Heading For Little Rock! Maverick

better not be picking on prime you might get thrown off the boards. LOL

 

Since you're an old time flat bedder, I understand where you're coming from. It was just too hard on me this late in life with my health. Those 100 degree days were tough on me this summer.

When I pulled dry freight I always hated grocery warehouses because we usually had to unload our own freight. With Maverick we don't touch it. Instead we deal with the biggest scam in the trucking industry, lumpers. Being able to get express codes for Comchecks via Qualcomm helps a bunch.

Where do you propose we park? Way in the back on the gravel where many thought the sand trucks should park? We may just be a small part of the fleet but apparently we're a money making part or they wouldn't be trying to double or triple our size. Also bear in mind that just because we pull reefers, doesn't mean they're always running. We pull a lot of dry freight. A load of candy doesn't have to be refrigerated if it doesn't have chocolate or taffy in it.

Reefer etiquette....As a rule, when I go to park, I look for other reefer units to park next to. If it's early when I park, I try to park off by myself with open parking spaces on either side of me. That way if you back in next to me it was your choice. We all know that we often don't have any choice as to where we park. The truck stops get full and we all get tired so we have to take whatever spot we can get into...sorry for the inconvenience.

 

good luck and welcome

 

I hear what you're saying Rick. Like I said I'm glad there's guys like you willing to do it. But being a old steel haulers my whole life. I have a old steel haulers mentality even if somebody else is paying it just rubbed me the wrong way that I will pay you to take your freight off my truck.

And you have the right to park your truck anywhere on the lot that you can find. But some drivers don't have the etiquette that you have. Just last weekend when I was there at Little Rock there were three reefer trailers parked together and spots open next to them. So here comes the reefer driver with a trailer running and he comes in and parked next to me. I asked him yet all those spots over there but you have to parked next to me. He tells me that it was a lot easier to park next to me then new park over there by the other reefers. I told him fine stay here I will move.

Some drivers that that's all they've done is reefers. Sometimes don't think about the noise because they're so used to it I understand that. But like you said a little bit of etiquette goes a long way.

Hope you have a great holiday weekend, looking forward to meeting some time you seem like a real nice guy.

 

jeans/ long pants/ underwear/socks/ tshirts w non offensive writing/ some l/s tshirts as well/ shoes other than steel toed boots/ flip flops for the showers/////non clothing items sleeping bag and pillow. i suggest a large duffle bag rather than a suitcase, (easier to stowe, softer to sleep with)

 

wish there were more with your consideration sir. it's appreciated for sure

 

I finally made it back to NLR about midnight. I would have been in sooner if the Tyson plant in Green Forest Arkansas didn't refuse the load another Tyson plant sent to them. They said the chicken was too old. It was fresh killed. I know because when I hooked to it the blood and other fluids were still pouring out the back of the trailer. Or maybe they meant the chickens themselves were too old. I didn't know dogs cared how old the chicken was in their food. Maybe when we go to the store or KFC we should ask the age of the chickens they're serving us. Maybe dogs know something we don't. Anyway it got re-consigned to the Tyson plant next to WalMart in Clarksville. I ran out of hours there and did a split log to get home.

I ended up with 2977 miles this week and one extra drop...not bad. I finally get to swap trucks this weekend. I moved some stuff last night and I'm going down this afternoon to move the rest. I'm moving from a truck I got new that now has @ 44k on it into another of the same year but with 117k on it. There are some differences between the trucks on TCD and Flat but nothing major besides the bonnet on top and room for load locks.

New truck is 12917.

 

dem reefers ARE loud tho!!

 

Sewerman, we do have our own section to park - at the food warehouses. We get there at 10am - our appointment is at 11am - we get in the door at 3pm - they start unloading at 6pm - they finish unloading at 7am. Then we get to start over again and all we had to do was swing a couple of doors open and close.

Reefers are very happy there are flatbedders! That way we don't have to worry about how to get those coils in our vans! And, we don't mind letting flatbedders park next to us. It helps keep those noisy reefer units away so we can sleep!

Drive safe and hope you have a great weekend!

 

There again, it depends on what's in the box. The colder the louder. If you have a load of frozen dinners (*-5), it's going to be colder than a load of Tootsie Rolls (*55). The harder the unit has to work, the longer and louder it will be.

Here's to hoping we can educate each other on how our respective divisions operate and the "whys and hows". With TCD being the newest division and Maverick being primarily a flat bed company, it's only natural that most flat bedders wouldn't know much about TCD. I know some TCD drivers have a hard time understanding flat bed lingo when it comes to gray bar, shiny bar or slinkies. The important thing is that we're all Mavericks and that gives us a common bond. Although I've switched divisions, I'll still wave at every Maverick truck I pass going the other way.