New Trucker Screw Up

... or maybe trucking is not for you. Maybe trucking is not your TRUE calling. Just because you maybe want to drive and see America doesn't mean you have the skills and type of work ethic and motivations that are required. 70% of average Americans are NOT in any way cut out for trucking. It's ok, quit now while you can and do whatever it is you were destined to do. If it's sitting on a couch eating chips in your underwear, then do that. But don't get out here with loads that are crucial and heavy, long trucks that are difficult to navigate and kill easily if you have no business doing this line of work.

Somebody had to say it.

 

first SLOW down,plan each load and your route after you are loaded,,,Many problems new drivers have is time management,, Double and triple check every thing you do especially changing lanes. Oh and turn off your CB and radio to eliminate distractions,, When in truck stops and parking lots run in low gear only.

 

I agree. Too many new drivers think this profession is a way to travel and play tourist. When in fact, there is a heck of a lot of math and problem solving involved. OP sounds like he/she is a poor planner. You can't be a poor planner and be a good trucker.

 

Sure you can at 65mph, and then pay someone $10 to back your trailer into that dock or parking spot. [emoji83]

 

Hold your head high, you are merely a product of the system. Drive it like you stole until they make you a safety man.

 

That's good advice. I drove back in the 80s and returned to trucking after over 25 yrs. There are a heck of a lot of places where my radios are shut down because I need to focus on the task at hand and don't need the distractions. Also, I most certainly agree with you about driving through yards, truck stops, parking lots and rest areas. Most accidents occur at low speeds and it's real easy to be fiddling around with a radio or adjusting your seat and peel the mirrors off a truck parked next to you.

 

Shhhhh...don't let the secret out.

 

Stop ####### up. And I thought my one incident of know a nose box off a trailer after sliding on ice was bad.

 

I originally wrote out this long explanation, but really like others said it just comes down to good pre-trip planning. If you are late for deliveries its because your trainer did a bad job in training you how to pre-trip plan for actual real world conditions. A good pre-trip plan will give you a great idea on how hard you have to drive to make a delivery, or give you the knowledge whether the freight can be delivered and you still remain legal on your log book. Many of these people have never driven before, so they need you to educate them on whether the delivery time on the freight they assign can be realistically met by you.

The accidents and late deliveries combined i'm surprised myself why they haven't fired you. At my company a guy I went through orientation with bumped another company truck 8 months later at a terminal and they tossed him out on his ear. What kind of accidents were they, and were they your fault?

 

does this really happen? I probably spend a total of about 15 mins per week at a truck stop since im local/regionalish. maybe I need to start hanging out at warehouses and truck stops and quit this driving gig.... but then again, im a flatbedder and we all know us flatbedders can't back up!! j/k