Ready to go from OTR to Oil Field.

But can i wear flip flops?

 

Pay is dependent on oil prices. Right now, pay is down. All we need is something like Iran starting a war. Pay will go back up again.
I’m finding right now. Pay is comparable to a good OTR job. But with much more time off.
Working overnight in oil field I’m finding much easier than OTR. You get out of the truck. Short runs. Etc. But OTR... Its tough running all night long on a tight run. You can’t slow down or take any extra breaks. Gotta sit there and keep going.
At first, pay getting wasted in trying to find places. Last night I ruined my pay on second run. Followed directions. Ended up having to back out of a long small gravel road at night. Finally found it. But ruined my income last night. Had 2 more runs I knew. Couldn’t do them. Too late to get even one of them in. Always have to consider the other driver. Don’t be late on him.
You can expect struggle at first.
Yes 2k a week is good. It’s good for right now. But we’re here for when oil prices go back up. Then we’ll cash in.

 

Look up well site navigator on your app store. Not always the tank battery but it will get you to the well head

 

Thank You... will install it. Need all the help I can get.
Last night problem was directions. Said to keep right and keep right then turn right.
Well??? I kept right at two wrong roads. Second one was a small dirt road that ended. Had to back out of it. Doh! Have seen a small dirt road before...but .... I do' no'.... ?

 

I can't believe you didn't have it already. It's invaluable out here. Compare the directions to the hybrid map it uses and follow yourself on the map to make sure you're at the right place

 

I'll vouch for Wellsite Navigator, too.

 

Which Wellsite Navigator is the best? I see half a dozen of them up on the App Store.

 

As for the money, it's possible to gross 100k per year while holding a steering wheel in the ND oilfields, but expect to work more than everybody else. As we say, "I'm not up here for the scenery."

I know a dozen kids who came up here to pay for their future law schools. Five years and done. Now, they practice law all over the country. I know several kids who came up here to pay for their future commercial pilot training. Now, they fly all over the world. I know hundreds of guys who came here in their 40s, 50s and 60s, because they got divorce raped, lost home/kids/savings/retirement and had to restart their financial lives. Five years and done. They now own a home, drive a new pickup and work locally to pay the bills. They all had a goal. Some of them stuck it out and got what they wanted.

I cannot say that ANY cdl job is conducive to a healthy family life, but if money is what you need and family is not a consideration for you, then yes it's out there but you have two choices for that kind of money right now in times when oil is cheap:

1. Live in a truck, haul crude, and work off a time sheet for a small carrier that follows few DOT rules. I know guys grossing 15k a month as company drivers, but they are in the truck/sleeper 24/7 for weeks. They sleep a couple hours at a time whenever they aren't answering calls to hit a well, then take naps while waiting in the line at the lacts. Eat at the truck stop or occasional mobile vendor out on a lease road. A constantly sleepy existence. Very unsafe. Very unhealthy. The successful people that I know do this six months a year and go home the other six months. No path to riches, but it does get the 100k in short order. The people I have seen who try to do this all year long wind up crashing or getting hurt.

2. Sleep in a "mancamp", haul frac water and work until the frac is over (2-3 days). The "mancamp" is likely a mobile home with a dozen 8x8 sleeping room and a single shared kitchen/bathroom.. Only sound sleepers should apply. The food is a bit better as you will cook your own. However, the best cooking is not so great after 2-3 days in a truck. Again, very unhealthy for the long-term, but for a young guy without family and a five-year goal to get in and get out with a full wallet, it's doable. Again, no riches to be found, but getting ahead is possible if your living expenses are low.

A word on ND commercial mancamps: Target Logistics was the provider of the best mancamps up here, but they are now scaled way back, with several of the camps being wholly or partially disassembled and moved to other oilfields. The Hess Company anchored the locations (paid for those mancamps to be set up there in the first place). Between 2011 and 2015, the Tioga and Williston Target Logistic mancamps were among the best in the world. 24/7 buffets, laundry service, gym/sauna, areas to chill and play, Internet, individual rooms and bathrooms, cleaning staff and mail service. I stayed there. Three grand a month. For ND, it was the cream of the mancamps. Hess pulled out their sponsorships when oil got cheap. Now, the best you can do for three grand a month is a hotel room with free breakfast. If you are even there for breakfast.

A word on rumors of $150k per year that are out there: Forget it. Unless you have your own truck, tanker and authority, just forget about more than 100k per year. While possible, it is not healthy to chase that fantasy because you will be job-hopping constantly, looking for that figure. One hell of a way to live and work. Rolfson Oil advertises fuel-hauling jobs for $35/hour and 70 hours per week, which totals around $150k. But if you ask the drivers there, it is not a realistic expectation, and they ought to know.

A word on females in the oilfield: In almost ten years, I have seen 15 girls here keep a job longer than a month. Equality in the workplace is just a political BS game up here where the work is hard and the living conditions are mean. They don't want to be up here. I have seen hardened lesbians jump in a seat to make the money and they are out of here inside of a year. One hard Winter, one injury, one oil spill and a chewing out by the boss, and they are on a bus for home. So, if some guys are thinking they can come up here and find a Jane to help them relax, forget it. The kind of girls that try this life are not the kind you would want to f#$k or even know for very long.

If some bonehead in the middle east starts a war that involves the USA, I expect oil to rise, the oilfield demand to rise, and then maybe we will see the rates and hours that we saw eight years ago. Then, a 12-hour slip seat, W-2, oilfield job with average benefits will gross around 100k, working five on and one off. But currently, 100k is only doable if you put in the real hours. And those kinds of hours don't show up on an ELD.

I am not down on the oilfield opportunity, just realistic, because I have lived it for almost ten years. The money is here. I'm just not sure the money is worth the effects on your life that cannot be ignored once they hit you. Be realistic and shoot for the average income you hear about. Watch out for job ads promising more. It's all talk. And if you do come out to the oilfields, CYA. There are opportunists aplenty out here. Take care of yourself before you help anyone else. Or don't, and learn the hard way. Good luck.

 

I won't get much into specifics. It is easy to not get loads done. Any problems. Lack of training by a guy who doesn't want to see you succeed. Having to learn the hard way.
It's easy to drop to only two loads a night. Three I can see is about what I can do. Got told they should be a 2 hour turn around. Yet... it takes 45 minutes to get there. My tanker loads slow, which is about 40 something minutes. Then unload. Do the math. That ain't no 2 hour turn around. I fought on my "friday" to get 4 loads done. No day driver then. That was shaving my 14 hour clock on ELD.
Here I am looking at an additional $800 a month for apartment rent. Been spending $270 a week for a hotel room. I still have my house payment and car payment. You do the math.
Have to admit. I've put in two applications for regional pneumatic tanker jobs out of my home town. Get me home alot. I need to get home. Get place in shape if I decide to sell it or whatever.
I didn't expect the big money talked about. But did expect it a little better than this right now. What I mean is... If I could easily do 4 runs a night. 3 with problems. Have that truck back in the yard for the other guy in 12 hours. That would be good. That isn't happening. I can't see it happening with me up to speed.

Do want to say. I loved OTR. Doing that before this. Only problem is it's like cake and ice cream. It's really good, but not good for you. I was doing as good OTR or better than oil field right now. But then... I stayed out for months OTR. Little home time.
Perhaps I'm ending up in the right position for me? Healthy getting home alot? I'll see. Still in oil field. Applications submitted. Already talked to one. It's all positive. Just need to agree on pay.
One other consideration I have is my cat. I'm not cat crazy. I love animals. Either I need to get home alot with her home. Or take her with me OTR. She's got 185k miles under her belt. These places are talking home every day. Or could go overnight. Maybe more out if I want.

I did want to add. Had a great experience other morning. On a catwalk above tanks. Doing gauging. Had a bird fly up and land on my arm. He just sat there being friendly. It made my whole month.

 

I have the Wellsite Navigator USA. If that's what it's still called.