Picking my own freight baby! My journey to & of being on Schneider choice, the Adventure & Numbers!

That's the best answer.

 

Interesting reading....

Trucking demand is a lot worse than imagined

http://www.businessinsider.com/trucking-demand-worse-than-imagined-2015-12

 

That's spot on.

I can't remember a holiday season that's been this slow. We should be over our heads in freight right now. I think this winter is going to be awful. Hopefully the tide will turn in the next six months.

 

I've enjoyed following the thread.

Found the following website that shows there has been somewhat of a rebound in the load-to-truck ratio from 1.6 in the middle of November to 2.8 for the week ended 12/5 - see 4 week bar chart at the bottom of the page. Hope you guys have noticed the rebound.

May have to cut and paste:

http://www.dat.com/resources/trendlines/van/demand-and-capacity

 

I really hope for solid, lasting rebound. I've been thinking about a small reefer outfit (private fleet) but I'd really much rather put company driving behind me. Tired of having to run the truck I'm in on someone else's terms, e.g. "The freight going to and from the west is generally reserved for the drivers who live out there" - what a bunch of BS. Oh, and idle shutdowns.

 

You won't want to idle your own truck either if you can avoid it. Best to invest in an APU.

 

You're right, I don't.

But it'd be nice to have the ability should it be needed temporarily. Bunk heaters fail, APUs break down, yadda...

Especially at current fuel prices, idling is cheaper than virtually any hotel worth staying in...

 

But harder on the engine.