Being Aware as a Driver. (Long Post Warning)

One night, I was working security at a concert with Sarge. We got a call about a domestic in the parking lot and I see this guy giving his lady a severe beating. I went Full Captain Savahoe Mode. I got the guy and put him down. This heifer hit me so hard that she loosened all me teeth. Sarge walks up and says to me, “Son, did you figure out what you did wrong?”

But Sarge, I don’t believe in hitting women...

“I don’t believe that we pay you to take an arse whippin and YOU TOOK AN ARSE WHIPPIN!”

Gotcha.

Years later, I went off the road and went into private security. I worked for a guy that ran 8 hotels around the country. Good, easy gig. This one time, I was in a hotel, doing my thing, going on a cruise ship in a few hours, kick back and relax. Got a call over the radio. The cute barkeep, Stephanie, asked me in a sweet voice to come into the lounge to see her. So, I walk in, there’s a few guys in there, Steph’s standing on the outside of the bar counter smiling at me. I walk between a few guys standing in the bar, stand beside her look at her, she smiles really big. I smile back.

“She called security on us?!?!?”

I spin around. At this time, I was in my prime, 230 lbs, size 48 jacket and a 32 inch waist. There were 3 guys, 2 of them were my size and the guy standing in front was about 320 solid. Pro wrestlers. Drunk. This big guy is yelling, but I’m not really paying attention to what he’s saying, because my mind is trying to figure out how I did not see this and walked my dumb arse right in the middle. Sarge’s words came back to me...”Hey Six, you’re about to take another arse whippin...right before you go on your cruise...FOCUS SIX, get your head on the job.”

“You think you’re a bad arse, don’t you?”

He’s talking, we can communicate. We may not have to fight...

Anyways the reason for this post is in response to the many threads about guns and personal protection in trucks. Remember the old saying, ‘an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure.’ No weapon, no amount of training is going help you if you are not paying attention to your surroundings. You guys know how predators work right? They attack the weak and the sick. If you are the target, guess what that means?

When you get off the highway to make your way to the truck stop, scan the street corners. Dude with a cardboard sign at the intersection? Guys standing on the street corners and sidewalks? Are there bunches of people standing in the front of the truck stop waiting? What are they waiting for? Is there a fence around the parking area?

You pull into the truck parking lot. Are there people standing in the parking lot that don’t look like a driver? Are they paying attention to which way you’re going? Did they start moving after you went by? They did? Bet on him being outside your truck when you stop.

GUNS
If you’re going to carry, know the laws. All the laws for the areas you’re in. Some place, you can stand your ground, some places require you to retreat, some places, your truck/sleeper is covered by the castle doctrine. Like I said, do your research.

“But Six, what about things like flare guns, oven cleaner, brake cleaner, and bear spray...etc?”

If it can cause permanent harm to another, you want to go by the gun rules. Example, just having a gun will get you into hot water in Jersey, right? So you decide to carry a flare gun. Some fool tries to steal the load out of your wagon and you get out, point a flare gun at him and fire a warning shot to scare him off. Can you get arrested for that? What if, instead, you give him an eyeful of oven cleaner and you call the cops while the guy is down on the ground bawling? You’re probably in big BIG trouble.

“So, what can we do, Six? For personal security?”

I can’t answer that for you. It seems as if the laws are written to protect the criminals, doesn’t it? But notice that when the topics of gun and gun control comes up, you always hear
1. Better to be judged by 12 than carried by six.
2. I’d rather have it and not need it and need it and not have it.
3. Dead Men Tell No Tales

Anyways, no matter what you do, or whatever you carry, if you think that you can use it to scare people off, you’re going to end up in jail. If you are firing a warning shot, you’re going to jail. If you carry a blade and some fool pulled a blade on you, when the cops question you, DO NOT SAY, “Knife Fight.” Ever. A knife fight is a duel and duels are illegal and have been for 200 years.

 

Decades ago, every driver I knew carried 2 guns in the truck. You left your radio on and covered each other’s back. In fact, if a Bear was having a tough time, they’d back him up.

Of course, things are different today. I heard a study where an experiment was held where they’d have an unsuspecting person come in to fill out a form. A person in on the experiment leads them to a room with a table and chairs. A couple minutes later, they’d lead in another person who’s in on it, sit them in the same room at the same table. The person that leads them in then goes out and closes the door. Suddenly, there’s a crash and the person that lead the people to the table begs for help.

If the 2nd person at the table ignores the cries for help, only 7% of the unsuspecting would respond. If the 2nd person does get up, 70% of the unsuspecting got up to help

What does this have to do with trucking? If something goes down, even with others around, odds are, you’re on your own.

Luck in battle.

 

The reason why I started this thread was to emphasize that the absolute best thing to do when it comes to safety is to be aware of your area and whose in the area BEFORE the trouble can began.

Some times at the lunch counter's you hear some driver bragging about throwing a piss bottle on a lizard. Some places, the lizards used to be in the parking lots under the supervision of a pimp, or some low end low life gang. That's why I was talking about looking at the front of the truck stop to see whose standing around. Certain pickle parks included. Next time I see them, I will take pics to give an example of what I'm talking about.

 

Got some pics.

 

Well, I missed the pics I was looking for. The guy with the blue shirt stands in front of the truckstop all day. He's not exactly what I was looking for, but you guys will get the idea. Most of the time, the guys you look out for look like him, but young. They will be gang members. They won't speak to the girls unless it's absolutely necessary. And the crackheads steer clear of them. They will be overseeing the area. So, no throwing stuff at the girls and don't bother calling the cops.
EDIT: I don't mean this in a racist way, but the truckstops they get bought out by the easterners will be overrun with these gang guys. Dangerous places. If in doubt, and you need a parking spot, call the truckstop.