Hopper, Dump O/O's & Drivers

Wheathauler I can't believe those clowns even off you loads like that? I have been offered many loads over the past few weeks that were cheap but not nothing like what your being offered. It is still very slow for me to right now but I do have a few things going on and keeping a few trucks busy for a few days at a time and than once those jobs are finished up I been able to move them to other things with maybe a day down time for a truck or two and than back at it again.

We been hauling Lentils all week out of a elevator 60 miles to rail cars that was going great until Thursday late afternoon where I go a email saying they have 4 more rail cars coming in next week and they need a couple more trucks as they have to pull one of their own off and keep him around the elevator moving seed from one bin to another, so that left me looking for a couple more trucks. These Lentils we are hauling the guys with tandems are averaging $2.62 per mile all miles and the triples are averaging $3.20 per mile all miles. I need a couple more trucks so we can finish up by the end of next week as than they have some seed loads that need moved the following week, so at least I can keep a few guys busy for a couple weeks at a good rate too so those guys are happy and hopefully things should continue from there. I'm not sure about the rates staying up like they are now but it is a good sign anyways for me they will be better than what they have been the last 10 months as the rates I have now I haven't seen in a long time.

I still like to work for the smaller elevators in rural areas as the rates always seem better than hauling out of the larger elevators but the only trouble I have in the rural areas is getting carriers when I need them ASAP or a day or two notice as a lot of those carriers are already busy hauling for their customers and just can't drop what they are doing to haul for me as those are their go to guys and what keeps food on the table and pays the bills but someone will usually know someone who can help, sometimes it takes a day or two. Now in areas like where your at Wheathauler there is all kinds of carriers I can call on and get trucks the next day with good rates, I used to haul out of those areas until I got tired of everyone beating me up and killing the rates and used to be ale to make a few calls and even when guys were busy they would say let me finish up my day here doing what i'm doing and I will start hauling my loads the next day as long as I had plenty of work for them and good rates.

Anyways I'm starting to see things pick up and better rates I sure hope it continues and pick up for others too as we are getting to that time of year when things pick back up but the rates need to come up too and I'm really hoping it is not like last year where freight picked up but the rates were still in the toilet all year but the rates I have now I didn't see all last year except for when a few customers got in a bind and than money talked but it didn't last long.

Let me know what you start seeing next week and rates and I will do the same as I think next week and the following we should start seeing some changes??????

 

hey hopper guys,
i got a question for you if you only pulled hopper less then 1/4 the time would you run a condo sleeper. rest of the time is lowboy,step deck or flatbed. not really needing a condo sleeper but the price keeps seems to be right.

 

i wouldn't even think about it if i was running over 1/2 the time on hoppers. but it is pretty cheap and might go lower. i talk about it in another thread. i like the t600 midroof i am driving right now but the freightliner is 10 years newer and in great shape. but that skyscraper right behind the drivers seat makes me wonder.
most of are hauling is to poet ethenol, adm beam meal plants and tyson feed mills we do back haul out of local elavators. i have only had to back into one so far but it was a diffrent truck with a tall stack

 

yeah we got a fun one right here in this town i live in. hard enough with a regular grain truck. let alone a semi

 

Anyone ever hauled flaked corn?

 

Like 70% of the feedlots in the state are now buying it from us