If you ever pulled a Papa John's trailer

I knew I would get some flak. No, I never worked for a union company. And it took a LOT for someone who has driven for over 31years/3,000,000 miles (started before you ever soiled your first diaper) to do something like that. Call me a baby if you want, and if it makes you feel better. Personally, I detest whining.

What do I plan to accomplish? How about saving someone from getting killed? Did you ever almost fall asleep at the wheel? I've gone down the road slapping my face to stay awake more than you'll ever imagine, and I got to a point where enough was enough. How about the food your family eats? Do you want it clean?

You obviously have some poor comprehension skills. Number one, I am working someplace else now. And we run legal, whether it's team or solo.

Number two, there weren't too many 10 hour breaks involved running the way they did. It takes both guys to unload at a stop, and everyone is getting roughly 2 to 3 hours of sleep, if that. Plus, pushing 40K worth of product by hand into a store.

I did it for over 11 years, Sparky - longer than you've even held your CDL. 55,000,000 lbs. of product. I ran team trips back in the day and did a 2400 piece truck solo. Any of the guys familiar with the job know exactly what I'm talking about, you obviously are clueless.

You want to call me a crybaby or a snitch, have at it. I'm actually trying to improve the working conditions, and get the company to do the right thing, because if they don't - someone is going to fall asleep and kill someone. They've had 3 trucks sail off the road so far nationwide - when does it end? Does it require a family be killed on the highway and national news to get results? Two guys in Lousiville were killed years ago when they wrecked in the fog. I'd be willing to be that the guy driving was too tired. They both had families, and there's some little kids that never saw Daddy come home.

They are (or were, I'm not there anymore) not running legal, and tough crap if you don't like it. It's more than likely because you're bending or breaking the rules yourself to make a living.

 

I ran pretty hard when I was younger. The years before food-service, as well as my independent years. And I clocked some pretty good miles up in my stint for PJ's as well - sometimes going from one side of the NY Thruway to the other to meet a truck going back out to Ohio. I've been driving since I was 17 years old (but you'll think that's BS too.... whatever floats yer boat....) And it's "lose" not loose. A loose set of lug nuts will make you lose a wheel.

As far as taking the high ground now, you're correct. I was guilty of it as well, and I'll admit my mistakes. I guess it would be safe to assume if each and every driver abided by the law and set the standard right from the beginning, it wouldn't have evolved into what it is now. I'll own my part in it, and by the grace of God, I was very lucky. I never fell asleep, but I could kiss the guy who invented a rumble strip.

I've made many mistakes in my life, and if I had a time machine, I'd go back and correct every one of them. But, life doesn't work that way, because it's the mistakes that teach us.

Back in the days when we started doing PJ's, routes were built so guys could get some solid bunk-time. They were assembled so that you could go from 4 hours in the sleeper berth, and have the other 6 at home. The one guy here inferred that I wasn't resting on my 10 hour break, and that was hardly the case. At the time, I was married, and my ex-wife was pretty understanding when I walked in the door with bloodshot eyes and needed 5 hours of shut-eye before I went out for another 24 hours.

Now their new computer system build routes like a robot is driving the truck. The guys are truly exhausted. Yeah, I'm out, and I could just whistle and smack my hands, but it's not the case. The current drivers there are afraid to speak their mind, the economy sucks, and jobs are scarce, especially in Florida. I had been fighting it for the last year while I still worked there. If I had a dollar for every argument I had with management, I'd be able to retire.

Correct. But in a faltering economy (13% unemployment here), guys get more reluctant to make an adamant stand for what's right. And when a company adopts the attitude that, "If you don't like it, there's 100 guys who would love your job", it makes them a player in the game as well. Yes, the responsibility rests on the guy who turns the key in the ignition. Easier said than done.

I had guys walk up to me when I interviewed for my new gig, and ask me all about it - guys who said, "I'm exhausted and I'm almost falling asleep at the wheel - they just keep pushing us and pushing us..." So, I told them about the new gig, how they ran legal, and openly admitted I was getting out, and suggested they do the same. When word got out, I swiftly got a bullet put in me. I'm an extremely hard working and dependable person, who raised 3 kids doing what we all do. To get canned was a kick right in the nuts. And, I didn't have the new job yet. Try going from $1300 a week to $275 in unemployment (which they fought and I'm appealing, so technically $0) and see how fast stuff starts not getting paid.

If you knew someone was pushing drugs to your 5th grader, wouldn't you want to do something about it? Now....how about if it was a friend, or even your brother? You would try and talk to them 1st, and I did go that route. I told Papa John's Corporate in great detail I would attack it from the outside if they didn't correct if from within. And they didn't.

Look guys, I understand your reaction. I hail back to the days when trucking was a brotherhood, and I miss it. It was a hard thing for me to do to actually have to hop the fence like that. But I would rather have a thousand drivers dislike me than watch the news and see a family killed by a overly fatigued driver. I'm not looking for personal money over this, nor do I want to "sue" because my feelings are hurt. I just want it to stop.

They buried 2 drivers in Louisville years ago. The one was driving in the fog, rear-ended another trailer and was instantly killed. The other driver was in the bunk, and the crash made the reefer's freon lines rupture and the other driver was frozen to death when it pumped into the torn up cab. They both were married with little kids.

The paperwork was fine, anybody who runs teams knows you can run the wheels off a truck and still have plenty of hours per DOT standards with a little creative line-drawing.

Three trucks have drifted off the road since, maybe more. When do you want it to end, when you get that phone call from the police?