Is it viable to be a solo owner operator?

One look at the old one, and I said screw it. The new one's going in.

 

Had mine rebuilt after time and money I should have bought a new one . Its like everydsy you learn something out here .

 

I leased my truck onto a company. I do alright but i have options on load boards. Otherwise its PBJ sandwiches pulling their company loads

 

If PBJ is a meal, you are not doing good in the least, unless you are on a mission and banking some coin. Does not sound like that is the case.

 

Yeah if you can make any money it'll always be viable the thing is the bigger Companies like Swift, JB, Schneider, Werner, CRST etc etc can go by volume if they've got say around 1000 trucks in a fleet even if their making $100 per load profit x 1000 do the maths that's $100,000 per day x say 300 = $30,000,000 profit, no solo O/O can compete with that.

 

Correct, There are No solo runs you will be able to make a living on.

I know that this may seem puzzling to you now, bc you read on here that there are o/o making a living. But they drive, think, and act differently then you do. I’m not saying that the way you do things are bad or trying to put you down. In fact the way you do things now is exactly what people want the industry to be. Small companies and o/o are being put under severe pressure to change the way they do business or fold up shop. If you went out and bought yourself a truck and trailer tomorrow you may be successful, but the odds are seriously stacked against you. Venturing out in the industry now is like jumping into a hornets nest while being chased by wolves.
But hey who knows, it could be sunshine and roses.

 

I am still enjoying the road. The occasional idiot on the road will be passed or will pass me and then I can go back to being happy while driving.

 

As long as your in a specialty niche in this industry and achieve a level of productivity beyond the norm you'll attract quality drivers(along with having top notch equipment ) and thrive. It is work though for a small outfit especially managing growth based on need.