A Typical OTR Day

kinda think you missed the part of getting filthy dragging chains over some muddy piece of equipment
and the part of throwing straps over a load in the pouring rain--and the fun of tarping in -45 weather with obligatory 50 mph wind
then unloading and trying to roll that sucker up nice and neat
oh well ya got all week end to roll it up until the flat shippers open again on monday

 

the fun thing about driving locally is you get the best of both worlds. you get to hit docks all day, deal with parking lots, and if the weather is not cooperating then you get to deal with the rain and snow all day long. by the end of the day your boots will be soaked in water, your pants drenched, and your jacket will feel like it came out of a washer machine and skipped the dryer.

 

my hat is off to anybody running decks--that can be a hard and sometimes nasty job---but it does have its good points
unfortunately my poor old back isnt up to some of the work that it invloves

 

I don't get too dirty these days...I wear coveralls when I'm working on or around the truck and I've developed some "techniques" for getting things done as easily as possible...Sometimes you gotta do the ugly stuff such as tarping in sub zero weather but that is far superior in my opinion that being treated like an ####### everywhere you go.
Last time I untarped in the wind the reciever let me drag'em into the warehouse to roll'em up and then he even helped!

Truckin' aint for sissies!

 

why do flatbedders get treated better then van or reefer guys?

 

I think it's just a different type of environment and a different breed of people that you encounter as a flatbedder.
Guys that work in warehouses are a pretty miserable lot from what I've seen and they almost all seem to wish they were somewhere else!
Another part of it is that flatbedders seem to be a different type of driver as well, I mean you just don't see the stinky, Flip flop wearin' 500 pounders in this type of work because they just can't physicaly do it!
So....A lot of the shippers/recievers that deal with dry vans/flats are used to dealing with the lowest common denominator among us and treat every driver they encounter as such!

 

If I worked in a warehouse I'd be wishing I was somehwere else. Most of the ones I've encountered don't come across that way though and would probably be miserable if they weren't home every night. I find the average truck stop employee to be more miserable.

I've seen the stinky 500 pounders but nowhere near as often as one would expect based on posts on the internet. Maybe I'm just going to the wrong, or right, places.

Again, I must just be going to the right places. I have come across a couple like that but for the most part they are just people doing a job. They are usually polite, professional and good for a joke or two.

 

This is nothing compared to the BS at each end of a van or reefer load. -20c/-33c windchill in South Dakota throwing extra straps beats a Walmart DC all day long.

 

i find i dont get treated to much different with vans than flatbeds--each job as its good points and its bad points
with flatbeds--you have to work smarter not harder and true it isnt as easy as van---but some days its nice to just put in a couple of logistics bars and close the doors
true tho--you dont see the walking blimps hauling flats--but i have seen my share of disgusting pigs wether they are flats or vans
if you treat people how you want to be treated--then they are generally pretty good