To the drivers under 25..

This is gonna be a book but I started driving the day I turned 21 and hope some of the younger drivers with a decent head on their shoulders can learn something from my story.. If only one picks something up from what I have to say I feel it was worth it right..


I'm sure you've read all the posts and threads telling you you'll never make any money and you'll go broke driving a truck no matter what.. I started driving the day I turned 21 over 9 years ago and would like to give all of you some hope along with the reasons I've become very successful driving a truck and would have a hard time trading it for anything right now..

Here's a little about me so take it for what it's worth but everything is true and this is really my story about driving as it relates to me....

I was born in Brooklyn, NY to the two most incredible parents one could ask for in December of 1980 - the parents have been "going steady" since the 8'th grade and married for 35 years now.. They moved to Erie, Pa when I was a little squirt - something I have not fully forgiven them for right..haha.. NYC/Erie - think I'll take NYC right..haha.. Anyway, they took the time and money as I now see to raise me in Catholic schools and the Church which is something I hold close to me till this day.. That does not have much to do with me or anyone else driving but to me it does in a way..

My parents were very nervous but supportive of me when I decided to quit college and start driving.. Whether they knew it or not, their opinion of me mattered a great deal to me even when I was getting in a lot of trouble from 15 - 17.. I made it through that and have always been reasonably intelligent so I made it into a very good university for chemistry.. I had this crazy idea that I was gonna drive and even with a close family friend advising otherwise (he's been at it for over 30 years now as an O/O and is still going strong) I did it.. I drove OTR for a little less than two years and kinda enjoyed it since I got to see the country but didn't enjoy what it did to my personal life - lost my high school sweetie which burned me till about three years ago..

After about a year I was 22 and was missing all the crazy stuff I should have been involved in..lol.. I had a very good high school job that I carried over into college that paid for my Pennsylvania CDL - still had to go to school so an OTR company would hire me though.. My high school job was at a steel shop that a CCX driver, Brian W. came into daily and knew me pretty well.. One day while I was parking my truck (parked my OTR truck at that steel shop) he said he'd put in the good word for me at CCX which sounded great to me since I'd put in my application at every local job including bottom feeder trash haulers by that point..

About two weeks after I talked to him I got a call from CCX for an interview.. I did good there and was called for a road test the next week.. I had to bring my OTR flatbed into the terminal for that since I had a "ground zero" delivery the next morning.. Delivered about 10 times there which I would not trade for anything.. I'm an NYC native and my favorite picture of my parents is from Staten Island with the Towers in the background so it holds a special place right.. While I was unloading that morning I got the call from CCX offering me the job - obviously I took it..

I can honestly say I worked my butt off in my early days at CCX in an attempt to earn the respect of the other drivers since I was so young and they had been there since like 1985 right.. I was only 22 and was bottom man on the board so there were a lot of days I didn't work - the TM would try to get me a few hours which I appreciate to this day.. After about 5 years there things were going pretty well for me then the company closed the terminal.. That was a dark day at Con-way Freight (CCX as I know it).. Had to move 120 miles to keep my job and after a lot of deliberation I decided to make the move with the support of my parents.. I was glad I did it but a year later the company announced major line-haul changes and the terminal I had transferred into was hard hit.. The difference was this time I had multiple transfer options from Florida to Illinois.. I made $82,500 driving and over 90K in 2009 with moving money and will make an easy 87K for 2010 just running up and down the road..

To all the younger drivers - find a good LTL company if you wanna make some serious cash and work for the same company for years.. Been at Con-way Freight (CCX to me) for over 7 years now and if something happened to this job I would no longer drive.. Ask Freebird - he's a 21 year old on this forum at UPS Freight..

I know I just wrote a book that might be hard to follow in spots but believe me, driving can be an extremely rewarding career if you use you head and don't accept the stat quo..

Any questions for me just ask and I'll do my best to answer..

 

I don't know.. It's no harder than pulling a flat from a physical standpoint - probably easier - but pulling sets on icy roads is the most stressful thing I've ever done period physically or mentally..

 

Haha.. I run Richmond, Va till the 17'th and we could use a few Charlotte drivers that are worth a #### right..haha.. Dudes show up at 4 AM - not cool at all since that gets me out of there at 5 AM running back up through DC at 6:30 AM..

All kidding aside man, when you've had enough of the road just keep your options open.. My advice would be to check out UPS Parcel/Freight first.. Best two jobs on the road followed by FedEx Freight then Con-way..

All four are 100K jobs now once you hit top rate though..

 

Hahahaha.. Ever see our uniforms dude?? Forget that stuff man.. They wear brown and take green to the bank man.. After my truck blew up I've been running an orange and white CCX truck with 1.3 million on it that doesn't have A/C and could care less.. At .555 I'll drive a pink truck with powder blue stripes.. At .60 and .66 in 2013 I'd be honored to wear a poop suit running 68 or 70 down I95 right..

We do kinda work together though.. I95 was closed around Fredericksburg about two weeks ago and the call chain started with Con-way Freight, went to FedEx Freight, went to UPS Freight, and back to Con-way Freight in about two hours so we all avoided the mess.. I'm on the back side of our Richmond run and I was called by a number I've never seen on my cell - was a UPSF driver that was given my number by another Con-way driver since I didn't answer the Con-way call.. My lights only go off and on for other LTL line-haul drivers unless the the other driver let me in or out.. We still kinda have that camaraderie in LTL to a degree..

 

Keep your eye on UPS Freight - best gig on the road.. Just understand the one that hires you is really the best..