Any insider understand how large carriers calculate rates

Nope it was a legit question

 

Sometimes you're the hammer, sometimes you're the nail.

 

do you happen to know how certain carriers are bale to bid on spot? We have numerous owner ops out here that are considering banding together to get a contract and we would also like to bid on spot. Thanks

 

We actually had to hire a consultant to help us get started, to get our foot in the door. It's tough, especially for smaller companies, as the manufacturers want to deal with carriers with 100's of trucks.

And we did spot buys for several years before they'd even consider letting us bid on a ramp contract.

 

It really boils down to supply and demand, which drives everything up including freight rates. It also doesn’t last a time definite period like contract freight. Some people I know have been hauling overflow for the last year or so, grossing $20,000-$30,000 a week. (paper logs)
It could end tomorrow or it could last a couple more years.