3 months OTR update—Winters coming

Just giving an update I have officially been OTR for 3 months driving for USA Truck. In that time period I have gone through almost every major east of I-35. Last week I drove through tropical storm Ida while heading to Atlanta. I know I have to get through a winter to be fully seasoned so I’m curious what am I in store for?

 

Congrats on making it this far and keep us posted with your progress.

 

All depends on your company area coverage . Get ready to put chains on i70 in Colorado , snow storms , icy roads . Just take extra care ...even if you are the slowest truck i will be mad at you trying to pass instead of being pissed of sitting 3 hours in jam after you crashed into something . Just use your head and you should be fine .
....btw i never put chains in my truck , driver did , but i rarely go west ... especially in winter

 

reduced speeds when required.

no sudden steering wheel movements.

no jacking up on your brakes

you may have to chain up, in my entire career of 48 years, i never did, and never would have. if i saw chains mounted on the back of a tractor when applying for a job?

i'd walk away. every company i ever worked for said, "park it, call us, keep us up to date as to when you can roll again".

can't say i care of anyone else's opinions on what I DID,

you'll get thru it, hopefully you pay attention to the actual weather reports. some drivers "play games" and embellish the weather ahead of you.

 

Check your 5th wheel everytime you drop/hook, or even disconnect for loading/unloading. You want it well greased to help reduce jackknifing potential.

 

Make sure you have plenty of food and water in case you get stuck in some god forsaken place.

 

mid to latter 2000 decade.
Truck Owner, based in NC, bought a set of Chains for Western Travel.
Chains were in Factory Bag in exterior Aluminum storage box on Driver Side behind Fuel Tank. Chains became a boat anchor (rusted up) from NEVER having been used.
They were NOT replaced.

No Worries Mate!

 

Drive to your comfort level - don't worry about how many trucks are passing you. If you don't feel safe then park it.

 

i found several packages of PB crackers to store away well and not take up too much space. as well as a jar of PB, plastic knives or spoons (to spread it), maybe a loaf of bread as well. these items do not need refrigeration, and can last for weeks on end. 2 liter bottles of water, can last all day long as well.

i'll add, NEVER let anyone push you to drive faster, or humiliate you into driving faster. those are super truckers, and in time, we have seen them in the ditches.

always COMMUNICATE with dispatch AND safety if you have to, to keep them informed on what you are doing, like parking, and waiting out a storm. and if you are going to be late. they will call the customer and they will COMMUNICATE to the customer.

 

Bring cash money on you, preferably about $500. I always tried to park it before it got bad enough that chains were required. If you ever get yourself in a pinch and you don't know how to chain, offer people $100 cash money to chain up for you. Most veteran drivers could probably chain in 30 minutes, so I mean that's pretty good money for 20 - 30 minutes of work. If you're not getting any takers then keep upping the price until somebody chains up for you.

Also, if you want to learn how to chain, you need to start learning now and practicing in parking lots so that by the time you're forced to chain when it's snowing like hell at 20 degrees F and your hands are frozen, you should be able to get the chains on in a decent amount of time.