My Truck, My Choice, Out of Denver, Colorado

Discussion in 'Schneider' started by skyviper73, Dec 12, 2014.

  1. Opus

    Opus Road Train Member

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    Ricky, how would one know who the shipper is and how would one know how to get in touch with the particular C/S person who works that account?

    Honestly, for me anyways, it's all a crap shoot........some days are diamonds, some days are coal......kinda like truckin'
     
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  3. TennMan

    TennMan Road Train Member

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    If you give ICR load number he or she can see the shipper.
     
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  4. knuckledragger

    knuckledragger Medium Load Member

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  5. rickybobby

    rickybobby Road Train Member

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    yes , that's what I meant.... Before you book a load. Call your dbl and they would call customer service and customer service will call shipper. I have done this a couple of times to verify, if anything has change on load. That's if I have doubts about load before I book it. If the load is picking up in York, Mcalla, or Bethlehem you bet I will be calling before I book load.
     
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  6. skyviper73

    skyviper73 Heavy Load Member

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    Feb 17, 2012
    Centennial, CO
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    OK, a little update now.

    I did my delivery Monday morning in Houston at the food warehouse and got the the Houston OC for the day and night. Tuesday morning I got rolling to my pickup about 20 minutes away and I had air blowing out from under the top of my shifter. WHAT? I could rock the knob to the right and the air would stop, but just sitting there, it blew air all over, plus the splitter moved, but then the air really hissed and blew. Grrr.

    OK, so I got to my drop/hook, that for the second time in as many loads turned into a live load. Whatever. It was a small metal scrap yard in ghettoville. I squeezed into a dockl and while they loaded me I called SEM to try to get in contact with the Houston OC maintenance shop to see if they had a knob I could buy from them or have them install it and pay whatever it cost. OK, called SEM and the first guy gave me a phone number for the OC that rang and then hung up. OK, call SEM back and wait another 10 minutes on hold and get a different dude who gave me three other numbers to try. OK, two also rang and hung up and the third was disconnected. Really? I called back a third time and after another pleasurable time on hold, I got a lady who I told to please just connect me to the shop in Houston. She tried about ten different numbers and I finally got to talk to the maintenance advisor at the Houston OC. He was cool and told me that the shifter knob is not something that goes bad very ofter, so they didn't have any. He told me about the International shop that was about 10 minutes from where I was getting loaded. Cool!

    I called the International shop and the parts guy told me he needed to see the shifter to know if they had one in stock. I took a picture and emailed it to him. He told me that they had one, but it had a blue splitter on it, not a red one. I told him I didn't care. I finished getting loaded and drove my hissing and blowing truck to the International shop. I didn't even touch the splitter. The leak was getting worse and worse.

    I got to the International shop and somehow found a way to get my truck and trailer into their back lot and got to the parts dept. I bought the shifter knob and was going to install it myself, but I didn't have a good box end wrench to get the airline quick disconnects off the old shifter and onto the new one. I had two adjustable wrenches. Not happening. Getting a good set of wrenches when I get home. Anyway, the shop guy told me he had someone who could install it for me right then. Cool!

    I went out to the truck with the mechanic and he looked at the shifter that their parts dept. had sold me and said, nope, wrong part. The part they sold me split the low side, like for a dump truck, not the high side. I told them what I needed. I even took a picture. Turds! I returned the wrong part to the parts dept and got a refund. Apparently, they don't have the one I need. Grrrr! OK, where can I get one? They said they could order one for me and it would be there in a day or so. What? Nope, this driver doesn't wait a day for little stuff. Where can I get the part? They told me that a parts house about 5 miles away should have it.

    OK, so here's me in my fully loaded truck with a serious air leak in the shifter, soon only going to have the low side, pulling 79000 around an industrial section of Houston trying to find a little parts place to get a part. Yeah, tons of fun.

    I found the place and there was no parking for a tractor trailer. No problem for me because by this point I really didn't give a flying canary, so I put the four ways on and parked in the right turn lane next to the parts house. I left the truck running and ran into the place. It must have looked like I was doing a stop and rob. I ran up to the counter and told them what I needed and the guy went to the shelves and got the part I needed in about 1 minute. Great! He then asked if that was me parked in the street. I said it was and I was in a big hurry. He laughed and said I really can't park there. I said I know, so can we get the payment thing done so I can leave. They ran my card and I was running back to my truck in no more that 4 minutes since I pulled up.

    OK, now I need to find my way back to the International shop. Did I mention I was lost in some industrial area of Houston? Another truck driver was nice enough to give me some directions as to where I could turn around, he did this while I was crossing three lanes of traffic trying to make a left turn from the right turn lane. He was actually pretty cool. Told me how to get where I was going, while laughing his butt off at me.

    I got back to the International shop and weaved my way back around where I was the first time I was there and the mechanic got right on my truck. The guy was pretty old, like Yoda lold, but he was really nice and showed me exactly what he was doing while he was doing it. We chatted for about 20 minutes and he was done. Nice guy. I like learning things and it's refreshing when I find someone who likes teaching. I'll probably NEVER need to replace the shifter knob again, but if it goes bad, I will know not only how to remove it, but take it apart and fix the o-rings and little ball bearing that are inside it.

    Geez, got rolling towards Laredo about 4 hours after I wanted to, but it could have been much worse if I had waited for the Dealer to get the part and I hadn't just gone and gotten it myself. I escaped for $56 for the part and $86 for the labor. I know, I should have installed it myself, but I was a LITTLE STRESSED!

    I delivered in Laredo this morning and that was no l.ess of an adventure. I have decided that Laredo is the butt crack of the USA. I went to my delivery and was told I needed to go to the SNI OC for an inspection before I could drop it. My load assignment didn't say anything about that. I called my ICA and asked and she called customer service and was told that that is the procedure and that drivers just know that. Umm, really? I'm thinking of a number between 1 and 100. What is it? Oooo, sorry, wrong. I don't understand why you didn't know the number, all the other drivers I asked get it on the first try. WHAT? "The drivers just know to get an inspection before dropping a Mexico load in Laredo." Well guess what? I didn't know that and I spent two hours getting to the OC and back to the delivery place. Two hours I didn't plan on or get paid for. Extra stop not on the load board or load assignment. I call BS! Whatever. My ICA asked if there was anything she could do and I asked if there was additional compensation for the run around. Nope. So I made it clear that ALL the load information should be on the load board and load assignment so drivers can make an informed decision whether they want the load. I was calm and nice, but pretty steamed. Nothing to do but move on. But, there wasn't an MT trailer at my D/H, so I got to go play find an MT at RL carriers in Laredo.

    I got my MT and went to pick up my load and boy was that place a cluster. Some freight forwarding service with trucks and trailers everywhere. I got docked and 3 hours later was rolling north. Glad to be out of that place! Laredo, only for a boat load of money!

    Oh,, another joy happened today. The load I was picking up was supposed to go to the Chicago area, they changed that one hour before I got to the shipper to going to Terre Houte, IN. Umm, that really screwed up the load I had planned for sfter this one, so I had them pull that one and I found another that went to Ohio that was a lot closer to where I was delivering. My third load out ships from OH and pays really well, so I didn't want to lose that one.

    So I had a really busy few days, but I still love having control over the crazy, not sitting wondering if a dispatcher is working on the problem, or taking a smoke break between sticking pencils in the ceiling tiles or chatting about their kids while as a driver I sit. At least now, I can try to fix the problems and truck on! Time for sleep, or something like that.
     
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  7. Hegemeister

    Hegemeister Road Train Member

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    Mechanicsburg, PA
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    Don't ya love it? Don't ya hate it? Ah, that love hate relationship. Just like dealing with a woman. I get the best and the worst feelings doing this work. But it's great not having to impress anyone but yourself.
    Love just getting it on down the road.
     
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  8. rickybobby

    rickybobby Road Train Member

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    International dealerships for truck and trailer parking sucks!!!! To small and too many school buses.
     
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  9. TennMan

    TennMan Road Train Member

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    Any load that goes to Laredo always goes thru the OC first of course this is too late to help you but now that you know next time it will go smoother......we hope lol
     
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  10. skyviper73

    skyviper73 Heavy Load Member

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    Centennial, CO
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    And I just know this how? I mean I know now, but how does a driver know it the first time to Laredo?
     
  11. skyviper73

    skyviper73 Heavy Load Member

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    Feb 17, 2012
    Centennial, CO
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    Yup, you said it. Busses everywhere, plus Fuso trucks at one end as well.
     
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