Good Night From II

I hate when days start like today.
Got a pplan at 0530 this morning, just about when I was due to wake up.
Pick up in Stockton, CA at 2200, and a live unload on the 29th in Salt Lake City at 0400. Sears.
I slept another hour before I really looked at it on the QC.

No way am I going to pull an all nighter when I had been up since that morning, which is the reason I declined it.

At first I though loads were scarce and that was the earliest one available. But it was only about 15 minutes before I got a better load that picked up at noon in Shasta Lake, CA, with delivery on the 29th at 0800 in Las Vegas.
So the day turned out to be pretty good after all.

 

Oh please!
You know I don't run like that.

And, I don't need to.
I am not some rookie trying to impress someone, or myself.

I run the hours I like, during the times I like.
Trying to run hours like that would make me a dangerous driver, and I know my own limitations.
Not to mention my own needs and wants.

And look at the result of my turning down a load that I did not like.
I was sent a better one.
So why should I run hard with too little sleep, when I can simply say no and get something more to my liking?

 

Left out of Knoxville for Greer this morning with a wonderful reply from a Decatur planner in response to my mac10 request: We currently have no freight going in any direction. The terminal says don't expect anything until Tuesday. FML

 

I lucked out with a load that delivers on the 2nd in Auburn, WA.

After I turned down a load because the time was too tight I was sent 2 load offerings.
Usually that message reads 'no load offers', or if it does contain anything I can't accept them because I am not Platinum status.
But this time it kicked back the next load assignment and I was able to accept it.
All the other pplans I was sent delivered on the 31st, with half the miles as the one I got.

I also lucked out with my last delivery in Las Vegas.
It was a load of insulation going to 84 Lumber, and I was supposed to tailgate the load. Nothing was on pallets and was stacked to the ceiling.
When I got there they had me back up to the ramp so the forklift could unload it.

My next load picked up this morning in Victorville, CA at 0800.
As I was heading out of Vegas at around 1130 the traffic came nearly to a halt just before Primm. It was backed up as far as I could see up the hill.
As my actual load assignment gave me a pick up window of 0800-2359 I stopped at the J in Primm and headed out at 0600 this morning.
There was little traffic, and I had zero wait at the Yermo inspection station.
Third time lucky.

 

Currently in Troy, IL headed to Romeoville, IL.

Been with swift for about two months and haven’t been west of interstate 35. Not sure how normal that is, but was really hoping to be run out west some more.

 

Simple. Put in a hometime request to zip code 78045, Laredo, TX even if you don't really want to go there. Laredo is a cross border terminal and they have freight wherever you want to go. Call or go inside and talk to the planners about what part of the country you want to haul to and you will be on your way. Guaranteed!

BTW, it was 74° here today and it will be a bone chilling 50° tonight. How's that compare to #### holes like Illinois in January?

Frank

 

The lesson is this. Use hometime requests to move your truck to a part of the country you want to run and to get out of places you don't want to be. You can even sometimes use it to get home!

Frank

 

Considering I was in Illinois a few days ago when they had wind chills of -20f a few days ago that sounds just fine. Just came from a nice sunny 70 degree day in Oklahoma.

And I had actually considered gaming the system with home time requests but wasn’t sure how well it’d work.

 

Was in Indiana, -12. My DEF froze