Calex Express....My New Home!

congrats on starting at calex . depends on who you drove for you will be amazed at how well this place runs the drivers you know where you are going next pretty much before you get to where you are going....i drove for a few other companys wont mention but those who have met me know them and i cant believe how much different calex is... the local guys dont have it as nice as the regional guys as far as knowing there week by monday but on most my loads i have done in my first two weeks i wasnt at my delivery and billy had my next load too me.. makes it nice you can get your game plan done while getting unloaded instead of burning time .... plus you go to the same customers alot so after one or two times no directions needed

 

yes john things are going fine .. only prob i have had so far was my broken ac when it was 90 out.. fixed in 2 days... did three turns up to mass this week ended up about 2500 for the week.. plus slept at home twice this week cant beat that. glad i stumbled upon your blog here...

 

Same goes for me! I live 37 miles away from the terminal and would not have even known about these guys without this thread. I've only been drivibg for 2 years so this is all kinda new for me. Did the national thing with Crete for a year to get my feet wet and did local for last 7 months, problem was I never had a day off to see the family. I am hoping this is the right job for me and my family. I know that no trucking job is perfect but I am hoping this one is right for ME. Thanks for all your support.

 

I'm lovin it here as well, although I had to stay on the road for the holiday due to my truck's inspection running out. It goes in the shop Tuesday, but dispatch said they will try to get me an early week so I can't complain. I'm averaging 2000-2200 miles per week. This past week I was back and forth between MA and PA, then deadheaded to rotterdam and delivered in Pottsville early this morning, now here I sit at the Petro in Scranton.

 

hey dmp.. i was at pottsville last night too.... i brought in a rotterdam load from the other day that i dropped at the yard. then i pulled out the rochester load as well... now im home for the weekend.. monday i head upto long island... i been bringing my loads in to the yard, do other loads, & then come back for the loads & finish them off... but otherwise i had a good week. my week started on wednesday & i still logged about 2000 miles...have a good weekend & good week

 

Thanks again JohnBoy, for your response. I was really glad to read that the root canal went well and you are back at it with no trouble!

So regarding the per diem, it is like we originally figured - by years end it will come to something like 16 or 17k. That just seems like an awfully big number to be excluded from gross income - and your right, our main concern is qualifying for a mortgage, as it is very likely we will be moving sometime in the not-to-distant future, most likely to So. Cal. (we are in No. Cal right now and the kids are down south).

On the other hand, your ytd and annual earnings are very impressive, probably better than most. I did some quick math and it looks like you are averaging over 3200 miles a week. Tha's just rough math, I'm sure there are other factors like accesorial pay and whatnot, but still that's alot of miles! And it's not even summer yet! Good for you JohnBoy. My husband was worried that the good miles he would get in the produce season would disappear in the winter, but it doesn't look like that's an issue. A nice pay increase would definitely help to offset the per diem issue!

As far as the trucks go, my heart is set on a 780. I have read, researched and reviewed everything I can about them. I am planning on going out with hubby as much as possible, and I am willing to make plenty of sacrifices to live "out on the road". From what I've seen, however, having 77 inches of room and an actual table to sit/work/eat at would make life in a truck so much more doable. I was pretty crushed when we found out that my hubby would be assigned the 670 if he came on with Calex-no table! and it is 11 inches smaller that the truck he drives now! If he could get a 780 as a solo coast driver he would be in PA tomorrow! (IF Mort would still have him!)

Actually, this has all led to a fairly serious discussion of me getting my CDL and teaming with him (the teams definitely get the 780's, right?) At first, it seemed like a kinda crazy idea, but the more I thought about it, I thought why not? I plan to be out with him as much as possible anyway, so why not be in the big truck and get paid for it? And the increase to our joint income would resolve the per diem issue. Sooo, I am going to email Mort next week and find out how much experience I would need for them to bring me on as a team with hubby. I have even started calling schools! The company my husband works for now has a "train your partner" program. I could probably make it through whatever time was needed in the truck he has now to get the required experience.

This is all so crazy, but on the other hand it's not. JohnBoy, you have really had an impact on my husband and I, and obviously alot of other families as well. Being a long-haul trucker is not just a job; it's a lifestyle - it's something that affects your whole family, and just about every aspect of your life. So for us, like all of you, being with the right company, in the right equipment, for the right pay and the right conditions is a huge deal. Somehow I just get the feeling that we belong at Calex - hopefully you haven't heard the last from us!

I wish all of you driver's, and your families, a very safe and happy holiday. God Bless you all

 

JohnBoy it was nice to finally meet you at F.Q.P.,iI really enjoy your post on here,when i get home from work i always get on here and see whats new,for everyone who has not met JohnBoy,i hope you all get the chance to,he is a first class man.