Jobs in ND Oil Patch

Great photos Money Cat. I hauled many of those tanks up there from Gainesville, TX in 09/10. Two end to end on expandable step deck. Picked up every Friday and deliver ,or try to on Monday. Roads can get funky, but overall I really enjoyed it. Went to WY, Vernal, UT, and Rifle, CO as well. ND was best paying . Not a lot of back haul though. Others were better for that. Money was very good while it lasted.

 

thank you BIG JOHN54

 

The higher paying jobs in the Bakken field are still running winch tractors, bed trucks, boom trucks and pulling lowbeds.

 

What kind of experience and training does it take to land one of these jobs?

 

It takes finding a company willing to give you a chance. Sometimes you can go to crane school and learn how to run a picker, but it takes real seat time to get to be a good bed hand when you have a 125000 lbs pump hanging on your tail roll and your trying to fight your way out of a mud hole without turning the whole #### thing over. As far as running a winch tractor you have the same problem it takes finding someone to give you a chance their is no other way to get experience. You also need exceptional backing skills as you have to back up to a building that may be 16 feet wide center yourself on an 8 wide skid that may not be centered on the building and on top of all that you have to be almost dead square to the building in order to get it to come over your tail roll easily. Then you hook on to it and suck it on tie it down and fight out of the mud just to shake it off on the other location and come back to do it all over again. It's not just typical truck driving. I have had lots of OTR drivers try to make it and I have given lots of chances and all in all maybe 1 out of 10 actually make it.

 

I know how to run a winch truck, and the only reason I was able to learn is cause
my grandfather owns one for his business.

Like HH said, the only way to really get experience is on the job and that means
finding someone to give you your break.

 

I've worked with or around tractors, skid steer loaders, dozers, sawmills, winch trucks and OTR trucks. I've worked in building trades, service businesses, timber, firewood and dairies. For two years I milked 140 head twice a day in Montana on a 3X a day milking operation and took care of most of the other duties. I've hauled 65-70,000 of potatoes stacked to the top of a 42' reefer. You could bring the rear wheels off the ground at 35 MPH on a 35 MPH corner and it stopped like a freight train since nobody had jakes back then. I ran the two lane roads from Idaho Falls to Rock Springs and Julesburg to Goodland for three years.

So when someone tells me the success rate of OTR drivers in these oilfield conditions is around 10%, I never for a minute doubt it. Lack of experience is probably less of a problem than lack of realistic expectations. Even with what I have done and learned, I would still be a clueless rookie in these conditions and would expect many surprises. However my expectations would not be unrealistic and I know enough to realize when I'm in over my head and seek help. Expecting a cushy job in a comfortable cab is bound to bring a lot of frustration.

 

You are right on. Did you ever work for Speedy's ? Or United Logistics?

 

Working as a Swamper (laborer) on a Bed Truck or Picker can take you a long ways as the driver puts a certain amount of trust in you and will eventually get you to make "the big suck" while he swamps for you.

I don't what Swampers get paid in ND and Montana in the Bakken field, but up this way they get $25. to $27. an hour plus overtime.

I could make a call to some of my contacts in ND and find out what the rate is.

 

Yep I only tell what I have seen. I ran a rig moving operation for the last five years in south west Wyoming and the only reason I don't anymore is one of the competitors bought us out last year and I didn't want to go to work for them. It's defiantly a tough life hard work and long hours and almost no days off I think is the reason most drivers don't make it. You sound like your used to the work so it might work out but like I said you just need to contact the rig moving outfits explain that you have no experience and would like to learn worst thing they can do is turn you down.