3 months in otr and I like.......

I did flatbed for awhile and really liked it. Tarping and securing loads wasn't work to me because I enjoyed wrapping the load like a Christmas package. The only reason I left was because I found a reefer job that paid better and left the reefer job for a tanker job that paid better.
Which city/town are you in or near? Maybe some good flatbed jobs for you.

 

Parking is only stressful if you're trying to shut down after 6PM in a high volume area. Sometimes its better to shut down early rather than trying to run 10 hours and 30 minutes everyday.

 

Or get up earlier.
Start at 5, quit by 4.
Never have to chase a parking spot.

 

Yeah I feel ya there... Local SUCKS a big one. I have and still do a little local on occasion if I need to be home on a specific day that doesnt fit into my normal OTR rotation.

To the OP... Give it some time. I used to stress about parking when I was a green OTR driver myself. But after awhile you will start to learn the country and which areas are bad for parking and which are easy parking areas. With in 6 months I felt confident about finding reliable parking places most any place in the country, or I knew where to avoid trying to find parking. Now days I can usually run my clock down to within 5 mins, if I want to, and still find parking. But I have also gotten alot better at managing my time so I rarely NEED to run my clock that low anymore.

Also the trucking market is a mess right now, just like the rest of the economy... Its really kind wierd lately with this covid crap. But it will get better. If I were you I would try to make it a full 12 months before you make a decision. Aroumd 9 months in you will probably have a good idea ofbif it will work for you in the long term. If not then you can start looking for other work while still driving so when you pull the trigger you can walk right into your new job without a delay.

 

Better still... Run the bullhaulers shift... Drive all night and Park just after sunrise. You will literally have your pick of parking anywhere in the country... With the exception of a few really bad metro areas, like Chicago, LA, Atlanta, ect.

 

That's not always possible though given how appointment times work. You could get an afternoon load that doesn't allow early arrivals, and the unload requires that you run at minimum 8 hours to make it. You'll be forced to shut down at a bad time.

 

The drivers that get up at 9 and shut down at 1500 . Im not talking about od/os permit drivers either

 

But what is possible is planning your day.
And it really matter what time your appointment is.
Take what you know, add what you suspect, and make your plan +/- 2 hours.

 

Why hang out at truckstops then? I hate em. Fuel up, move on. If someone is telling you you can't, just move on.