Old days of trucking vs. New days?

What's the difference? In the 70s my daddy was alive and I spent the summers in the truck with him. Now he's been gone for nearly 20 years.

 

Drivers weren't candy ##### back in the day.

"My A/C doesn't work. Boo hoo hoo "

 

Lmao, truck drivers did stop and help and were never worried about any serial killers that I ever heard tell. maybe now, but not in the old days.
Drivers still stop if you truck in some places, EVERY driver. I stopped, had to back up to get off the road on a hill and in a curve last week, to help a driver. He had lost the bolts out of the bottom of his air compressor and dumped his oil.
The next truck squeezed off in to the pull out and we scrounged enough 5/16 bolts and washers to get it bolted back on, then the third one had another 2 gallons of oil, so between the four of us we had enough to top it off.
The first truck that was behind him did not stop, everybody knows him and knows he blew on by a driver in need, not good for your rep up here at all. You never, ever just leave a driver in need here.

Two weeks ago a rock cut one of my drives, we singled it out and 50 miles later I got a piece of steel in the singled tire, so was down.
The first two trucks stopped and helped get a tire off the other side so I could continue on. All in all we were parked in the road for probably 2 hours.
If a truck is down and can't be patched up, we will drag it to a state yard where there is docks and load it on an empty flat or step and get them back to town if possible.
The very reason I live and truck up here is because trucking here reminds me of at least 25 years ago back in the lower 48, I saw this right off coming through northern Canada on my very first trip to Alaska.
Instead of heading back after I unloaded I hung around and lived in my truck, toured the state and made contacts for a month, the rest is history.

 

Started in the early 80's. Run out loaded, dump the load. Run back empty, was not backhaul's. Then it opened up for everyone. Then you take a company load out. Spend a week running for hire loads. Trying to keep Ducktape and cardboard with the numbers on the truck. Sucked in the rain for sure.
I know most don't think we had to use cardboard and ducktape. But each for hire load. Was ran under the Broker. Thus you had to have his name on the truck. Plus his numbers.
No ac, lots of times the trucks did not have air ride, jakes or much else. Plus the Giant sleeper back then. that Coffin sleeper sure had lots of room.

Truck stops, were struck stops! Not fuel stops and piss buckets. Mom and Pop truck stops, home cooking. Places just for truck drivers. Not the vacation crowd. That was in no rush. Thus we got our food before the rest.
Then someone to pump your fuel, wash your windshields. Even check the oil for you. And at the same prices as others that did nothing.

I did keep $75 to $100. in change in the truck at all times. Some weeks dozens of phone booth calls. And some would cost $2.00 each.
Man time has changed for sure. Used to be a truck pulled over to cool a tire down. most trucks were asking if they needed help? And if a few asked and no answer. There would be someone pull over to check on that driver.

Pull over and help a truck broke down. Most had overalls and wrenches in the truck. Couple gallons of oil, water and I always had a credit card and empty jug. Pull a few gallon of fuel out for the truck or Reefer.

Best of all, No stinking people taking there 30 minutes at the fuel island. And back then we would walk from the back to the truck stop. Now days everyone has to park at the pumps. Go eat, Sheet and shower. SAD now sorry so many are these days.

 

A couple more things that have changed is there are MILLIONS more trucks and vehicles in general on the road.
In the old days a guy didn't just up and decide he wanted to be a truck driver one day and be one next week.
You had to be raised in or around the trucking industry to get a start, or prove yourself worthy in some form or fashion enough to get someone to help you get in a truck.
I knew some guys that befriended drivers who did tire work or even pumped fuel at truckstops to get their start, but it took time.
Back when you could score a liner in a mile or so, folks didn't just call someone a driver and turn them loose with their truck.

 

Crawled in a bottle nosed Freightliner with a 350 Cummins a few years ago. #### those trucks are loud.

 

Cummins were always and still are louder than cats, but my W9 with a cat and straights is not what you call quiet, if you open the window or even worse the sunroof, while on the jake. lol

 

Not all trucks had power steering either. They all had 2/50 A/C tho,,,

 

I may be weird but I'd take the million plus kilometer W900A my dad started out with over some brand new POS plastic truck.

 

None of that 250 air for me, it better have 260 air!