my pay for locks which I was then required to use to protect their cargo and equipment…still have the locks which are like new if anyone wants to buy them ” Enforcer set.” I tried to get them to let me return them by mail but they said no…said I had to take them to my old terminal in Marietta Ga …long story …just venting !
By the way , Crete is overall a good company , but when you leave their employ be sure you are reimbursed for those locks you shouldn’t have to buy in the first place.. oh , by the way they will not give you back the new price you had deducted from your pay , you get back a much less used price because the locks were used by you to protect their property at their requiements..
Do you reckon any one in their offices pays for any company expense…such as cleaning their work area , supplies needed to do their jobs …you do ! You have to pay for supplies to keep your truck clean and on and on . Then you have to do the work for free…do they do the work maintaining their work area , of course not ,they have building custodians and janitors…do they even buy office supplies , of course not. 27 years and 3, 000, 000 miles and guess what it means ? Nothing to anyone in a trucking office …only to me …but that’s enough…so think about this …if you work in any trucking office and you have driven that many miles , in and out of every major city in the us , you can talk to me about safety , or any trucking (driver) responsibility .
But until you do , show these drivers with the expierence the respect they deserve…just saying.
Your right more of those fast food corporates will be coming claim the land
Ahh the good old r now folding up fast let’s all head over for a good meal at subways amidst the stench of spoils meats
If the Haslam Cartel was going to buy it, I think they would have done so already. A price tag of $3.4 million for that old building is wishful thinking at this point. Give it a year or two to sit vacant and the price will be cut in half, especially after this unsustainable bull market crashes and trump’s $986 billion dollar national debt is finally reckoned with.
Loved that place was otr 29 years stopped going and coming back. Buffet was always fresh staff very friendly and more than once they helped many different people with free food and gas to help them out. I had hoped to take my grandchildren there
I am buying it. I’m going to renovate it and keep it a mom and pop.
There’s a recession coming soon and that price could be cut in half.
Amen. I thought the same thing.
No! What recession?
Hahaha! The recession has been coming since they pumped up the banks with money the American people do not have…that is called economics…when you spend what you do not have and think you can afford to continue and not have it catch up to you…hahaha…it was a bailout for the rich so they could shuffle their money overseas, invest it elsewhere…and the only money left is ours in savings, for retirement and that does not help the economy until we start to spend…but sadly the corps do very little for the local economies, they suffocate the mom’s and pops. They prey upon small business, for no good reason…because being big is not good enough…
Everyone knows that the mom and pop cant compete. They have to keep up with renovations. Most drivers now don’t pay patronage to tge places they park. They just park. Toss their shit and piss on the ground. Use their bathrooms to brush their teeth and bathe. I could say more. Buy why. I hope they made it when they were in biz. And live a long time when they sell. Good luck
I loved shoemakers t/s, they treated drivers good there, it wasn’t the nicest place but it was decent, but I always got good food there and good conversation there, it was old and dated but it was clean, a lot different than the big chains.
Real truck drivers didn’t need CDL we got in the truck and.drive it that was.the test!!!!
I stopped there many times and they good food and parking, going to miss them
Hi we don’t need another pilot. It’s like Congress getting old
Yep build another Loves or Pilot then sit in line for fuel while the driver goes in to get their happy meal then about 30 minutes later you can fuel
First of all you younger generation think Society owes them something on the comment of us older drivers ruined it. The Big 5 companies JB. Schneider. Warner. Started these trucking schools for you kids in 4 weeks your truck driver that’s why you have eld’s and the government wanted control
I’ve been driving otr since Jan 1980. To see this truck stop and other mom & pops closing is just sad. Pilot & loves suck so does always having to eat fast food…I do my damdest not to stop at pilot and loves. Mom & pop truck stops are the best and will always be the best… steering wheel holders will never know the meaning of mom &pop truck stops
I agree mom an pops trucks are the Best its a shame this one is gone
Yes, remember the phone rooms and the dat load board monitor. I don’t miss going to the brokers offices. But most t/s like this one that had a motel, had rooms that the brokers would use so we didn’t have to drive to an office. To reminisce…
Amen brother.
I always stop at a smaller truckstops for a good conversation with other drivers and some decent food instead of this fast food stuff out here. Makes driving a better to me. Gotta ask to know anything. And I ask all the time.
Started trucking 1967 retired 2019.The old days of the crowded gag and pukes were the best but we never realized it at the time. Drinking’ coffee and tellin’ lies about how fast them trucks will go. Liver and onions,hamburger steak, shit on the shingle was some good eatin’. That’s a roger, 10 4 gone bye bye.
Exactly. But blaming each other won’t solve the problems we ALL face. Parking is disappearing at a fast pace. Now two trucks do what one did years ago. Making parking exactly twice as scarce. I’m only 72, what am I gonna do for the next 30 years? ATA, the voice of the American trucking CORPORATIONS and their subsidiary are supposed to fix the “parking problem” after they got the eLogs shoved up your hoo hoo. Do you hear the rumbling of bulldozers? I don’t.
It always cracks me up to hear the “obviously ignorant “ newbees blame their lives on us “oldtimers”. Pretty soon, Pilot/FlyJ will start putting saferooms in their locations.
I agree.
And I will keep fire crackers in my pocket. I’m devious like that.
Thats for damn sure! They can furnish coloring books and stress animals too
Yeah, if old timers were to blame why were regulations unchanging then and regularly increasing now?
These kids driving now days think that if they can vape drink a cup of coffee and kick back with their foot propped on the dash, they are professional driver. Just sit back and Watch a CR England try to back up. Its entertaining.
Nobody has that type of time to watch these rookies park you should run out of hours
Yea and these newer trucks they gotta add all these “safety” features like the little beeper that goes off telling the idiot to put down their phone and look at the road that their too close to the car in front of them. 🤔
Werner is equally as entertaining. If not downright frightening at times lol
I drive for c r England
I can’t back. I keep asking to be put with an experienced driver instead I just get a new load and told to drive safe.
That’s true but not more entertaining than swift
Completely agree… drive by these rug rats, they have there foot kicked up… phone in one hand… other hand at 0600 “ready for anything.” Might as well be sitting in a lazy boy watching the Sunday game. People wonder why there’s a big truck rolled over in a ditch on a straight flat piece of dry highway…
Yeah or go into these small inner cities with one-way roads and be told that they need to alley dock 53-foot trailer and watch thier eyes pop out like that it’s hilarious
The only thing different between a CR England and a toilet is that the toilet knows how to back up
True true and I have being otr watching drivers sometimes.qith both feet on the dash. It is unsafe out there anymore. Most of them block other drivers in lot because they can’t back in to spaces. Sad sad
It is sad to hear that they are closing down .. Truckers are history because the wannabes .when i started driving it was fun older truckers would help each other but now it’s all about me meeee the hell with the rest.. Bur i be damm if i let wannabes run me out of what i love to do. I’ve been driving for 35yrs. Still love it Hate the drivers
Wonder when it is closing? Just drove by on I 80 last night and it looked like business as usual.
It’s really sad to see the mom and pops truck stops go I used to ride with my dad and loved the stops the driver’s actually spoke with each other. I followed in my father’s foot steps and traveled across Canada many times and preferred to stop at the mom and pop restaurants
Driving a truck for a living sucks any 3rd world immigrant can do this job
Long live the shoemakers t/s r.i.p. whats next? Stay tune as someone will turn into a fuel and go and newbees before you go and put down the old timers stop and think if wadnt for us uou would be derp in poop. Amen
To the dummy who said”US” old timers we’re the reason for ELDs get it straight Sonny, been out here for 50 years with a CDL, although it was called a shoffers licence then, but for UR FYI it was Warner who caused that to happen because they couldn’t hire anyone smart enough to fill out a paper log right, and two years ago they once again almost lost their rights because there dummies couldn’t operate an ELD right.
The newbs got no idea what we used to do
Its satanic,I drive over 17 years,its all apart of the evil spirits ruling the principalities,we are to struggle with our crops.dont think any agency ,government or group supports,loves or cares for you.im still a driver.BUT SILENT
He,s more of a trucker than you will EVER BE. You need to do your homework on what drivers went through in the 40,s – 90,s and how they helped change trucking so you steering wheel holders can have a good job. And by the way learn to put your cell phone down, take your feet off the dash, turn your cb on and learn the basics of how to use it the way the FCC wants you to.The next time you meet an old driver maby you should first of all be respectful and ask him what he went through as a driver when he started out.
No Bob old school truck drivers didn’t cause the environment we are in now. The government subsidies that gave companies like JB Hunt and Schneider and Swift train anyone who could breathe to be steering wheel holders. Today’s modern so called Truck driver can’t drive a truck unless it has an automatic transmission and all of the modern convenience items on them.
I’ve retired from driving three times since 2011 but the diesel in my veins keeps bringing me back , and I’ve decided to return and drive until july 2020 …I m quick to voice my opinion when it comes to the trucking industry. And , even though i am sometimes frustrated by these new people who think they have all the answers , I still love to drive a big rig …even these auto Cadillacs of today.
Watching videos going down the road and pushing the four wheelers in front of them and texting you all know who you are. It’s a crying shame you don’t have the guts too stand up and tell these companies NO you are so afraid of your job you just push and push until you KILL someone. Then who loses then?
I ll make a comment to that ive bin driving for 34 yrs these people that oned that truck stop where friendly and most of us drivers that stoped there it was all family but in the 34 yrs i have drove i have never ran more that one log boog even when i had my own truck so back to steering wheel holders it wasnt the older drivers that brought the elod to the industry the accident ratio is what brought that on my name is Delma g potts jr any time you want to talk about this i still drive over the road now there have bin alot of places going put of busniess because of bigger truck stop chains to the owners thank you for the years your truck stop was a good place to stop
I was sad earlier today ,when I pulled into the orginal Shoemakers to turn around.i didn’t know it had closed. So sad. I remember it being a vibrant truck stop! Yea I’m getting old!! Too bad others aren’t! They don’t remember when truck stops really were there for you! Showers were free to anyone, (fuel or no fuel). Real home cooked food at affordable prices! Where truck drivers were number one. A place that valued the driver, not the f’in almighty dollar! Us outlaw truck drivers did what we had to, to make a living. But you wanna be robots of today have no clue. You drive with your foot up on the dash or under your ass giving you a thrill! In your castrated trucks. Can’t back into a parking spot to save your ass!! Yet us old timers are to blame.excuse me for remembering and being a part of what was a proud heritage!! When truck drivers were called (kings of the road), we helped people! People who told me,(outlaw truck drivers like you, your time has come and gone) guess what? They’re all gone and I’m still here!! Maybe you all modern day wantabee’s should take note. A sad day when an original truck stop is no more
The truck stop shud stay open
I for one will miss the mom and pop’s t/s. Most pilot/ flying j are down right filthy they don’t clean around the pumps so you end up with diesel on your feet then in your truck. Loves is better but no to little amount of parking .
I’m a newer driver I guess youd say I got put into my first truck when I was 15 it’s all I have wanted to since then got my CDL in 2011 and I always loved the mom and pops because a young driver like me could get advice and knowledge from the old timers. I learned a lot from just asking questions and it’s sad to see another mom and pop go down always had the best food. There are a lot of regs now because of some things in the past but not all. And also from people that think they how trucking works and on the elds Werner started that crap I’m a local driver and elds make very difficult sometimes
Totally agree
Seriously stupid to blame all of the issues in the current trucking industry on people just trying to make a living. As if somehow driving and running a truck is some kind of rare and magical skillset. I hear drivers refer to people as “steering wheel holders” and complain about the safety conditions in the workforce. Don’t you realize that the majority of company’s running the industry were founded and are operated by the very “real truck drivers” that you refer to. If you want things to be better out here, show some of the respect for others that you talk about. Help new or inexperienced drivers when you see it’s needed. A lot of OO’s that I meet are interested in the very same things that destroy the industry. Somehow “real drivers” think that they are in some kind of special club because they were able to afford a truck and drive for themselves. We seem to forget that most drivers in the current industry started out in someone else’s truck before they became a “real driver”. But it doesn’t surprise me, because the “real drivers” are often the ones stepping all over others with their “big radios” riding down the road talking about “rag heads” and using all kinds of other racial insults. Classy
I work for Werner. Two days ago, I watch two Werner drivers backup at a terminal. Each one took almost 30 minutes to back up. Yesterday, I found one Werner empty trailer with one door torn off, and placed in the trailer. I agree with Bubba. I think a driver to learn how to backup first before learning to drive forward. That’s what my dad did to me. He was a trucker too. I practice for three weeks. Next, these timid weman drivers. Now that another conversation. LOL… Now that’s funnier then watch a three legged dog try to bury his bone on a frozen lake bed, alright!
Just take a drive across wy in a snow storm and you’ll see who the professionals are. (hint) There not the ones upside down in the median.
Most of them don’t have a clue what Wyoming is about.
Corporate American is shaping the trucker industry. They hirer these, half train kids. Whom to they credit you only get out, what you put in. Pilot/ Fly J, is an perfect example of an eld truck stop. You come in fuel, scale, crab bag of heart attack and keep it moving. There are few places these younger drive can hang out and learn something. Most of them dont want to learn. Example why would you drive an trk that groven at 58 in center lane. Trying up traffic! Or trying to pass an trk that govern at 57. It takes 5 miles, and now you have a traffic jam at 0200 in am. Because of that. Or taking 30 m break at fuel island doing peak conditions. Let look at how these company are training next generation of drivers
Your correct. Now days the “new rookies” live in the truck. Big screen tv play station and do on. They cook and heat even fo a euro shower all without leavin the cab!
That’s the reason for all the fast food and closing restaurants.
It’s a new breed today. No real skills are needed anymore. Today anyone can drive. They lowered the requirements to fit in all the drivers that couldent get hired 25 years ago.
The truck is maintained and overseen by some fleet manager who’s never been one mile behind the wheel.
Your told when to get something done. The accidents are way up. Bent wheels busted sidewalls torn air lines are all up.
Now days if you do get into a restaurant with drivers most are on the phone.
Dong even get me started on parking or road manners.
I have been in Transportation for 50 years. I have run all 48 state in the lower states. And 7 providence of Canada. I will say this about pilot Love’s TRUCK STOP OF AMERICA AKA.TSA. PETRO’S . THOSE ARE YOUR MAJOR TRUCK STOP IN AMERICA. THOSE T/S have MACDONALD ARBY’S WENDY’S BURGER KING. Carl’Jr SUBWAY POPEYES CHICKEN. JUST TO NAME A FEW. IF THE HEALTH FOOD INSPECTION IN EACH STATE DID TGERE JOBS .ALL THOSE FAST FOODS RESTAURANTS. WOULD CLOSED DOWN. IYS KILLING TRUCK DRIVER. I KNOW WE AS DRIVER WE ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR OUR OWN GOOD HEALTH. AND I WAS .I WOULD SAY 90% OF ALL DRIVERS ARE OVER WEIGHT..AND IT’S NOT ALL THERE FAULT. YOU CANT GET INTO A NICE RESTAURANT IN A LARGE TRUCKWITH A TRAILER. I LOOKED FOR CRAKER BARREL BUT IT’S AT THR RIGHT TIME OF DAY. OR LARGE MALL’S WITH NICE RESTAURANT. WHAT I’M SAYING IS FAST FOOD RESTAURANTS. IS VERY BAD FOR TRUCK DRIVERS. STATE GOVERNMENT NEEDS TO TAKE A SERIOUS LOOK AT THOSE RESTAURANT INSIDE THOSE T/S.
I am so tired of hearing the “real” truck drivers talk about how great it was 30 years ago. If your still driving your “real” bad at financial planning. This is one of the only industries that needs to be dragged out of the dark ages kicking and screaming crying about a 3rd grade coloring “I mean” log book
I’ve been out here since 2002 and I can tell you that I stop at all mom and pop truckstops because I like to listen and learn from other drivers out here. At a Pilot or TA I can stand outside next to my truck and not one person will come over and say anything to me. Not even a hello. This is why these “New Drivers” never learn anything about our industry. Gotta ask to learn.
You got your panties on today huh.
Know your history before you speak.
Do you even know who started the ELD.
I am very disappointed to hear that another mom and pop truck stop has closed, they are a dying breed. When driving on I-10, I stop at a mom and pop called the TTT Truck Stop on I-10 in Tucson, AZ. It is still one of my old time favorites with motel rooms and a good home cooked meal. I really hope it can stay open. I heard ever since Pilot built across the street and it has hurt their business.
You need to be able to speak English to have a conversation with a real trucker
Started trucking 1967 retired 2019.The old days of the crowded gag and pukes were the best but we never realized it at the time. Drinking’ coffee and tellin’ lies about how fast them trucks will go. Liver and onions,hamburger steak, shit on the shingle was some good eatin’. That’s a roger, 10 4 gone bye bye.
I am off the road due to the toll that 35 years of driving Long Haul does to the human body. Mine anyway. I have well over 5 Million miles “over my donkey”. Old hands will know what that means. Used to be we made fun of JB & Schneider drivers because they were more often than not, green horns. Now today, wannabes are the majority & the true Professional Drivers are an ever shrinking minority. The steering wheel holder of today has not the skill, nor the attitude to become proficient @ this “Trade”. Any time I made the effort to offer well meaning advice, I would receive a totally rude response, usually with an accent of some type. These ignorant individuals have no idea how much they don’t know, & most likely never will. They think nothing of parking in a fuel lane while they shop, eat, have a shower, or all 3. More often than not with the tractor headlights on, day or night, usually a turn signal flashing too. I will have to say, Mom & Pop truck stops are, like old truck drivers, fading into the sunset. Blazing beacons of what was, & unfortunately, may not ever be again.
Hey, wannabes! Learn some respect & gratitude. When I take the time to blink my headlights, indicating to you that you have completed over taking my tractor trailer unit, say thank you in the professional manner, turn on your 4ways. This is the best way, as it can be seen, under all light conditions.
Yes I to am a old school truck driver where we waved at each other and if a driver had a problem another was there to help ..now what I see is a driver with leg up and cruise on and when they climb out of truck they are so overweight with a gallon jug in their hand for soda and to park in fuel island to eat that crappy fast food .and grab more snacks .they have no road courtesy. They break down they send message and wait .they take left lanes and keep traffic blocked for miles with a 68 mph truck.
It doesn’t have anything to do with new drivers or old drivers big corporation s buying off politicians so their not held accountable for wanting the loads there yesterday. Everyone looking to sue at the drop of a hat causing insurance rates to go through the roof and nobody respects anything or anyone anymore.
We are a young retired couple who fulltime in our 40 ft rv. I know this is a trucker fight and truckers hate rvers but we see this all the time. Truckers on their cell phones, pulling out in front of us as if we were a smartcar, passing us very close and at twice our speed because we passed them. We have even been blocked on the driver’s side and ahead and behind while we were driving in a rainstorm. I took pictures of the license plates and company name and reported them, all from the same company. But it happens whenever we’re on the road.
Seriously ? You’re 72 and gona drive for another 30 years ?
Was the best T/S to rest at. Treated you like family going to miss everyone. God bless all…
Some really great comments by the ‘old timers’ on here. Friggin AMEN. Experience is priceless.