Need input on an unconventional start into the business.aaRa

Join OOIDA. This is a business organization for owner-operators and small fleet owners. The website is OOIDA.

 

bergy - I think it could be done, you will be able to get insurance from someone but at a price. Without having any experience or history your cost of insurance is going to be outrageous both for liability and cargo until you establish yourself as both a safe/experienced driver and as a motor carrier with a clean history for freight claims.

The best way to stick to your plan and mitigate the cost of both liability and cargo insurance would be to purchase the truck, hire a driver with a spotless record and lease to a company for a year while having your employee driver train you. Then start the process of obtaining authority and shopping for insurance. Now the biggest black eye in this plan, if the prospective driver knows it's only a temporary position from the start your going to have a tough time finding a decent driver to start with and/or if your not the greatest employer to ever be part of the trucking industry the first time your driver isn't happy he/she will be gone in an instant.

I wish you the best in your endeavor, it's a very ambitious plan. You can get insurance if you choose to go that route, anything is possible but it will come at a premium price till your established.

Now as to hauling a motorcycle, again, it can be done, it will be a nasty mess riding behind the cab unless you get a completely sealed cover system for it. I would recommend pulling a flatbed with a company like Landstar where you can pick and choose your freight, work the LTL stuff to keep your freight weight down and still make decent money. The wheelbase your talking about isn't going to be a problem most of the time (95+%), we have many truck here where I'm at that are into to 350"+ range but they only run really specialized freight into the same customers all the time.

 

I would also recommend going on as a company driver for 6 months to a year. Try to find one that has a terminal close to your existing home so that you don't have to make the truck your home from the outset.

I did some research on what it would take to make a regular sleeper truck (Volvo 670 / 780) into something I could live in. Its possible to improve it a lot as most sleepers are set up for two drivers. There is a huge amount of wasted space above head height. My plan involved having swivel seats up front (or at least passenger seat which could remain facing backwards and pull out of the way of the window / mirror when driving), a bed lift (Happijac) in the middle and storage, work surface, cooker, sink and refrigerator against the back wall and behind drivers seat. With that kind of a set up the whole space can be a living area and convert to a sleeping space by lowering the bunk. I am currently out for 2 or 3 nights at the most so not worth it yet. I contacted ICT

http://www.trucksleeper.com/default.htm

They quoted me about 15K including cooker, sink etc. I also wanted shower and toilet but now I use truckstops during daytime break for showers and I've got over any issues using rest areas etc for my restroom needs. I'd rather not be carrying it around. A sink would be great though and the ability to have a sponge bath wherever whenever.

 

Insurance for 6 month cdl in NY.

Post from new owner-operator.

 

For a new driver it is an added challenge. I prefer trucks with short wheelbases and a tight turning radius like a Volvo 670.

It is realistic. I know produce moves from California to Florida so you could stay on I-10 all winter.

It is a definite benefit as a lot of guys can't go into Canada because of blemishes on their criminal record. I know a lot of produce haulers take loads from California or Yuma/Nogales AZ to Toronto. You'd be in a good position to do that.

 

You will need a plan no matter which way you jump. "Look before leaping." You can get an authority, you can get insurance, you can start that way. But your learning curve will be vertical, and your expenses maximum at a time when you're still learning where to get loads. Then, you have to learn how to get profit dollars out of loads. You'll need to learn the whole thing, and it's a highly evolved business. Those beautiful trucks you see rolling down the highway? Some of those owners are really smart people and know how to make it work. Some are mortgaged up to their eyeballs, deep in debt. So don't look at it that way. Make the plan, stick to it. Plenty of work available, but plenty of pitfalls if you don't have experience. Or even if you do. The biggest thing is money, have enough to survive a couple of hard knocks. If you buy a truck and lease on to a carrier who has miles for you, you'll be safer than just starting cold. The opportunities are there. Most drivers don't recommend buying a lease purchase from a carrier. It's always the same in trucking, the more you roll, the more you make.

 

produce haulers take loads from California or Yuma/Nogales AZ to Toronto. You'd be in a good position to do that.

Not with the 294" WHEELBASE , Ontario Canada has limit on allowable wheelbase was 244" now 282"

 

Think of trucking just like any other business, because it is. Whether trucking or woodworking or owning a restaurant, the same basic principles apply. I would no more spend money to open up a restaurant as a wide-eyed beginner, than I would buying a truck.

1. The number one reason that 90+ percent of all new businesses fail is because of under capitalization. You have to have enough money in the bank ---- after you've made your truck purchase, your essential equipment purchases to properly outfit your tractor, your initial reserve account for your repair/maintenance fund, the money for your licenses, fees, permits, and inspections, the cost of an attorney to review your purchase contract and contracts to lease onto a company, the costs associated with a truck savvy CPA and/or bookkeeper, and many more budget line items --- to live on while you wait for reimbursements or paychecks. Add up all of your monthly required expenses, multiply by 6, and that is a good place to start planning.

2. Another reason for that high failure rate is not understanding and having direct experience in the business you want to be in. For example: How do you know that you wouldn't mind living for long periods of time in a tractor? Tons of people quit trucking just because they can't handle the OTR lifestyle adjustments. That is why it is smart to develop your business plan with the idea that you will not make a purchase decision until you have 10 months to a year doing and learning the job. In my view, 6 months is too light on the experience end of the job to understand the ins and outs of the business end of trucking. It is barely enough time to see if one can handle the lifestyle adjustments on a long-term basis and to see if they are becoming competent enough and confident enough to actually drive a tractor-trailer.

3. I found that finding a successful owner/operator to team with, at least for a few months, will give you some essential insights into either dealing with a company as an O/O, or dealing with load boards and running as a true independent. Learning to drive and to live in a truck is not the same thing as learning how to obtain loads and how to minimize your costs to run those loads.

4. Your business idea can work successfully, just not within the time frame that you wish.