Stop Hauling Cheap Backhauls!

Today I had the option to take a cheap $1.30 gross rate load of bricks 300 miles right back to my hometown. Had 100 miles deadhead to pick it up. I would never consider the load because the broker posts them daily year round with rates like that but just for fun I did some math. Going home empty almost 300 miles had my rate to the truck at $2.10 a mile. Going to grab the load of bricks and taking that home generated a bigger gross but the additional miles pulled the overall rate down to $2.08 back home, not to mention wasted time getting loaded with all the other cheap haulers and a 45,000lbs load to boot. I ended up opting to not go home and deadheading 300 miles to pick up a good load. I'll let the cheap freight haulers have the bricks. No time or way to bridge any gaps for the good stuff sometimes. It doesn't even make sense to me had the load of bricks been loading right where I emptied out at, which would have cut 100 miles deadhead. I did the math on that too and it put the rate at $2.19 a mile to the truck... ...of course as soon as I was tied up messing with such nonsense something good would have popped up, as it normally does in that situation when you can't go get it. Last week I picked a load of the boards Wednesday afternoon that was posted at $2,000 going to Tulsa, OK the rate I got was $2,500 on 638 loaded miles. A legal load pick before 11pm and deliver the next night at 9pm, very good load. I never even considered grabbing a $1 a mile back homebound from OK. I did look to see what was available and there wasn't much, and sure enough the rates on it reflected that, of course my area code hampered me. No problem I posted my truck as available Friday morning in Joplin, MO - St Louis, MO and Little Rock, AR after perusing those markets to see what was available. Then I took calls. Endedup going to Little Rock and grabbing a load, not a great rate but better than $1 a mile from OK, it paid $1,100 on 504 miles and routed thru the house no out of route, I deadheaded almost 300 miles to get it but the load out to OK covered that more than enough. Actually could have went home empty from OK last week. Anyways, that is how one avoids the "easy $1 a mile stuff within a 100 mile radius" ... More than one way to skin a cat drivers... there are ALWAYS better options if one will take the time and effort to look. Let that stuff sit on the docks until they NEED a truck.

 

he worked 9 hours on the boards and got his week booked for $3 per mile.

i worked 3 days on the boards and couldn't find ANYTHING that didn't go farther northeast. except for some OD into cali. which didn't cover the cost of fuel. permits were on your dime.

 

Is that rate to the truck ? Or is that gross? And what did you get for all miles including deadhead?

 

Those are all Gross...

 

Did you work with a broker

 

I absolutely agree with you, 100%, I keep a running tab on all miles, (hub), and if it helps the overall average, I'll do it, if it is a wash, no way Jose, and you're right, sometimes it'll drag the average down.... Nobody gets a "favor" from me, if it's a "favor" they're asking me for with their rate I move on, if it's a brokerage I like I'll do it politely, and give them the courtesy of ending the call, if it's someone I really don't care for, I laugh and say, "I gotta go", and hang up without waiting for their reply....

 

Had a broker play a game with me today, he quoted the rate, I said, "sure, I can run the load for you", I heard him pause and say off the phone to someone in the room with him what the rate was, broker says hold on..... I'm waiting, he comes back on and asks for mc#, I give it to him, hold on he goes..... "I'm sorry, but we just covered that with one of our other dispatchers, but give me your phone# and if the other truck falls off the load for some reason I'll give you a call....."

I say "ok" to HIS rate, I'm nice, I don't haggle or counter with an offer to run it for more...

and he jacks me around.....

When he calls me back, and I know it's an "if", but if he does, his rate is out the window.....

We play it my way now.....

And if it means I don't get the load, whatever......

One load don't make or break me.

 

Not informative I learn more here
Wont ask just listen

 

I think a lot of drivers try to go home weekly without having the right freight set up for that. they rely on load boards end up hauling cheap freight. also I believe that a lot of drivers avoid certain lanes all together and keep themselves in the cheap freight lanes. last I believe a lot of drivers are to lazy to do real work to get customers, find the right paying loads, or learn how to select loads according to there numbers. if you need a 2.50mi per load why haul for less than that? I agree some times its better to sit and wait, some times its better to deadhead, some times its ok to take a lesser load. I haul loads 2.49-3.44 a mi. that is only two loads a week. occasionally I haul one for 1.70-1.90 to go se my momma. do just fine. I had to learn though cause I use to just look at what load was grossing and took it and ran. that's before I learned bout my numbers and how to select all loads for that purpose. I make a profit.