Are you sorry you are trucking?

In 85 - 86, fuel was .67 a gallon. The company I worked for, paid the O/O $1.25 a mile. All our trucks were permitted at 52k. We rarely pulled a load that heavy.

Company Driver policy was 7 mpg...or you were history. Only a handful of our trucks ran under 70 mph.

We're going out backwards now.

 

One thing for sure, you will never see that price of fuel again ever. Especially with the CEO's of gas companies like EXON make money like there is no tomorrow off from our struggles to pay for the fuel.

 

That and the fact that most O/O's that are leased on with major companies make less than $1.25 a mile at the moment.

Fuel up by $1.50 a gallon. Pay down by .15 - .25 a mile, if you include the fuel surcharge.

 

You just hit the nail right on the head, that's exactly how I feel. If it weren't for all the B.S. trucking would be the perfect job.

 

I still like it. Beats the hell out of law enforcement and pays better too. I dont worry about the things that I cant control.

 

As of this week our new contracts come into affect
$.92 Loaded
$.46 empty
(down from $.98 both ways)

Its to risky to move the equipment and loose what we have established.

 

What percentage of your miles are empty ? Can you add a FSC to those rates ?

 

Yes we have FSC,as for any other we like to stay at least 10:1 on the mileage.
The Company has us where they need us now,even if freight go's back to average it will be tuff to get the rates back up.
2010 may just be my final year behind the wheel.

 

some times i wish i had stayed a mechanic but that was a hard,dirty job,although satisfiying when you solved a problem and fixed it.but i've been places i would have never got to see and done things i would have never got to do if i hadn't got into trucking,so i guess im not sorry.i would have rather been a rock star,though.

 

Funny guy !(rockstar)
Ive seen all the lower 48 and 9 Provence's of Canada and 4 States in Mexico.
One very special trip into Yellowknife where we learned not to feed Doritos to the native moose thru the wing window mirrors weren't cheap back then either ...
I traded all of it for a wife and two kids that all crashed after 20 years.Worth it ?,Do it again ?Not a chance!!