Calex Express....My New Home!

Why do I drive for Calex? One word answer, HOMETIME.
I've been home every 4-5 days for the last 2.5 years. Very important feature for me. The only time it changes is when I ASK to go out west then it's 16 days exactly.

Why do I stay? Two word answer, EXCELLENT TREATMENT.
It's nice being treated like a person with a name instead of a driver with a truck number.

My DNA makeup is to find a company that I want to stay with. After doing this for 30+ years this is only my third company I've ever driven for.

 

Good job! Be careful coming back, they are calling for a big storm this week up in WV, Pa and Va.

 

Thanks. The first few pages from the beginning say it all and still is the same today as it was 2.5 years ago.

 

I'm home. Got here yesterday right at 6pm. I have to say, this wasn't the easiest trip for me. I came down with some kind of bug and visited every rest area between Pa and Florida. Between heaving and gagging and running to just make it to the bathroom it seemed as if I never was going to get home.

This round was a total of 2950 paid miles. I left at 4pm Wednesday and got back 6pm Sunday. I deliver Wednesday at 5am in Orlando. I was preplanned the whole week. When I got to my truck on Wednesday all my loads were sitting on my computer. On my way up to Jacksonville to load Louie sent over my reload info to come back home. I wasn't even out of Florida and my return load was sent to me.

Having all your loads sitting in front of you allows you to plan your loads accordingly. I did all my trip planning down to the hour. I did my part, but of course there's always a monkey wrench thrown in to mess things up.

Getting sick was one problem, my return load out of our customer in Mcelhattan was another problem. More on that in a minute.

I got to Jacksonville at 8:45pm Wednesday for my 9pm appointment. As anyone who has loaded at a Brewery throughout the country, I'm sure you can attest to the fact that they all are on a totally different planet than anyone else. As soon as I got there I started my 10 hour break. After finally getting loaded and scaling out, it was now 2am. I finished my sleeper time then left at 6:45 am to head up to Fletcher NC. I got there right at 1pm and was empty at 1:30. From there I had to deadhead down to Charleston SC to load a load going up to Breiningsville Pa but was told to bring it to the yard because it didn't deliver until Tuesday.

I got to my next pick up at 5:30 with 2.5 hours left on my clock. I was told that I was number 6 in line to load and that it would be a few hours before they would load me. I then went into my sleeper time, was loaded at 9pm and was allowed to sleep on the property until I was ready to leave. At 4am I was up and rolling to Pittston. I would have to end my day 40 miles south of the terminal. I called Louie to tell him my schedule and that I wouldn't be able to be in until Saturday morning about 5am. My Florida load was loaded on Friday and was waiting for me to pick up at our customer. I was told to drop the trailer at the yard, leave the paperwork in an envelope for the next driver get my new dispatch envelope with my new insurance card then head over to Mcelhattan to drop and hook. I was up at 4am Saturday and headed the last 40 miles to the yard.

I got to McElhattan at 8:30 Saturday morning. This is where it goes south. I had told my wife on Thursday that I would be back home around 6pm Sunday. While checking in I was told that they were having computer issues and that the load was not loaded and that they have been working on the problem since Friday. Because Calex closed early on Friday no one was informed of the problem until I got there Saturday morning when I called into the weekend dispatch. After making my calls, dropping my empty and going up to the little fuel stop it now was 2 hours later. The problem was finally resolved at noon and I was on my way home with just enough time to stop for fuel twice, eat the same time I fueled and use the boys room too. Then I got this virus and made for a very long weekend.

I did have the pleasure to spend New Years Eve in a rest area in North Carolina. I was sound asleep by 9pm, woke up to a new year and drove all day Sunday to get home to my lovely wife. This bug I got has passed, So tonight the wife and I are going to watch the Miami Heat play at the arena.

 

Glad it is working out for you. I started this thread to let people know there still are good companies out there. My reward is a driver finding this thread, applying and getting hired then becoming a safe reliable part of this company. I'm sure you've gotten the last few messages from Brian and Mort in safety about our safety record. It's because of our drivers that we have a good rating. If you ever need any help with anything, just call into Mort and ask him for my phone number. Make sure you tell him you read the blog and he will give you my number.
Be safe and Happy New Year!