Running With Watkins & Shepard

Just a quick question about that statement. So if there aren't enough trucks in Conover, are they sending you to a another terminal to pick one up or could you be going to fetch an abandoned truck somewhere? Only reason I ask is because if you go and get one that some disgruntled driver left somewhere, it may not be in the best condition if you know what I mean. Also are these trucks that are assigned at the terminal half way clean at least, I don't smoke and can't live in an ashtray. I would have to spend some serious time cleaning out a truck to get it ready.

 

Actually been trucking 19 years, every company I have driven for in the past detailed their trucks before giving them out. Not to say they were detailed very well but I've never gotten one that was trashed. That said I've usually always spent time cleaning it to my liking. Only thing I can't take is a truck that reeks of smoke, hopefully I don't get one that is as bad as the one you got.

 

Hey, got your message, sorry I didn't reply! Happy Easter to you too! lol

 

Hey, Buddy.

Glad to see you stopped in. I'm headed up your way for a Monday delivery in Lawrenceville.

Have fun with the construction project. I miss it too.

 

ive had three trucks with the company, first one one reasonably clean, second one was terrible with dog hair and stale smoke, and the third one was just stale smoke..but a full day of cleaning wipes away the previous occupant.

I'd say you should plan for the worst and hope for the best...but you have been in trucking a while it seems, planning for the worst and hoping for the best is something that comes with the territory..

good luck!

 

You'll get what you get, I'm afraid. Of my two trucks, the first was absolutely disgusting and I spent the first day just cleaning it enough to be able to come back the second day and clean it properly. My second truck had been well cared for by the previous driver, so I didn't have to do a whole lot to tidy her up. The company doesn't detail trucks, but they'll reimburse you for your cleaning supplies. If you get hired as a Conover shortline driver you'll most likely get one of the Penskes, and those might have been cleaned if they were serviced before being reassigned.

Last year I took a driver from Austintown to pick up his new truck, which had been abandoned at the Flying J in Franklin, Kentucky. That poor old Century had been sitting there for over a week, so the battery was dead but unfortunately the fleas were not. The smell smacked you in the face when you opened the door, and it was obvious the driver who left it there had kept *at least one* very large dog in there because the dog hair was everywhere, even way up on the ceiling. There was dog crap dried in the carpet and stuck to the sleeper curtains, and the guy I brought down there had to have it flea-bombed and detailed before he could drive it. The company did pay for the detailing and the hotel room, but they resisted at first. I felt bad for the guy, but I was under load and couldn't stay more than an hour. He got it all fixed up, though and it ended up being a decent truck for him until he was offered one of those maroon T660s. He had most certainly earned the Kenworth.

Those floor mats and plastic seat covers the shops use when they work on trucks serve double duty for the mechanics: sometimes it's to prevent them from spreading dirt around the cabs, and sometimes it's to keep the filth that's in some of those cabs from spreading to them.

 

Good point about expecting the worst and being prepared to clean. As long as they will allow me time to clean it thoroughly before moving my stuff in, I'm good. Nice to know they will give you the time it takes to get it disinfected, lol.

 

They'll give you the time and they'll pay for your cleaning supplies, too. I buy some paper towels and windex every few months and I've always been reimbursed for them, provided of course that I submit the receipts. But I go through that stuff pretty quickly because I keep my windows and mirrors as clean as I can. I also wipe down the marker and tail light lenses on every trailer when I pick it up, and you'd be surprised how much easier those lights are for everyone else to see when the plastic is clean.