Running with JCT

Beautiful couple of days driving from Henderson to Sapulpa. Today I left Moriarty (Avoid El Sombrero restaurant next to the Pilot!) and managed 8.3 mpg in the relatively light winds. The only bad thing was the fuel prices eastbound are more eccentric than usual, so I made two short fuel stops today before my planned fill up in Rolla, MO tomorrow. Santa Rosa was my intended stop this morning, but one look at the line out to the road had me hanging a U-turn and moseying on down to Tucumcari. I figured that 60 gallons of that $3.889 fuel would easily get me to OKC and their $3.629 fuel. At a $.26/gal savings I was hoping to at least have a fuel light on when I got there, but I obviously don't know from math. Fifty gallons in OKC should get me into Rolla in good shape to save 6 cents on their $3.569/gal juice.

PITA? You bet! If Rolla had been within two or three cents of OKC, I probably would have just filled up today then topped off in Richmond, IN. But saving six cents on 150-200 gallons adds up to real money. And yet I still see JCT drivers topping off in places like Lost Hills ($4.129/gal) and Coachella ($4.089/gal).

Drivers, the goal in this business is to make money. Not on this week's or next week's settlement, but ALL THE TIME! Here's an example that I've heard both new and seasoned drivers alike talk about: You're delivering a load to Modesto, CA on a Wednesday morning (I just did that last week). You know that that trip envelop will make it to payroll in time to be on the next settlement, so you decide to arrive in Modesto (cheapest fuel nearby - $4.049/gal) on fumes to fatten up your next check. This is just plain stupid! And some drivers double down on stupid by FILLING UP on that expensive fuel!

By contrast, I filled up in Buckeye at $3.759/gal. I made it to Modesto, then got my next load, went to my house, and then fueled up in Kingman at $3.949. Of course, in Kingman I only added enough fuel to get me into New Mexico for the six cents per gallon savings.

If you want to maximize profits, then you need to be thinking at least a couple of fuel stops ahead. Get the Loves app on your phone and use the routing feature. Make educated guesses on where you will be dispatched once you're empty. I'm delivering up by Cleveland on this trip. Topping off in eastern Indiana ($3.589/gal) will easily get me into Ohio (cheapest fuel in the state ~$3.869/gal) and back out to some cheap fuel. Maximize those profits!!!

 

Many of our trucks, including Soule_Man's, have APUs, and they are plumbed to the main coolant lines. My old Montana-based company gave us FPPF Fuel Power by the case but their policy still was to idle when it was below zero. I've seen them tow a tractor into the shop off the yard to thaw the fuel before. These modern engines with DPF don't like to idle overnight. Last year I idled in Wyoming in -15 degree weather, and the check engine light flickered on and off for the next couple of days. Fortunately for us the vast majority of our lanes are south of I-80.

I wonder about these guys who are idling in 50-degree weather. Must all be millionaires or something. . .