anybody know about Smith Transport out of Pa.

Howdy, Neighbor !!!

That's great to know about getting him home on weekends -- it's the only time he has access to his kids.

That's fine if they call after 72 -- my guess is that B will have already hit the road by then

 

Well, now ...


Mr. B just called -- end of first day of orientation. Let's just say that he's not one to sit in a classroom for long, LOL


Anyway, now he tells me that he's getting a Pete per his request, but to hold off on purchasing anything because they will upgrade him to a nicer, newer rig in 60-90 days if he's a real good boy. So he doesn't want to request the inverter for a temporary ride, which makes sense.


Poop.


Now what am I supposed to do? Punt, I guess ... I thought he would come home this weekend and I'd be able to get him all set up to hit the road in comfort. Seems to me that he said that he THINKS that he can plug the refrigerator right into the truck's APU. But he's telling me he wants to go temporarily 12-volt with something like a lunchbox.


Poop.


So now I gotta set him up for "temporary" -- and do all this over again when he's ready to set up "for keeps."


*** sigh *** Well, guess I better get on it !!!

 

Has smith started buying Pete 386 and international lone stars ?? I saw one of each on I80 just a little bit ago

 

I have been looking at Smith transport. couldn't seem to find much on their website regarding weekly home time. I guess I will address that with the recruiter. I also see if they have a tanker fleet servicing all the NG fracking going in PA. does anyone know first hand about the tanker fleet. Specifically, is the compensation on par for the problems and risks associated with the job? general feedback about Smith is appreciated and specific feedback regarding the tanker fleet is also appreciated.

 

Water tanker pays 18/hr, ot after 40, average 60 hours a week, run seven days a week, two days off. But, when the wells slow, some do get laid off for a few weeks. Up till about 3 months ago, they were on the other side of the fence from us. Talked to a few of their tanker drivers. They seem to like Smith and the job.

 

Hey there, GearGrinder --

First, let me reassure you -- REGULAR WEEKLY HOME TIME IS VERY IMPORTANT TO SMITH. This was a deciding factor for my DH, since his kids don’t live with us and he’s only allowed to have them on weekends. Smith had assured Brian that they will have him home most (if not all) weekends, and have proven true to their word. (He says that they may occasionally ask him to stay out as long as two weeks at a time, but that will be rare and he can decline if he wishes. This is perfectly acceptable to us.)

I can’t tell you anything about the tanker end, but Brian just started with Smith 3 weeks ago so I can offer a little help with the “general” OTR end. We live in Connecticut, and Brian wants New England runs. Since most of the guys despise running NE, Smith is screaming for drivers willing to take those runs. I’m sure they’re still actively recruiting for it, but I don‘t know what the status is for tankers. They have a bunch of drivers assigned to working the New York City jobs, so the regular freight guys don’t have to worry about that nightmare.

Beth, the Driver Manager (dispatcher) is AMAZING and Brian is completely awed by her incredible competence and how very kind she is to the drivers. He isn‘t accustomed to that brand of decent treatment! Brian loves the gig so far and everyone is very nice to him -- they all appear to be highly capable. He got a really sweet black 2009 Pete and a pretty black trailer, so he’s looking F I N E out there! The sleeper is very roomy and there’s plenty of storage space for his stuff. They are likely to upgrade him to an even newer rig in the very near future -- once he proves that he ain’t gonna wreck their stuff.

Once all your application paperwork is approved, Smith’s recruiter will arrange to fly you out to Pittsburgh on a Sunday prior to the next orientation (I don‘t know how often those are scheduled -- your recruiter should be able to tell you). Their chauffeur will meet you at the airport and drive you to the hotel about 2 hours away. You will receive a private room, a welcome package and a meal card, all paid for during your orientation period.

As the website says, the 2-½ day orientation starts on Monday and they will pay you $100 to attend and successfully complete it. As a couple of guys told Brian, the instructor is a little funky and tends to over-teach, but as you know there are plenty of dumb truckers out there and this guy has probably had to deal with his share of them.

On the last afternoon they assign you a truck and send you out with it. For the remainder of his first week, they ran Brian close to Roaring Springs, where he over-nighted at the terminal. It makes sense that they would start you out gently. He says that the terminal is very nice -- there are bunks, showers, a lounge and other amenities so he was quite comfortable.

Smith tries very hard to route you with a load near your home at the end of each week. Friday following orientation they dispatched him to Hartford, which is about an hour from our home in Groton. He made it home late Friday afternoon.

This past week (Week #2) was his first full work week. He ran approximately 2800 miles, some 55-60 hours. Pay is higher for New England runs -- .44/mile, so he made about $1140 for his mileage. There’s stop pay in addition to that. He encountered some slow-downs at a few stops Friday, so he was running way behind. But he made it home in the wee hours Saturday morning.

They had him scheduled to start at noon today (Monday), but he called Dispatch at 6:00 this morning and Beth told him that it was OK to go ahead and start early if he wanted -- which he did. Unfortunately, his first stop wouldn’t take him when he arrived there around noon because they had a 4:00 appointment for him! So he made himself some lunch and took a nap -- he’s OK with how it turned out. He just arrived in Albany (20:15 EST) from his last stop in Providence. He’ll pick up there to deliver in Dalton/Pittsfield, MA tomorrow morning. Don’t yet know where he’ll go from there.

Brian had been assigned a “Mentor” from the get-go, and Shane has been worth his weight in gold to us. I don’t know if all new drivers get a mentor -- Shane started 9 months ago with Smith and happens to be the grandson of an old friend of my husband’s. Brian contacted Shane about his experience with Smith before contacting a recruiter, so Shane actually ended up “referring” him. So I’m not really sure how that works.

If you weren’t referred by anyone in particular, we would really appreciate it if you would tell ‘em Brian Turner, Truck #1804 sent ya !!! I’m sure you wouldn’t mind a $200 cut of the bonus that Smith bestows for successful referrals. Just give his name to the recruiter or someone else at Smith prior to attending the orientation. You can PM your name to me if you want. Give me your number if you would like to speak to Brian yourself -- he is always glad to share his personal experiences.

I’m brandy-new to this OTR life, but I’m happy to share what I’ve learned. We give Smith a hearty and positive thumbs-up. Hope some of this is helpful to you!

 

Yes ..They bought some 386 Petes to pull logs out of North Carolina for a temporary dedicated run which they longer have now. And some of the tenured drivers are getting Lone Stars as well.

 

Thanks for the info

 

How's everything going for your man buzzard2157??

 

Hey there, Hhc133eng --

Sorry about the delayed reply -- MyManB just blew in last night. He's doing great -- and loving it!

I spend the entire weekend doing his laundry and cooking for him to get him back on the road. Right now I'm trying to find out about how to prepare for his taxes at the end of the year.

Sheesh -- HIS new job is working ME to death!!!