What no one tells you about Landstar...

I'm glad everything has worked out for you guys

 

A driver I know in the area who works for LS had a hard time with their system till he put his wife to work handling the dispatching and freight fishing end, and now he makes quite a good living working for them and his truck is free and clear so he is able to take more time off then before.

 

Hah Hah!! Sandman, I appreciate the good laugh!;

"handle every situation like a dog! If you can eat it or hump it pee on it and walk away."

Love that! I'm sending it to my mom and daughter-in-law, they're going to appreciate it!

It's friggin cold here at Fort Bridger WY, hope you guys are in warm places!

Dale and Laure

 

In response to Wreckless4thf's rant about Landstar i would like to add my 2 cents. After working for a small owner operator for 4 1/2 years busting my hump every week for this man i approach him for some type of bonus (fuel,safety, mileage) just something so i could buy medical insurance for my family. Well his response was he couldn't afford it. Well i decided to do my home work. Just so happens my wife worked for him also doing billing so it made it pretty easy. i had her pull all of my trip invoices for six month period July 2006 to December 2006. After a little work it was determined that his net profit for that six month period was $80,000. That was after fuel, my pay, and truck payment. But he could afford it. I begin talking to various owner operators with different companies. I looked at everyone of those recruiting books that we all have looked at. After about a month of this i narrowed it down to landstar. I then started talking to Evey landstar driver i came in contact with. After talking to approx. 100 drivers i found 3 that werent happy. But they were still leased to landstar. I applied with landstar in Feb. 2007 and and finally attended orientation in Grand Prairie, TX in mid April of 2007. I can honestly say that i am totally satisfied. I have grossed 120,000 dollars since my first load. I payed my truck off in less than 90 days, and since have purchased my old trailer from the guy i used to work for. Yeah that's wright i bought my old trailer because the guy i used to work for shut his company down in Oct. 2007. That was after him trying to lease his trucks on with guess who, Landstar.
None of his drivers could qualify. Landstar isnt perfect but i feel like they are they best place to work if you like freedom. They do have some crappy agents but they also have some great one. The thing about the crappy ones is you don't have to haul there freight, word gets around. I normally locate my loads but have used my wife, sister, brother, and fellow drivers.
It can be overwhelming some times doing it all on your own. You have to work smart and patent and also posses some organizational skills. If you want to just hold a steering wheel then there probably not for you. Oh yeah i have purchased medical insurance for my family thru landstar with an excellent provider at a nice rate. Anyway all a guy or gal needs to do is your HOMEWORK. Be safe ought there.

 

You must remember your experience at Landstar was recent and limited Brickman. When 18 year + people talk about LS (there is a difference between talking and whining) they are not talking so much how things are today per se but how things are today compared to 18 years ago. When their stock became public the great decline began with the bottom line being paramount. While they used to be the best nowadays they are no better or worse than a lot of other carriers. This is a testiment to how far this industry has sunk more than any thing else.

 

Yes, I'm sure that 18+ yrs. ago things were better throughout the industry. I can only go by what the old timers talk about. Back in their "good ol'days" I was a teenager waiting on them at the Burns Bros. truck stop in Wilsonville OR.

But.....it isn't productive to live in the past, you have to address the issues of today.

In my prior posting I mentioned that we were leased to two different carriers before coming to Landstar. After having experienced the way the other carriers operated and having the opportunity to compare them to Landstar, in our experience, Landstar offers so much more. At the end of the day it is OUR decisions that affected our progress, NOT some ####### that thinks all drivers are the scum of the earth.

I hope we don't become so jaded as to not appreciate what we have. In TODAYS cut throat trucking industry it takes every tool one can acquire to make a successful business and Landstar is one of the companies that offers these tools.

Some days it's handed on a platter and some days when the dust settles some are further ahead than others. I'd rather take that than be tied to a factory, a desk or a rotten boss.

Good luck in all of your choices!

Laure

 

thanks I have to give the credit to my wife for that saying.