Southern Refrigerated Drivers Network

Right Now has to be the worst time to get into Trucking. There are more trucks than loads so everybody is trying to under bid each other.

If your real determined to change your lifestyle and move into a Sleeper then I say Go For It.

Call that 800 number in the phone book. They (Huge National Truck Co.) are all the same!

No Experience Required!

 

Hours of Service Rules are designed to help drivers and prevent abuse by Carriers. The Rules are Mandated by the FMCSA to prevent drivers from overworking, but drivers are paid by the mile and not by the hour. It is very different working 11 hours in an office sitting at a stationary desk compared to working 11 hours Driving 650 miles per shift in a truck bouncing up and down swaying left and right and rolling forwards and back constantly. Breaks are required to prevent fatique and DOT gives us professionals three extra (the 14 hour rule) followed by a mandatory 10 hour break off duty with at least eight in the sleeper. Paperlogs allow the driver to record his daily 24 hours in 15 min increments and must not violate the 14/11 hour rule imposed by the DOT.

There is talk that the Rules will change again this year or 2011 and reduce the 11 hours driving to 10 hours of driving and the 34 hour reset will go away.

Still, I wonder why companies will exploit drivers by dispatching them with loads that require the driver to work on duty 14 or more hours per day. When OTR drivers get tired the only safe solution is rest out of the truck and and sleep. While out on the road the clock is always running even when your sleeping. This lifestyle (company driver in a class 8 truck with a sleeper) was designed for the strong and not the weak. We work hard.

Sometimes running Coast to Coast is like a riding on a Merry-go-Round from Hell! LOL. Six weeks out and 1 week off. And yet, we give up so much to live in a truck in extreme weather to be gainfully employed.

I dream of being at home with my family and friends and miss them very much. One day, I will jump off this Merry-go-Round.

Be Safe and Keep it Legal

 

Darn I was rolling up and down those Pa hills (mountains) today. With 77500 gross it was like crawling up the hills. Srt gets passed by lots of Light Trucks (hauling Cotton Balls ?) The day is long, It took me 9 hours to drive from Canton Ohio to Richmond Va. 455 miles because of the weight factor. I actually started to think my truck was broken.
2011 International Prostar , Cummins and Eaton 10 on the floor. But all the trucks at SRT are always grossing over 75000 lbs. I still prefer long straight and flat roads.

Just came out of California and have racked up lots of miles this month. If any one sez there not getting enough miles thats because the don't want them!

Remember This; SRT goes where the customer wants us to go and not where the driver wishes. We are forced dispatch and can be sent coast to coast or stuck on the east side. I keep one thing in my mind. all roads are paved with Money! We get Paid by the Mile and Drive all 48.

 

SRT is in a National Pool of Reefers connected to large logistic companies companies, We are Full Truck Load and aver 1200 miles per dispatch. We also have dedicated Customers Like Tyson. We do run to So Cal and East Coast, 10, 40, 70 and 80 are our primary lanes. Our Primary Hubs are Dallas, Long Beach, Allentown, Atlanta, I see these places at least once per 3-4 week tour. We get 3 days off for 2 weeks out and then they add a day for each week, for me the average run is 21 days out and 4 days home. Some times i will stay out longer like 5 weeks and then take 6 days off. The Miles are generally 2700 per week but sometimes more or less depending on freight. a busy week is 3400 and a slow week is 2000. My aver is about 115 K miles per year because hometime. Some driver pull 130K miles to 140K miles but stay out 6-8 weeks or more. Some drivers go home every 2 weeks and average about 90K miles per year.