Maverick Transportation

MISA Leveling, Middletown, OH.

 

One thing I should have mentioned in the earlier post...

My little "idea" turned a 1 hour job onto a 3.5 hour job and kept me from getting home today (that and the 2 accidents right in a row on I75...one at the 275 exit in Ohio and another at the 166 mm in KY)

Oh well, alls well that ends well...I'll get home tomorrow around 1000.

 

I am not sure if I have been there. Does not ring a bell. I know where middletown is, but the customer doesn't click.

 

i know what you mean re turning the steel tarps sideways, but its not done that way often and your not used to tarping that way so it does take you longer. I have had big single nuggets that required me to use 1 lumber tarp so it would be completely covered. i used it, it looked great, and put it in my l-call that i had to use a lumber tarp to cover the load properly. They gave me lumber tarp pay.

they are alot heavier but i put it on the front of the trailer, unrolled it to the coil, threw the tag end over the coil and tarped from there.

 

Yeah when you load out of russellville don't even think of using steel tarps on them coils.....

 

Thanks for the tip.

 

When I was on the short haul division I lived just down the road by Ft Campbell so I used to load out of there all the time on my covered wagon. I would have to untie all of my ropes down the right side and stretch the what little bit of tarp i had over the top of the coils and when I has finished the bottom edge of the tarp would just touch the top of my side boards.

 

Plusses and minuses for Maverick? 2 yrs OTR experience. Looking at them now.

 

Positives' -

Top notch safety program. (Literally one of the safest in the nation)

Trucks will not be cut back on speed unless you don't meet MPG requirements. Then they turn it back up when you get your mileage up. (could be a negative also, depending on the driver)

All the equipment you need to perform the job to the standards that they set forth. -

Trucks are the same way. They are good work trucks. (this also has to go in the Negative category because they leave a lot to be desired even from a "working truck" perspective. Most drivers would like to see things like suspension dump valves that are not there, or air ride passenger seats for any riders you may have. Once again good work trucks though.

Equipment is maintained really well. They don't skimp on any maintenance that I have ever seen.

Equipment looks nice and uniform. Again could go into the negative category depending on the driver. You can't add chicken lights or chrome except lug nut covers and center caps. However rarely will you see even an old trailer going down the road with a rusted old rim. Maverick likes a clean, uniform, professional look.

Leads me to the next one. Personal appearance. Once again depending on the driver this could be a negative. They don't allow scraggly looking beards, hair or clothes. However you look more professional and the customers like it better than having a bum on the dock moving their freight.

Personal dispatch. I have had two fleet managers and they each knew both my face and my first name. As a matter of fact the people up at Gary knew about my wife being deployed to Iraq and would ask about her when I would stop in. Nice personal touch that is greatly appreciated.

You don't haul freight that they can't prove you can safely secure. (kinda falls under safety)

Most people that drive for them are really great truckers. Notice I didn't say "drivers"? Anyone can drive a truck. A good trucker will help you tarp in the rain after He (or she) is finished.

They have a strong customer base.

Negatives

The fore-mentioned cons that also fell under the positive column.

Over securement is the name of the game. Maverick drivers are some of the very few that double tarp. However being fair, it protects both the equipment and the load.

Most will suffer from some amount of TMC envy when you are parked next to them securing you load. But on the bright side you can get a quick glance at you face to see if you wiped grease all over your forehead while you were wiping sweat away by taking a glance at your reflection on one of their fuel tanks.

No APU's - enough said

Driver dress code - Again falls in both categories but Maverick does not want their drivers wearing short pants even in truckstops. Once again in all fairness though most Mills require it anyway, and long sleeve shirts to boot.

They will fire your butt on the spot if you don't do certain things. (trip chains) However bumping this off of their safety rating you quickly understand why once again they are the way that they are.

I'm sure that there is many more on both sides of the coin. I guess I established some sort of basement on which other drivers can add to or argue against.

Overall here is my personal take on Maverick. I have driven in both their short haul as well as US divisions and I have never been lied too, and they always kept me busy. Everything Maverick has ever said was the way that it was. If you can follow the rules that they set forth, you will be successful. If you don't like to conform to company policy you should not apply. I have lots of stories from my years with Maverick both good and yes I too have a bad stories. If you take all things into perspective it very well may be a company that you can call home. Personally I don't want to drive for any other company.

 

The new trucks (all of them) have EPU's.