A Newbie Needing Direction

Heck no, I dont let negative talk get in my head. I have my focus on what I want for myself, and understand there may be sacrifice involved such as missing home time.

I do agree that it doesnt matter if youre running a rig in a 50 mile radius all day or hauling pipe across the Rockies, trucking is trucking. Although, i will say that one may put more gray hair on your head.

 

Not everyone wants a local job. I tried it and hated every minute of it. I like to settle down and knock down some miles and sleep in a different state every night. I ran coast to coast pulling tankers and told the company when they hired me I wasn't interested in local at all.
There's some decent local jobs with companies that hire new cdl grads like Old Dominion.

 

Let's look at grey hairs.

Do you enjoy driving? Or has there been excessive stressors in life causing you to want to hit the road?

 

Personally, I'm just looking to put my best effort into a new career. If that means going OTR, then I'm fine with that. Right now, I'm debating going flatbed or tanker. But, I certainly won't be against settling down with a nice local gig somewhere down the road....maybe after the house is paid off.

 

Ive said in the past in defense of certain Drivers here on TTR, Local is everybit as good as Sleeper Operations. If not actually a little more intense.

Ive all all sorts of trucking and my fill of it. My very personal favorite to truck is really simple. Sunday afternoon or Monday AM Drop empty, 15 minutes later hook loaded trailer in LA California due in Avenel NJ in 65 hours flat. Repeat in Avenel and be rolling back south on US 1 to be back in LA California Thurs PM or overnight into Friday soemtime. Be back in Avenel Sunday PM or monday am. A bunch of Team cents a mile top pay in 2001 versus 8000 ground miles give or take a percentage unpaid HHG (House Hold Guide or aka Zip code to zip code etc.) If expressed in 65,000 dollars gross pay earned on taxes that year the 15% loss in unpaid miles due to what the book says to pay less would be about approximately a 9860 dollar loss. Money not in our pockets.

 

The best effort you can put into this career is to aim for what you want, and work towards it always. If its hevey haul you want, go flat asap annd go from there, regional tank? Go otr tank asap and go from there. Local? Find a dock to truck operation or od estes ect.. the only real way to fail in this business is to not seek what you want, then wash out...

 

And which one do you think "will put more gray hair on your head"?

 

Flatbedding and Tanker work are two things in trucking I find Mentally engaging. Anyone can toss stuff into a van, no offense, Van is cool. Really. So is reefer. Love em all. But Flatbedding and Tanker are two kinds of higher form of trucking. A sort of a upper graduate. No ignorant idiots allowed here. People get hurt or killed when such low IQ attempt these difficult evolutions in trucking.

 

Teaming sounds like a great way to rock n' roll and earn the big paychecks. Back in the day, a solo guy could do those runs with a lil help....

 

Team driving is .... tricky. Sleeping in a moving truck, sharing a jail cell with a full grown man... you have to like, trust, and in general get along with a team driver. As well as having the same goals where money miles and home time are concerned