Any O/O who just use their truck as an excuse to travel?

My wife makes around that amount. When I retired early I bought my Peterbilt, new, with 20K down. I leased awhile to a dump co out of LR, went to Goodway dryvans in Dallas and got a contract to run no further N than Yourk Pa. I then bought a Trailmobile covered wagon w/10ft spread so I did'nt have to run CN. I made good money but if you don't know how to write everything off correctly you will get slammed with Fees and Taxes, tires and maintenence. I would suggest talking to and investment advisor and find a bookkeeper who knows trucks and consult them. My experience is that it was #### hard work, unrewarding and frustrating. I did buy the RV and I'm happy running in the left lane at 50 MPH, swerving at anything I look at and talking and texting on the Interstate. If you see Yoda hanging off a back ladder, holler I'll be glad to slow ya down.

 

Oh stop the madness! If someone is interested in owning and running a truck very part time because they get bored at a good paying job, let 'um. Why not rack up thousands of dollars of expenses to book a $1.50/mile load off ITS just to go piddle somewhere else?!?! I'd suggest getting a dry van so you can have some lumpers treat you like dirt along the way. Best of all, you can pay them for that too.

How's this for a suggestion... buy a long nose Pete or KW with a HUGE sleeper on it. Take the 5th wheel off and register it as an RV. Bob tailing you can get 12+ MPG, have the fun trucking feel, dine at the finest T/A restaurants, sleep next to someone else's reefer or idling engine and you can have room in the sleeper to do your high paying job on the road. You'd get the best of both worlds and might even avoid losing your savings in the process. Registered as an RV, insurance is $350/year, registration $600, that's it. Register as a class 8 commercial vehicle and all the expenses previously mentioned are $10,000+ a year.

Either way, best of luck to ya!

 

There's more to the job than just driving. Paperwork SUCKS! And then there's mechanic-ing. You got a nice big warm shop? Can you pay cash for a good truck and trailer? My stuff is paid for and I only work half as much as a slave trucker. But I live very frugally. I don't blow all my profits gallivanting around the country as a tourista. I go home and live in the woods as a hermit! It's good for my soul.

Then there's the risk (liability) you expose yourself to every second you are out in public in the truck. I consider limiting my exposure a wise move.

You can go play trucker but if you don't know what you are doing the cash hemorrhaging will change your mind.

Why not buy a nice restored classic semi to drive on Sundays and an RV to tour the country?

Oh one last thing - you must learn to love the pungent aroma of urine on hot asphalt. Love it, love it...

 

I understand what you are asking, and yes there are a number of us who do this. I did it for a bit when my income from other things was up and may do it again soon once I get passed this financial slump but... there is a problem with many who do this, they effect all of us because many will take any work that is offered to them including some work that is really really cheap. They do this because they are acting as RV drivers and nothing else, so money isn't everything.

The other part of this is that getting to lease to a company like Landstar isn't easy, you have to have road time experience and that you will have to work at.

 

man, some of you are just full of doom and gloom.

i my self at at 78,512 speedometer miles thru this post at over 2.00 a mile avg for those miles, what i would suggest would work better for nash is not a one load a week deal but maybe a 2 week on and 2 week off type deal.

and leasing to someone to do this would be much simpler than running his own authority doing it. many posting seem to think having his own authority is the only way to do what you want, it most definitely is not.

 

I'm going to run around 50k miles this year and it still feels like a full time job except for the summer when I don't look at the truck, freight, or take calls. The last several weeks working 2-4 days on any given week, the rest of that time spent haggling, trying to make something happen - that never happens. You either do this full time or don't bother. It's funny how when you take off a month or two then get back into the game you have this sense of cluelessness because you are so out of touch with the game. Yeah you can turn it all off and stop but when you go back you have to get a feel for things again. My mistake in the past has been scheduling certain times off, no if's, and's, or but's and that likely cost me another 12k productive profitable miles this year. The best way, and from here on forward for me, is to be ready to move out any given week. Take the "week or 2" off as the market gives them to you. Just because last July was dead didn't mean this one was going to be, and it wasn't. If you're playing the market you gotta stay in the game and keep close tabs or you lose your sense of what's happening. And that does not mean one is actually trucking 6 days a week 52 weeks a year but it does mean one is keeping tabs on freight enough to know when to truck and when not to. That is not part time trucking either. Unless one has excellent contacts with established year round freight they just are not going to do that. Picking off loadboards on a whim, it ain't gonna happen. You gotta have a clue to win off loadboards.

 

I understand your point of him "not having to" operate under his own authority.
But it seems you're assuming he will have enough "dedication" to haul on a regular basis, at your stated minimum of 2 weeks on, 2 weeks off.
To me, it doesn't sound like he has this level of dedication. Maybe for a couple months, but not a longer time frame.

But another significant point is... even hauling at 50% of his total monthly time,, he will be spending considerable time during his 50% "off time" just to keep his 50% "on time" scheduled, maintained, and consistent.
No "doom & gloom", just a reality in this imperfect world of trucking.

 

This is just what we who do this for a living hate to hear. Another hobby trucker, who doesn't need the money. They lease on to a carrier, sit at home and wait on those too few sweet loads to come across the loadboard, book it a week or two ahead of pickup time, run it, then deadhead all the way back home. Or stop and play golf in Palm Springs for a week or two, having booked another sweet load a week in advance.

We who need to stay busy, can't book that far out and play golf while we wait for the load. We book loads much tighter, and don't deadhead across the country back home. We have fewer sweet loads available because these yahoos get most of them. Don't get me started on these hobby truckers. They need a motorcoach; not a truck and trailer.

 

If you'd be more picky and choosy you'd net more. Seems like a hobby trucker could afford to lose money to go on vacation anywhere and could care less about rates. Anyone pushing rates up is having a positive impact. Just because a trucker doesn't work 12 months of the year doesn't mean it's a hobby. The sooner more drivers figure out to park it when trends are down, the better off they will be. Why is it some drivers think it is better to work harder for less than to miss out on a few loads and patiently hammer the rate UP? What is so hard to figure that a truck running at break even or worse, just so it appears money is being made, costs more than one that is parked temporarily until rates are better?