Critical Event

Don't feel bad. If anyone can royally screw up it's me. I once put a lawyer and her brand new BMW into the grass median at 70 near York PA one day on I-83. It was a major traffic conflict and the only move I needed to make to be sure I did not take out three cars on the right which was what I was about to do.

Anyway, I forgot all about it until that year's Company Holiday Celebration in form of a safety meeting. The big suit poobah got up and then detailed the situation with one of us trucks running the lawyer off the road to all of us. Oh yea I remember that incident. But knew enough to keep my mouth shut. Whatever issues the Lawyer had probably got papered over with a nice check that they write now and then to people who complain. =) //snarky

 

don't worry about that I got to cut people off everyday when I go downtown it's not enough room for truck sometimes just make sure you watch you'll tail

 

not in the trucking industry.. well, not past day 2

 

I usually tell new trainers who have been appointed over me two things.

1- Whatever happens, don't yell.

2- Tell me two things I need to know and wait on the rest, if you told me three or more things then I forget the first thing. Or maybe all of it. He he.

And you wonder why there is peace and quiet in that truck.

I had one trainer in my lifetime who was more than good. Awesome even. Taught God how to drive a big rig. Anyway after the third week of radio wars keeping everyone awake in the sleeper (Usually Christian based programs like Unshackled on my part or his part heavy metal music of the long hair kind etc) He asked me if I was a Christian, I said yes what are you?

"Hellion"

ok that settles that part what do we do with the music? We had sleeper controls in those days so it was no trouble to isolate the music to the cab up front so whomever was in sleeper could actually sleep.

We did not have too many problems after that episode.

 

These are not critical events in my book. Chill out, man.

 

Trainers always seem to get excited about the way other people drive.

I had a trainer that was more concerned that the tandems when making a right turn were kissing the edge of the white line. He wasnt even concerned that there was traffic I needed to watch when making the turn. I made the turn (checking the left mirror). The tandems never went onto the white line. You would have thought he was having a heart attack of if the tandems got on the white line.

 

Two reasons.

1) if a driver is popping critical events they are statistically more likely to have a dot reportable accident.

2) hard breaks tend to make loads shift which can be very expensive.



The driver of this load had a hard break and moved the freight all the way forward.