2200 miles a week as a newbie?

Ah, no. If that is the question I have to disagree with those who posted before me.

You can drive 2200 miles a week. That should not be much of a problem for a newbie, although some have have a problem with that.

A recruiter will certainly promise you more than 2200 miles. 2500+ miles is usually what they promise. Of course they give nothing to back up that promise and most drivers will never notice. Except for a few rare occasions, most drivers do not average 2500 miles a week. Some diluted individuals claim they do. Others have a unrealistic high opinion of themselves and claim they get 3500-4000 miles a week from mega-crap companies. That, even in the best of conditions, is not likely.

The average at most mega-crap companies is anywhere from 1500-2000 miles a week for a drivers. With the abundance of drivers and lack of paying freight there is just no incentive to dig up more miles. Finding miles for drivers takes work on the part of the desk jockeys. If they can con a driver into working hard for 1500 miles running short runs they make more coin. Their stats. are better, and they do less work. Since a driver will work much harder for 1500 miles a weak with 300 mile runs, then a week with one 2000 mile run, many drivers think they ran more miles than the they did.

As proof: The average length of haul in mega-crap truckload is about 450miles. Each 450mile run will be run on a two day schedule. Most of the time spent on that load, a driver will be waiting to get loaded or unloaded. Since the load spans two days there is no incentive for the desk jockey to plan another load on the truck after it gets unloaded the second day. The driver has a load each day and there is no call for paying layover until the next morning following the unload that probably took 8 hours anyway. The deal is on the average in mega-crap trucking you are running a planned 450 mile every other day. Within 6 days of the week you have run 3x450 = 1350 miles. Add some deadhead in and subtract some free miles for the company and you get the weekly average for mega-crap trucking: 1500miles.

There is a reason Roehl makes the drivers sign a contract stating the driver will pay Roehl when leaving before trucking about a years worth of miles. The reason is at some point drivers realize they are working 70-90 hours a week for chicken feed. That is why turnover is 100%+ in truckload.

 

I am sure I want to go OTR, I have already done local many years ago and not interested in doing it again. The issue I have is sharing a small space with someone else, not trucking or OTR so not sure how that would lead to me winding up in a ditch. I am not stressed out about it, I just know that I won't like it, but fully accept that I will have to in order to accomplish my goal.

Oh , and I do know I cannot avoid confrontation, but I do try to make sure I am not the one that initiates it.

 

no doubt about it, your gonna hate the training part with a driver who has 6 months experience on a power trip.

 

No way around it, just have to grit my teeth and get through it.

 

How old are you? Are you a geezer? I think the younger guys get through it easier then the older guys.

 

One many aren't aware of big time is Seasonal Affective Disorder.

 

45, I think you may be right.

In any case, regardless of the psychological disorders I am currently being diagnosed with, I still have every intention of going through with it.

 

Thats funny right there!

 

45? Your just a youngster. You wont have any problem.