Whats the deal with JB HUNT

Sometimes it finds you.. other times you find it, justicetrucker. you should know this by now. you sound like a smart guy, how many trucks do you have?

 

No disrespect intended. I was wondering if there were any boards or brokers you had a noteable deal more success with than others.

I was under the impression that a good deal of brokers weren't interested in new entrants judging from other posts I've read on it. However, that not being the case, I'll likely be on the boards as soon as I can get a trailer on the truck.

 

What boards and brokerages work for some may not work for others. I think I'm the only one at our company who regularly looks at CH Robinson. No-one else seems to like it. Mostly cheap garbage on there to be sure but they have good paying freight as well. I hate Landstar's loadboard and seldom ever use it but love their email load alerts. I do find it rediculous that some of the agents send load alerts out on 87 cents a mile 40,000 lb loads, I mean come on... ITS has great features and that's where most of my loads come from. These are my go-to boards. There are some smaller boards from small brokerages I check in certain areas, from past experience. None of them are a panacea of great paying freight. Slowly but surely there are regular brokers starting to call me.


With loadboards you just have to learn by trial and error then you'll start seeing patterns. Think out of the box when searching. Ask plenty of questions, know what you need to know about the load before you even consider booking it and always be open to haul any sort of load if the money is right - if they seem more willing than most to up the rate that could be a good sign, or bad, use your judgement. Chance is a big part of it. Luck, you make that on your own.. Gamble, sometimes it pays off. Speed, if that alert is more than a few minutes old on $3 a mile 900 miles, it's already gone so get ready for disappointment, but you never know.. If you read these message boards long enough you will pick up on little snippets of wisdom from time to time...

 

Excellent, here are some advices, hope you will find them easy and to the point.

Go in with the attitude "I don't need this load" because the minute you think "I need this" you will haul for cheap

remember, you're doing them a favor by taking their load

Be a good bluffer, but know when to hold 'em and when to fold 'em.

 

If you compare leasing to a big company vs JB PO then JB is much better in terms of pay. But use it as a stepping stone to get your own trailer and make more money.

 

That's what I was planning on. Their deadhead pay covers my fuel costs, so I won't need to sustain any big hits starting out. As long as I run 1000 miles a week loaded with them I'll have food on the table without dipping into savings and have everything paid for. Their pay is faster than brokers, and with their advances I won't have to worry about throwing all my cash at fuel. It'll save the headache of finding and financing a trailer while I'm still working out the details of keeping an operation running, and help me understand just how much trailer I can afford.

Most of all, there is no commitment. When I'm ready to move on, I just ask where they want their trailer dropped near home, get out from under it, and tell them it was a pleasure doing business. Lease companies try to tie you down with base plate programs, IFTA filings, and insurance plans, all of which can be messy and expensive to divorce yourself from if you decide its time for a change. On top of that, having done their minimum commitment, I'll have access to the JB Hunt load board, which isn't available to new entrants otherwise. It may not always have fantastic freight on it, but I've read about some decent paying loads on there.

I don't see it as an end all business opportunity, but its an easy first step between a company truck, and running under your own authority.

 

You understand that you are under your own authority and have to get base plates on your own?

 

I was speaking generally concerning lease company practices, then went back to musing about JB, but I understand I could have worded that better.

With the cost of Illinois base plates, I'm painfully aware that I have to get my own.

 

I am a 'tweener'-3 of my own and 2 buddies leased on-mistake! Made about the same with LESS headache as a solo. Bear in mind that I am a reefer guy, with one PO @ JB which as of today avg. $1.71/mile. I say it is a good program because my dipatcher, Dennis, is very knowledgeable and respectful. I don't think any of these type of programs are for me personally, and base good or bad on not having problems. No problems (drama) is good, again this is not my idea of a home run, but it is a 'clean' process. If I were to do a start over, there is no doubt how I would 'roll', but what's done is done.