Alley dock frustration, will I ever get good at it?

I been doing it 5 years and I still suck at it. I merely suck less than I used to. People been doing it a lot longer than me still don't nail it every time. When you do happen to nail it one time, you'll find yourself strutting around like you nail it every time, and some rookie will be looking at you like #####, I'll never be that good....

 

Along the lines Dave1837 said, without the chalk.
The truck parked in the alley/dock, whatever. When truck pulls out where will the truck/trailer track? Gives me picture in my head where everything needs to be.
If I picture it being so tight pulling out that I will need to pull as far as I can then back up to jack trailer to get out, then I know what it will take to back in. Such cases I make no attempt to do it in on shot. Completely satisfied knowing it will take pull ups to get in hole, if so tight.
Alot of babbling here...hope it makes alil sense?

 

Exactly this ^

been doing this for a handful of years now and I still have good and bad attempts. Its all about setup and sometimes your gonna nail it, sometimes not so much. As long as you have the right idea you can get it in the ballpark and the rest is about knowing how to finesse it from there.

I've had to squeeze into some tight spots in los angeles and NY when I was OTR, as well as some really tight docks down here at these smaller grocery stores. Sometimes I surprise myself and nail it first go. On the other hand, at the DC I've docked at a million times that has a ridiculous amount of space and should be super easy... --sometimes I botch that and surprise myself by looking like a total newb. Mostly because of my attitude that its a nothingburger causes me to carelessly whip it around. The other guys here do the same thing. I see veterans pulling forward several times to get it right, its kind of funny if you think about it, but we all know we are basically on autopilot mentally so its not a big deal and no prob to wait for others. Its the newer guys that are self-conscious about it. I've had them approach me inside at the window after taking a while to back up: "Hey man sorry for taking so long back there"... I'm usually scratching my head like "What are you talking about?".

I think there is a threshold of diminishing returns that you reach when backing. You're never gonna exceed that level no matter how good you think you are, and that threshold is not as far away from being a total newb backer as you think it might be. Very very very rarely do I ever see some christmas tree chicken hauling longnose whip it right into a spot like an expert at nitro or braselton. These old fellers that have been doing it much longer than I have are indistinguishable from newbies in many cases. Just goes to show you that backing in general is always going to be work. Don't beat yourself up about it.

 

Say hello to my little friend.

 

better watch it with any poo altering chemicals. i had a bad experience w/tums. kept popping them to prevent my stomach from churning after eating those big greasy iron skillet dishes so i could keep rolling. suffice to say i shat a big boulder that tore my ####### a new #######

 

I was going to stay out of this subject but decided to weigh in. This comes down to a simple thing. Either you have the makings of being a trucker or you do not! If you have the makings you will master this maneuver and do it safely. This 90/alley dock is the basis of almost every back you will do except for a straight in back. What you MUST do is practice this maneuver until you commit it to muscle memory. Practice this back every chance you get. I am not trying to start a flame war, but this maneuver is something you need to be shown how to do then go do it. Nobody in these forums, not even the super truckers can help you with this by using written words.

I am not trying to scare you, but at some point, you are going to be hit with a dock that requires you to blindside back. Master this alley dock ASAP!

 

In my first year. I’d watch guys back in. At a particularly tight Pilot. I watched this guy just back right in. He nailed it. I went over and asked him. Either you’re the best driver in the world. Or you’re crazy. He burst out laughing. Said; I had a spotter.

 

Don't beat yourself up bro. You'll get the hang of it eventually. I'll give you some tips that helped me get to where I am today as far as my maneuvers go.

1. Try not to panic or get frustrated. Easier said than done right? Take a minute to compose yourself.

2. Don't rush. And don't let anybody rush you. Doesn't matter who's inside waiting on the load. If you hit anything, it's on your ###. Not theirs.

3. Get out and look. I've been backing now for a few years and I still get out once or twice if I'm unsure.

4. Sometimes it's better to reset than to keep rocking back and forth with it.

There's a bunch more stuff I could say but these are some basic ideas. Even though it might not seem like it, you WILL get to a point where it becomes second nature.

 

Practice is the answer. Imagine there is some magic number of backing events that causes the "light to turn on in your head" and you are easily able to back.

NEVER avoid a chance to back. Most newbies run away from backing unless there is no option. That just increases the stress and delays the day you get the hang of backing. My trainer made me back every time we entered a truck stop, even if there were pull-thru spots available. Doing OTR you might only back once a day unlesd you seek out the practice. Practice.

Even after you know what you are doing there will be days you can't back into easy spots. Old timers have the same thing.

 

Sorry to learn about your Ace Ventura exiting the mechanical rhinoceros episode.

Fortunately, Imodium has been kind to me over the years, and I have yet to have such a raging bull crash through those rodeo gates as you have.