the attitude of the "new breed of driver"

Maybe a little history is in order here. I remember well when I first started driving nearly every company required 2 years experience. There were maybe 3-4 national companies that would take rookies, but most got their start learning from a relative or friend. Several have alluded to that fact on TTR. I got my start that way. OK- here comes the JB Hunts, CR England, Werner, etc. Major growth in the early and mid-80's. Companies were warned in journal articles,industry meetings, etc to keep their nose clean or the FMCSA would do it for them. Most refused to listen and follow the warnings. They had found a whole new source of drivers-truck school graduates. Not demeaning anyone here just stating a fact. The companies simply refused to listen to the warnings. They lowered their requirements (no more two years experience) they even tried to get the driving age lowered to 18. I look back on it now and you know the industry just exploded with more trucks, more trailers, more people in personnel, frankly it was literally uncontrolled growth. I remember well a safety director telling me that he had been given a "quota" of drivers to hire for a certain month, he didn't like it but the order came from his bosses. Now today, how many companies require 2 years experience and this mentality continues that "drivers are a dime a dozen". It's just not that hard to find someone to drive a truck,but a huge responsibility goes with that and frankly schools and companies are just not preparing drivers for that. I'm not blaming the companies just trying to show the mentality that existed and continues in the industry. If we want to "clean up" the industry than it's gonna take the drivers and the companies and a willingness to do what's right. That means perhaps raising the standards, quit letting drivers come in the front door and go out the back door, make an effort to retain them, turnover continues to be a major problem but in some ways that just the nature of the beast,and companies really don't make much effort to stop it. They didn't in the 80's and it's still that way. There's really no easy answers or solutions until industry wide standards and guidelines are set and companies meet them. That's gonna be a major hurdle because of the mobility of the industry and the people in it. Companies spend tons of money advertising, telling everyone how good they are, etc but ignoring the real issues (sort of like politicians). Sum of it is if the industry doesn't clean up its act someone else will do it for them and the results aren't gonna be pretty. Just witness what has happened in the past 4-5 years. The "old breed" of drivers simply had to learn how to deal with situations themselves and let the company know later. They were expected to do that and keep the best interest of the company and the driver at heart. That's not true today. Technology has enabled companies to deal with situations that a few years ago required drivers to deal with and do so respectfully and diplomatically( tell'em to go to Hell and make'em happy to be on their way). Drivers used to rely on themselves and other drivers and/or dispatchers and that isn't true today. Just about every company has customer service, road service,trailer service,safety compliance,driver relations, and the list goes on. Consequently a lot of the responsibility has been taken from the driver. That in turn leads to conflict and dissension. You can't please everybody all the time, it's just a fact of life. Drivers have to take responsibility for their actions, companies have to take responsibility for retaining drivers and maybe somewhere will come a good way for both.

 

To the original poster:
20-30 years ago most truckers took dope to stay awake because they were maintaining 3 logbooks. They were running over the innocent public left and right killing and maiming. Driving 100 mile an hour, wasting fuel and national resources,

Interesting....
"Dope" was not prevalent then. (Bennies?/Some), Most of the OTR then was "exempt"
(Produce-Building supplies-Grain-Bull hauling- Ag products, and no log book (ICC) rules applied. Old trucks would not run 100 MPH, good to do 58/62 at 2150 RPM gas IH.
I have seen more wrecks, rollovers, two tanker burns, in say a 5 mile area of Tupelo MS in the last few years than I saw in 10 years of driving 45 of the then 48.

Most drivers then got in and drove till need to eat, rest room, rig check, or tired. Stopped and slept till they woke up. Washed the face, combed hair, breakfast and rolled again. Repeat as needed to run Waukesha WI to Miami, FL. Or Columbus,MS to Nogales. AZ or Starkville, MS to Scottsbluff, NE.

Leave at 3PM, eat at 6 or 7, drive till 11/12, snack and coffee, drive on till 2/3 AM. Sleep till sun was up to heat up cab, get up, S,S,S,S, and eat breakfast. Get back in and drive till noon, eat., drive till supper, eat, drive till midnight, snack/coffee, on till 2 or 3 then sleep.
Worked beautifully and for the princely wage of $.05 (5 cents) a LOADED mile.

First log book I ever had my hand on was in 58 going our of Columbus, MS to a SF/ Seattle split as 2nd man on a team. Drove 5, fueled truck and ourselves swapped drivers (1), he drove 5 and we repeated. We run 20 of the 24 and covered a lot of miles.

 

Well. I don't care what ya say. A long-nose truck only means one of two things: You worked hard and earned enough to get it and are a cool guy. Or, you're a poser trying to fit in with the cool guys, but you bit off more than you can chew and are in a constant balancing act between family and truck expenses.

In other words, your truck does not make you "cool" and I, for one, couldn't give a crap what you drive. It's not your truck I like or don't like, although I will toss a compliment to someone who shows a little pride. I don't talk to your truck. It doesn't have much to add to the conversation anyway. It's you who I will make my determination on.

 

But then you lump all newbies into the same catagory, "supertruckers who don't give a ####' or similar.

 

Just like the name on the door, or colour of truck. So what. I've had the big company, the little company, and the O/O trucks. Guess what. I'm still the same guy. Some may like me, some may not, just judge me as a person, instead of some meaningless cosmetic BS.

 

Like I said on page one first comment , this will have a lot of pages before its done lol. .. keep on trucking.

 

Pressed Shirts...no. But every day is a buttoned shirt (dickies workshirt), tucked in. Black boots that do know what polish looks and feels like. Jeans without holes unless I have some bad luck (danged nail) that day. And my required: the battered black felt western hat.

Aside from the hat (badge of honor to me) I try to look like a proffessional out here. I even scrape my face around the beard every couple of days.

 

"the fingers that point shall never tire" can't remember where I read that..
the bible, the truckers bible, trucking "school", FMCSA, or an infomercial.

 

There are days when the only ppl I see are other fellows going to the bathroom. That's not worth dressing up for. Shippers and recievers? Yes. By myself in the truck? I'm gonna be comfy. And if comfy is shorts and t-shirt, I'm doing it.

And if what I wear in my truck bothers you, that's your problem.

 

You can wear, or not wear whatever you chose. But let me ask you, when you go around a slower truck, and look over, yes some of do look at each other,, and here is a mountain of fat jiggling it's way down the road, breasts the size that you're not sure if it's a man or woman, with no shirt, what do ya think? My first thought is,"Geezz, I wonder if this person has any pants on. The sight is bad enough, I want to barf. Turn me into stone if what I think is true!!!
Pride is free, so use some.