Instant O/O and Load boards

Never had a bucket, but had plenty of little plastic bags and enough guts to pull em down in the snow behind my 5th wheel in that little rat-hole mom&pop truckstop in Illinois that night (they closed at 10pm, I woke up with cramps at midnite!!!).

I think I wanted to die that night when I trudged through the snow in sneakers and realized that the doors were closed to the truckstop.

 

According to the shoeless hillbilly that trained me almost 20 years ago, you're supposed to leave a 32 ounce plastic Big Gulp cup rolling around on the floor... in case the need should arise while you're driving coast-to-coast nonstop.

He was an expert at peeing in the cup while rolling down the highway at top speed. And no need to feel bashful about getting rid of it. He just poured it out the window while we were rolling—coating the side of the truck and trailer with a nice yellow tint.

Don't worry about drying the cup out either. After it rolls around on the floor for a while, it'll be dry and ready to use next time.

 

sure glad there wasn't a covertable next u guys

 

What's up PP, Glad to hear your sticky situation turned out OK. Looking at the picture, whewwwwww, that will make you ####### pucker up. PS, check your truck seat to make sure you didn't remove any material.

 

JasonTheRock, I'm also in California and in similar shoes as you. What are some of the better boards for flatbeds in this area?

 

congratulations you just bought two new air bags.

 

I wont be starting until next week (which also sucks cause an insurance payment is due), I had a deal for a flatbed, but it fell through, so I have to find another one!

I signed up with "internet truckstop", they have quite a bit in CA going up and down I-5 (within CA) and oregon, and to vegas and back. My insurance radius is 500 miles, so I will be working intra-Cal and to Oregon and Neveda (waiting on my CA authority now

 

*Disclaimer: I belive you are only illiterate if you cant spell a word TWO ways so please forgive my typos in advance

Hey Pharm, like many others ive been reading your thread the last few nights and you crack me up! Some of the stuff you are going through is the same crap i went through so it just brings back so many memories.

My story is simular, i was in real estate for about 5 years pushing high six figures till the market crashed. I decided to get into trucking cause i could still be independant and make good money ( not as much as real estate i quickly learned)

Its sad but 99% of what i knew about trucking i learned from reading this site every night. I didnt have the money or the time to go to trucking school and i didnt want to get a J-O-B ( journey of the broke ) as a company driver working for someone else so owner op was the only way for me. I figured i knew enough to get going so i went to the DMV, got my CDL in 3 days and $35 and i hit the road because i was a trucker, or so i thought.

I didnt even know how to drive a big rig so i had to call a friend to drive it home from the dealership for me. When i first hit the road, i knew nothing more than what i learned on this site. I didnt know how to do log books nor did i know what a weigh station was. DOT had to show me how to slid my tandems!

My first load was hauling raw, freshly cut cowhide from Ft Worth To Laredo. My trailer stunk for two months! I used to keep $20 bucks on me at all times to pay someone to back my trailer in for me because if it wasnt a staight line, it wasnt gonna happen if i had to do it.


I started in early 2008 when diesel got real high so i put a conversion on my truck to run off vegatable oil, thats the only thing that saved me during the high fuel price era. I was paying $2.15 a gallon while everyone else was paying $4 plus.

The way i look at it, we are starting at the bottom, in the worst state the trucking industry has even been in with high fuel, low rates, low freight and too many trucks. If we can make it through this boss, when the good times come back, the sky is the limit!

Keep going strong boss and you will make it. I cant count how many times i quit and cursed my truck to die! Everything i learned i leared the hard way which sometimes is the best teacher. Im now up to 4 trucks, pulling dry vans, running a conservative business and making a nice profit. You know ALOT more than i did when i started and you have alot more help so im sure you will be light years ahead of me very soon.

Two helpful hints for you: On the gps, i run cheap laptops in my trucks with microsoft streets and trips. It has more trip planning options than you can think of and takes me from dock to dock every time, check it out.

Also on the insurance, get away from the 500 mile deal. I have 48 states for $8000 a year per truck, same as you pay for the 500 miles. As you know i had no cdl experience and they still wrote me a policy, get with an insurance broker and see whats out there.

To all the guys reading this thread thinking of becoming an o/o, you can do it! Please dont follow the route i did because it was only by the grace of God i made it. Do your homework, save your money and put your plan to action.

Remember, Vision without actions are just daydreams, but actions without visons are nightmares!

Think Big and Win Big, God Bless and Ill See You At The Top!

 

PS, watch out for the commerical company and the bums at the truck stops, that was a shock for me also!