What are some of the unwritten rules among truckers?

Braking and then jumping 2 lanes over...impressive.

 

It's not just the speed you gotta get used to. It's also the lack of acceleration. You had better get comfortable with the idea of NOT being ABLE to pass.

You WILL get stuck behind people that you cannot pass that are going slower than you want to go. You WILL have people who drop 10mph below the speed limit at the start of a long uphill climb.

And do you know what you can do about these situations and the dozens more you won't like?

Not A D@@@ Thing! You take a deep breath, cuss 'em out inside your truck, quietly if you are teaming and someone is trying to sleep, and you roll the hell on.

 

I'll take a stab.

There is a concept in which you might be taught called "Smith System" In houston if I am in the middle or left middle, there is no traffic coming on from merging or exiting to worry about. In other words no resistance from people getting on and off the highway. It also calms the 4 wheelers herd int he far left where they might get aggressive they have no choice but to set the pace defined by the slowest car in the far left.

Many states write laws now that you cannot use the left lane the farthest left to be slower than either the speed limit or flow of traffic.

In fact I think there is a new push to exclude governerned trucks with speed restrictions below the legal max speed limit from the highway by the states. I don't know yet if that is a fantasy or a rumor of good things to come.

Big trucks require room in everything. You will learn what it takes compared to cars.

My experiences in Houston say on I-45 during rush morning traffic southbound into the city usually consists of about 3 to 4 lanes worth of traffic doing a minimum of 80 to 100 as a thundering herd.

Not the time to be hanging out in a 60 mph truck governed to liability and threat to others by becoming a physical obstacle to traffic that requires flowing. Frankly If I ever get back out there (Which it will not happen.. but the thought remains) that truck will be ungoverned. Or at a minimum matches Texas 85 mph speed limit.

Where I come from consists of DC, as in washington DC and in my time the traffic is unbelieveably aggressive in the morning. I simply use either 301 or 15 to bypass the whole city and it's beltway. It's not safe anymore to take a big truck through.

 

The mountains is one place I don't have much experience. Don't care much for them in a 4 wheeler.

Trust me I have seen truckers and car continue this way for a while. While other drivers end up on my tail... I don't hit the brakes hard, but I am getting out of that trap. I think it's better than scaring the trucker by squeezing in front or going from side to side in my lane... which I have seen other 4 wheelers do. I'm surprised a trucker would want to stay beside a 4 wheeler who has a wall on one side and is not paying attention.

 

There is nothing you can do to scare a trucker who has been on the road a while. If you are experiencing a trap in traffic as you described, you demonstrated to me that you are showing a situational awareness already that I like to see in new drivers. I want you to improve on that where possible and be three steps ahead of people around you mentally. You will never be caught in a trap.

Traps that get me are people who set up for a insurance scam with 4 people in a beatup car, inch by me on the left then cut me off at 10 yards in my lane and stand on the brakes. The problem is that most people who try it under my front end do not understand the power of tractor trailer ABS systems and good engineering allowing me to work around them without spilling the boxes in the trailer too much. The last time someone did that to me in the Cross Bronx at the Throgs neck, whites bridge junchtion southbound in the rain in his VW rabbit with 3 strangers with him was pretty close to bother me. But I worked around him ok.

I don't scare easy, but what I do do is get angry sometimes when someone is very stupid and put their life at risk under my trailer from time to time trying to force themselves by me. I don't rage, but I get angry for them because they dare to risk my freedom and risk their stupid lives that Im half tempted to just stay put and let physics kill them. But no, I try to save them at all possible. I cannot help it.

 

I'm not talking just mountains. You expect to end up at a crawl on a mountain. I'm talking about hills. Some of which are no steeper than some on ramps. But in a governed truck with no balls and a gross weight in the 70's you can't get above 25 or 30, 35 or 40 with a running start.

Hell, even on flat land you'll get stuck behind people that you CANNOT pass. You also have people who fly by you just to cut over and slow down to 1mph slower than your max speed.

 

I have certain expectations on mountain work. 500 horse detriot for a minimum. Which makes for around 42 mph upgrade loaded. Not too shabby. That avatar in my left under the name is Grapevine southbound prior to Tejon at the summit and that was a 500 plus detriot in a 95 FLD120 on a rockwell 9 speed short throw transmission. Swift was not doing too shabby at 30 I was around 45 and dropping upgrade there that day.

 

I have not seen this to the extent you describe, but I was warned about this when living in the suburbs of Chicago. I was also taught that in chicago if people jumped out in front of me... do not stop. Try to avoid them but do not stop. That is where I learned to look all round me.
I will work on your advice of being 3 steps ahead.
I can see where governors for newbies is a good thing... but like you stated, for experienced drivers with good ratings... governors can pose a safety issue.

 

I am sorry you had to deal with stupid people. This is why I'm nervous about getting on the road. The 4 wheelers that jump out of the way just to get in your way.
I have watched a lot of videos trying to learn the things I need to be on alert for.

 

Buy a good high definition video camera. Today if you havent already.

One day that thing will save you.