Becoming a pimp (Escort Service start-up questions)

My grandfather had a few trucks when I was growing up and I fell in love with trucks at a young age. I never got into driving (married young, had a kid now out of high school) but lately I've been exploring options to start a business and get paid for my work.

I live right by the ports in Baltimore and at least once a week I see the main road get shut down for superloads leaving the area. It got me thinking seriously about whether running pilot/escort could be profitable (covering business expenses and leaving a net equal to my current gross income).

From reading here and elsewhere, I have gathered the following info that I am incorporating into research:

1) Be on time and fueled up (I hate that my wife is late everywhere she goes. I would get my daughter to lacrosse practice at least 30 minutes early and still be worried about getting there late)
2) Be fueled up (my numbers assume I fill up my truck everyday)
3) Have all the right gear (my start-up costs are trying to account for everything like gloves, reflective raingear, spare cones and flags, etc as well as money in the budget weekly to replace stuff)
4) Have extra gear (planning to carry basic maintenance parts for my truck and tools would include my battery power tools, just in case we need to chop a sign post and put it back to togther after the load clears)
5) Run long (planning on truck cap and kitting out to run weeks/months at a time)
6) Get certified everywhere (Starting with Virginia and PA- I don't want to lose runs because I can't cross a state border)
7) Money in the budget for the unexpected


I know there is a #### ton I don't know that I don't know. I was talking to a longtime family friend today whose been driving for 8 years and is starting to break into the OSOW world (sounded like his oversize loads so far mostly haven't required rolling obstacles, as he called them). He gave a number of things to think about, and said it sounded like I'm approaching this the right way. He suggested I check out a local outfit near me that he has been talking to and there might be some ride-along opportunities to start real learning. I've also started to notice the handful of escorts that live in my area and will probably leave a card on windshields to see if they're open to advice giving.

All the above said:

1) How many paid miles do you think escorts get a year? I know it varies from load drivers, as you guys tend to look at whtat the load pays, not how many miles it is. I haven't seen sources on the paid miles for the escort.
2) Is daily rate the way to go? I've seen several sites advertising their escorts at a daily rate.
3) How long do you think it takes to go from minimal experience to being known as reliable and competent? How often do you get escorts in their first month or two and keep their info on-hand?
4) Where else should I look for more info? I've been trawling the forums here, several pilot car websites, YouTube channels, state

I don't want to do this if I'd be one of the chuckle ####ers you all fire before they get out of their vehicle. If I make this jump, it has to be because I can do it well and make a living at it. I'll shut up now and listen, because I could type for hours about all the thises and thatses and I won't be learning a #### thing.

Thanks!

 

Thank you both!

I appreciate the suggestions. I'm not quitting my day job tomorrow- this would be an investment and well thought move.

Getting ride alongs and possibly working part time for someone else are high on my list of figuring out how to do it.

 

Oh, yeah- I mean I'm not rushing in and setting myself up for failure by getting in over my head. I don't want to set myself for financial failure because I assumed it would be easy and I would walk to the top of the food chain.

Short ride alongs are exactly what I was thinking for a first step to peel back the first layer of any misconceptions I have. I know Maryland is tricky with some of the weekend rules, so getting out then might not be doable. But I can find ways to get bend my schedule and get a day or two here and there during the week to learn.

From zero, I've estimated it's $25k to get fully setup to run, get close by state certs, cover 3 months of my current gross salary and have operating money for those first 3months...I'm trying to be very realistic about the cost and figure out how fast the return on that investment would be.

Traveling off the east coast would be part of the plan. I don't think running local would be enough to justify the effort and expense.

 

Hoping ya'll don't mind me picking your brains with some business-type questions.

I've talked to a couple pilot operators in the MD region, one independent and one mostly brokering/subbing jobs out. The independent said his gross was in the range of what I'd be targeting, and the one subbing work out has a pair that also are grossing what I'd be doing.

The independent said it was a feast or famine world. He left the east coast during the last holiday season to the west coast and it sounded like he deadheaded the whole way back because he couldn't find a load. He said he also spent about two weeks crashed on someone's couch in the south trying to find something back.

I would be a fool to discount their facts, but I can't help but wonder if there is an element of not looking hard enough for something? If you can afford to deadhead for 1500 miles after two weeks doing nothing, then why not relocate to somewhere else after a few days to where more action is?

I'm joining Facebook groups, researching the different places ads are placed, popped into a local heavy haul outfit's office to understand how they find people...it seems like there is work out there, and aside form building a reputation for competency, you have to go to the work somewhat.

Could using tools like DAT's O/O services to see the volume of loads in and out of a region be smart for a pilot? I can imagine comparing two loads, one paying better but into a less active region being a bad choice if you have the chance to end up where there is more activity and a faster follow-up.

Does following shipping news play a role in knowing where to be and when? Like a typhoon just delayed a bunch of stuff, so wait out the lull for week and it will pick back up? Are there other industry's you watch to know where to be and when?

Thanks! (If I should pack it up and be a bother elsewhere, feel free to shoo me off )