North by NorthEast by Choice - the saga of sadwar continues

DFO, I do plan to lease from SFI. Maybe they changed it, but now the first payment is due after 4 weeks. It's good to know that insurance & maintenance will be deducted during that time. My recruiter gave me access to the load board, but only after I asked. That wasn't standard procedure. My biggest issue in considering the Choice program was how I could make a business plan if I had no idea how much loads paid? How do I know what 65% of gross is! if I had no idea how much gross is? So, as a solution to that issue, I was given credentials to access the load board.

I am on the eastern half of the country (Alabama), and I plan to stay in the Southeast as much as possible. I may venture further in the summer, when the weather is better. Right now, as a new driver who has never driven in snow or icy conditions, the upcoming trip to Green Bay concerns me, as I have to get the truck out of there.

You gave some EXCELLENT information & advice! Thank you. It is much appreciated. I have documented every fuel stop I've had since being a company driver (date, odometer, price per gallon, gallons, total price, mpg). I have a good idea of the fuel mileage I should get (7.5 mpg right now). I currently drive a 2013 Freightliner Cascadia, and I will be leasing the same truck in a 2015 model. I wanted to get a 2013-2014, but none are currently available.

I'm not a stranger to load boards. I've been finding loads in the spot market for 4-5 drivers for 5 years. I like the fact that Choice has drop & hook loads, where 95% of the spot market is live load/unload. I think I will be starting Choice on January 5, so I'll have 3 full weeks to 'book' loads & collect data. I've already scheduled 2 loads for Monday that gross $914.23 & average $1.97 on 464 total miles (including deadhead miles).

I do have 2 more questions. I've heard IC's talk about Line 5 on their Qualcomm (Off duty driving). Is that a line on your Qualcomm? We company drivers only have lines 1-4.

Also, is the Total Rev To Truck on a load the actual amount that will be paid to the IC? I just want to confirm that Schneider's cut has already been taken from that amount.

Thanks is again for the excellent info!

 

You may have to deal with some snow getting out of Green Bay, but you can always plan and route around it, wait it out, etc. If you are used to driving a 2013, you should be pleasantly surprised by the MPG increases you should see out of the 2015 EVOs. They aren't power houses by any means, but they do get good MPG.

Line 5 is added to the Qualcomm, it just becomes an extra option when selecting your duty status. SNI is pretty restrictive about when they allow the use of it, only when you are bobtailing and don't have a preassignment. There are some exceptions but you have to be careful and it depends on how picky your ICA/ICR is.

What you see on the load board is what you get paid. SNI's percentage has already been taken out. So the fuel surcharge you get 100% of, which is what you see on the board, and you get 65% of the linehaul revenue which is also what you see on the board, and the total revenue is just the combination of the two.

You can get by running in the southeast exclusively but it can be tough. Right now it is decent because of all the holiday freight, but it will really quiet down for a bit for about the first 3 months of the new year. There are lots of good loads that go from the southeast up to southern PA year-round (so you don't have to go into the full-blown NE region). Usually you'll have to take a cheaper load out of there, but once you get to OH, MI, IN, IL, etc., you can find good loads back to the southeast. If you don't mind doing a fair bit of live loads it is much easier to stay in the southeast... there are lots of oddball customers that order paper rolls from the mills that pay good, but are heavy... and you have to deal with paper mills.

 

When truckers see red, they stop
When truckers see yellow, they yield
When truckers see green, they go
When truckers see orange, they pass

 

I'll jump in here. Yes, line 5 is an option on the QC. In orientation they'll go over when you can drive off duty and when you can't, but it's there for you.

Total Rev to Truck is AFTER SNI's cut. I like to do a search within 999 miles of Omaha. You'll find some interesting loads that way. My current favorite pays $425 for 13 miles with an 11am live load and a 2pm live unload!

 

I made it to Green Bay..

Today I will :smt039 to $5000

and then sign my life away lol

I'm going from Crete with a trailer saying "our most valuable resource sits here"... with a huge arrow pointing at my butt....
To now an Orange trailer that promotes "company paid training"

yeah buddy moving up in the world! lmao!

jokes aside I feel like a little kid going on COOL adventure
and that's what it's all about.

This is far more than simply a "job" or money.. it's the type of lifestyle and all that comes with it is why I made the decision to end up and commit myself here.
I'm gonna write a thread on my journey, thoughts, desires and decisions that led me to this point soon but not tonight cause I'm wiped out.

 

Good luck FW, don't miss the bus, lol!

It's really big, and of course orange!

 

thank you

yeah it's going to be here in 6 hours and I still haven't slept... FML

 

somebody told me you gotta take a mt out. But im not sure

I dont know what that load is but its popped up two weeks in a row towards the end of the week. Both times ive been booked but in the area i was begging for a cancellation