Sometimes..........

I've seen A LOT more Fedex trucks on their sides/upside down/on fire than Swift. Amazon is working hard to catch up though.

 

I attended the Swift Academy in Phoenix almost 5 years ago. Had a very good experience. I am sure some things have changed since the Knight acquisition, but, probably not drastically. Any School is much more about the individual attending, and their desire to learn and follow instructions. There are tons of losers that show up at these schools weekly. The Schools have a way of weeding them out quickly. Just show up, shut up, and be willing to learn. You'll be fine.

 

I guess once you finally get kicked out of Swift, they all end up at FedEx. I will get in the left lane and slow down with my hazards to avoid those suicide bombers. They have no idea that you are supposed to keep your truck inside the lines painted on the road.

 

It's actually pretty easy to get kicked out of Swift.
Just ignore the safety rules, and Swift has plenty of those.
None of which are that hard to adhere to.

That is one end of the spectrum.

The other end is companies and/or driver leaders that push the drivers to get there on time no matter what, and give no wiggle room in the schedule.
The driver feels pressured and will do reckless things to meet expectations.

It is a case of weak minds fueling weak minds to do the wrong thing.
If the company would not let the customer dictate the schedule, and if the driver would not let the company dictate the schedule - all would be well in Sunshine City.

Amazon is a prime in this. They want everything done in seconds, when it actually takes minutes to do it safely.


I stay safe out here simply because I don't let anyone dictate my schedule.
If it is too tight for my wants/needs, I turn it down. Simple as that.
But that is not an option with many companies that force dispatch.

The real rebellion with drivers should be over that forced dispatch thing.

 

Physically it is one of the better terminals I've been to. They have a good shop and decent facilities. I'm there frequently as it is the closest terminal to my home. I just keep my Jeep parked in the lot there and grab it whenever I'm there. Since I do reefer and Phoenix is a dry van and flat bed terminal, I don't have much experience with their operations folks. Physically, I like West Valley terminal in Utah best and for operations, Jurupa Valley terminal, the one I am assigned to, simply is the best terminal!
So far, Swift and Knight remain fairly separated. We do share terminals for parking trailers and on occasion will pull the others trailer. But, otherwise separated. A kid I went to the Swift Academy with ended up moving to Knight for a bit. He didn't like Knight. But, he's still pretty young and green behind the ears about life. He's on his 4th or 5th company since getting his CDL. So, unsure if I would take his dislike of Knight too seriously. He's a good kid with a good heart. He is just still trying to find his place amongst things. He's still looking too outward and not enough inward. I think he'll figure it out eventually. I try to nudge him when I can. But, I was pretty green about alot of things at his age too (he's 23).

 

I was very green at 23.

In many ways I am still somewhat green at 65.
I guess some of us never grow up.

 

The trick is not to grow up, just become more mature. I've heard it said it's never too late to have a happy childhood. I'm pretty much still having one!
I guess the one that I relate to most, especially in my trucking life, comes from the first Hobbit movie, An Unexpected Journey. Bilbo is running off and his neighbor asks his where he's going in such a hurry. Bilbo excitedly replies, I'm going on an adventure!! Well, that's about how I feel most days! I'm on an adventure!!!!

 

So... don't grow old, just mature with an ever young heart?

I like that.

 

The 1st clip with the horses is awesome!