Starting Late in Life

Update: Completed my first solo month. No issues. Making good revenue to the truck. Fuel mileage is slightly above fleet average, OOR is kicking my butt, but will figure out how to improve. I seem to have an internal magnet for lumber tarped loads, did four of them last week. This week I had a couple loads of steel that each required two days. Have not done any coils yet, but I am ready for them. My fleet manager and log people are awesome. Comparing notes with my classmates from orientation, I seem to be getting much better loads and with less down time. Truck is getting set up a little better every week. Fitted sheets, microwave, powered cooler, Apple TV, various power accessories to run everything up front and in the sleeper. Also getting my work wardrobe sorted. Flatbedding is really nasty work sometimes. I am usually covered in mud and soaking wet after tarping or untarping, so I now head out with six changes of clothes each week. I really do not enjoy driving in western Maryland or West Virginia. I do not think there is one piece of straight or level road in all of V. VA. This week I had I delivery to Little Rock. Coming back I had to go through every traffic nightmare in the south east. Not fun in a car, even less fun pulling a flatbed. Would like to see Trump go after everyone that was ever involved in planning any road or highway in Atlanta. I tend to over rig and catch a bit of flack from fellow drivers at TMC. Yes, I am new, but I am not going to be the cause of another safety briefing. I usually have a couple more straps or chains than what is required, and I almost always use an x-strap or chain along with a header board. Some of the shippers and receivers are really organized but all too often I get sent to yards that do not have posted instructions, no clearly defined office, etc. Fun. I am losing weight.Belt size is down a few notches and pants are really loose now. All in all I am really enjoying the career change.

 

8 May 2026 Update.

Life is good. Last week was six months in my own truck. Currently snapping at 32-33% and have a 13-week rolling average of $5,100 TTT. I can start and tarp a full lumber load unless than an hour. Have hauled bunch of steel (Coils and plates). I fell off a lumber load a couple months ago, twisted my ankle pretty good but did not miss any runs. Have not had a late delivery or load shift. Safety used to be up my ### regularly for hard braking and stability control but that has tapered out. Hate the Bendix. Crossed the George Washington bridge a few weeks ago (at 5pm). Have driven all over the east coast. Florida to Maine, and as far east as MO. Hate W Virginia. There is not one single mile of road in W Va that is straight or level. I typically tarp 3-4 loads a week. and am home by late Friday afternoon and leave our mid day Sunday. Have hauled a few HAZMAT loads, usually glue or solvent with a load of roofing material.

My wife is driving for Melton. She is in her second month in her own truck and is doing really well. She drives a high top Kenworth T680 and pulls a 53' without a dump valve. She also talks a good deal of smack about being a better driver than me. We are on track to drive as a team when she has a year in the truck.

DOT Blitz starts in a few days and I am all set. Truck has been detailed and recently serviced, I have a folder prepared for the inspectors with copies of my medical card, DL, registration, insurance, paper logs, etc and have practiced transferring my ELD logs. All of my securements were inspected last week at one of our terminals, etc. Finally, I got my hair cut today and the interior of my truck is immaculate. My truck and I are ready.

 

After about six weeks the twisted ankle is back to normal.

Was sort of an eye opener though. I sent a message to my fleet manager and safety manager right after it happened. Their only response was to direct me to call a phone number and ask for'Jen'. Turned out that Jen is our in-house claims adjuster. In taking the report, Jen started asking a bunch of leading questions that I sensed were designed to solicit a certain type of response from me. Tried to get me to admit guilt, accept responsibility and disclose previous injuries. I knew what she was doing. At one point she asked 'What could have been differently that could have prevented this from happening?'. She wanted me to say something like I could have been more carefull or crawled on the top of the load, etc. Instead I fired back with the company should have a policy that we do not tarp in windy conditions without fall protection or a trapping station. Also said that safety should do more to look into unsafe conditions at shippers and receivers. Yea, not new to this.

Also, I was at a different shipper a few weeks later. Had a large load of lumber that they required the drivers to wrap in plastic prior to tarping. I was backed into their loading area and wearing their fall protection harness when the fork lift operator told me I had to pull out and go tarp in an empty lot. The load was at max height, I was hooked into their fall protection cable, my tarps were on top of the load and was was directing me to take off the harness, move the truck (unsecured load) and go tarp out in the yard. Unbelievable. I immediately shot back and asked him to confirm that he was directing me to remove the fall protection and climb on top of my load out in the yard. When he confirmed that is what he was wanted I asked for his name because I had to call my safety department. I also asked him for the name of the company safety manager. His tone changed real quick. Have been pushing back on this stuff ever since.

Also had some safety stuff at a steel plant in Virginia. Most of there loads are done in a drive through bay. But not their steel billets. For those the driver has to navigate a twisting maze filled with obstacles to get tot he rear of the plant. They have drivers back into a bay that is in a corner and always has a couple pick up trucks parked right in front of the bay. This requires drivers to do a funky angle back in a tight space filled with sharp debris. I had picked up about a dozen loads from this place when I finally could not stand it any longer. Took a bunch of pictures and then found a shot caller, pointed out the various obstacles and was promptly told to pound sand. Asked for his name, called my safety department, trucks got moved right then. Have been back twice, each time there has been a little less debris in the yard.

Anyways. Too easy for safety to pound onus for not getting out and looking. Fine. But there is a bit more that safety should be doing.