Day by day adventures of a new solo OTR driver

Driving is better then back tracking and looking like a fool. There are times you have to look at your route and pick the best one even if Jill says differently. One example. Denver CO to Phoenix AZ. You can the back way to flagstaff and down and deal with all those mountains and stop lights. Or just go 25-40-17120miles longer but you'll get there before the driver who took the back roads.

 

Where do I even start, lol.

Woke up and drove around the Fairless Hills lot again late this morning looking for my trailer. Of course its still not there. Called in and after sitting on hold for 30 minutes get told that all their systems are still down there is nothing they can do. One of the DBLs takes down my info and says he'll call me when it comes back up and he can see where the trailer is. I tell him that in the mean time I'm just going to open up all the boxes on the trailers for the hell of it and see if I can find bills that match because maybe the driver put the wrong dropped trailer info in his work assignment. He tells me good idea and hangs up.

After a couple trailers I find one that looks right, so I take the paperwork and compare it to my work assignment and sure enough it matches in several spots with the numbers on the bills. Trailer number isn't even remotely close to what the the workflow says it should be. You know what, screw it, close enough. Hook up and take off LOL.

Called in once I reached Maryland and talked to the same DBL who never called me back. I gave him the trailer number that I picked up and we made sure it was all correct before I brought it all the way down here, and as I thought the driver that dropped the relay put in the wrong trailer number for the drop. It arrived well before I even reached the yard last night.

I decided to take 95 to 460 because it was a light load and honestly I just didn't want to chance anything with the tunnel. When I have my choice truck and can easily dump air if need be I will give that route a shot.

Traffic after DC added about 2 hours on to my trip.

Stopped 5 miles from the delivery and will make it at the appointment time tomorrow morning. As I was sitting here updating my NAT, literally one second before I press the button to send in the update, Schneider decided they didn't give a #### about my time and would slap some crap load on me anyway. With an impossible-to-meet appointment time as well, unless I get unloaded in EXACTLY one hour on a live unload (lol yeah right) and then I can average 60MPH to the pickup (again, come on Schneider).

Then I will sit for another live load, and take an awesome 160 mile drive down into NC for a live unload delivery! Workflow remarks says "Critical Delivery".

So, on the plus side, its headed south. On the negative side, its a total crap load and will waste a ton of my day getting it done.

Depending on the next preassignment after that I may call in to my DBL and ask nicely for a nice load. I've had a ton of short crappy loads going places that really suck to go and I'm getting frustrated. I'll probably get told "oh freight is slow in this area" as I always do, then I will just suck it up and run that next crap load to wherever the hell it goes, because honestly why even put up a fight at this point.

COUNTING THE DAYS DRIVERS, I'M JUST COUNTING THE DAYS

 

Made my delivery early this morning. Of course it took over an hour. Took off for the next pickup, got there 40 minutes late. Didn't matter anyway, customer cancelled all the loads out of there. Another IC was there with the same problem.

So now I sit and wait.

[UPDATE]

DBL pulled through and got me a 1000 mile run up to Illinois. Thank God.

 

Now we're getting somewhere! After several emails back and fourth with the IC rep at Charlotte I have a lot more information about my truck, IC training, etc.

Made my delivery at a Lowes DC up here in Rockford, IL. Yesterday I put in some serious hammer time from Mebane, NC to the Indy OC... that jacked the ol' overspeed up a bit LOL. Then today I made the 300 something mile run up here to Rockford, IL. Sitting a truck stop now, no preassignment out of here yet so it looks like I'll just be waiting.

I got some pictures of my truck up in Green Bay, it looks pretty nice but it hasn't been detailed yet so I really look forward to seeing it all shined up. Its actually a 2011, not 2012 as I was originally told. 450 horse Cummins ISX, 13spd, diesel APU. Thats all I know about it at the moment,the pictures are pretty low-res so it was hard to tell anything more. It seems basic in some areas (no wood-grain dash trim, only a single passenger side hood mirror) but then has some options (trolley valve, a few extra gauges, etc.) in other areas. I guess finding out all the little details will just have to be a surprise. Really hoping it has a suspension dump valve though. There is one odd switch on the dash but I can't tell what it is for when I zoom in.

Anyway, I will see if my DBL can get me routed down to Charlotte in the next couple days so I can clean out my company truck, and take a few days off before I head up to Green Bay. I've been out for over 3 weeks so I'd like a little break if possible, but we will see if that works out or not.

Starting to get excited!!

 

When are you doing the class and do you have to go to Green Bay? And what make is the truck? WTG btw!

 

Diesel,

Your buying this truck to make more money ? I get your tired of the $600 paychecks but I don't think buying a truck is going to fix that problem.

Your a good driver. Why not look into another company ? You know what your worth....get on with a company that will pay you what you deserve. Forget about taking on the extra headache of truck payments, fuel, repairs, etc.

 

Or be your own boss, go where you want when you want and own the truck at the end of the payments. I like option number two myself. And I want to know if you have ever leased a truck from Schneider and been on the Choice Program? Because the folks he has been talking to are on it and give real advice not opinions( which btw are a dime a dozen)

 

Just hope your not one of the 80% that fail. It's a lot work. Company driver you'll make 40,000$plus. As a ic after all the headache you'll b lucky to do 30,000$.

 

Thanks! I do have to do my training through Green Bay since the truck is up there - I'm aiming for the 4th, if not then then it'll be the 11th. I see no reason the 4th won't work out though. They will rent me a car and I'll make the drive up there from NC. The truck is a Cascadia. Really no complaints about them other than I might have to get a more comfortable seat at some point.

I'm doing this for many reasons. More money is only one of them, but honestly not the biggest reason, others include many of the reasons that mary trucker listed in her post as well. I know I will not make it rich especially while I am still making truck payments. I know it will be a learning process and I'll have some ups and downs with it just like I have had as a company driver.

But honestly, I don't want to be a company driver. I want a little bit more freedom to choose where I go and when I want to take a little time off. I want my own truck that I can make into a truck that I am totally comfortable in. I want to be really working towards something to further my career and experiences.

I know the risks of a lease-purchase program and I understand why so many people fail at it AND why so many people are scared of it. But I know I can make it work. With the program set up like Schneider has, I can't point a finger at a dispatcher and say "hey its YOUR fault". No, it's up to me this time around. And that's the way I want it.

I have talked to countless Schneider IC's in person. I can HONESTLY say that not ONE of them running on the Choice program said that they were unhappy with how things were going. Are things perfect? No, of course not.

Before I started driving for Schneider I worked as a mechanic at an independent truck shop. I worked on anything and everything, big trucks, little trucks, suspension, drivelines, clutches, brakes, inframes, etc etc. I do NOT know it all by ANY means but I learn quick. I know how expensive repairs can be and I know how much time, effort, and money is involved. I also know that I can save myself a lot of money because I am not the least bit afraid to get my hands dirty. I know the ISX has some issues with the EGR valves and EGR coolers - but it will be an easier engine for me to work on than say a DD15 (not knocking the DD15, I think its a very good engine, just not as friendly when it comes to the ease of working on one).

I know many are happy and successful as company drivers, regardless of who you work for. There is a lot to be said for the simplicity of being paid to just drive the truck. But me personally I want more than that. I want the truck, the loads, the business, the freedom that being an owner/operator offers. I have wanted this for a long time, long before I ever started driving, and I will make it work.

It will take time for me to get everything that I want out of it, trust me I understand that. But Schneider has given me an opportunity to get a start when no dealership or bank would even want to talk to me. I've proven to them that I'm capable of it, put up with a lot of BS, but you know you gotta deal with that some times.

 

Mary Trucker why are you taking what I said so personal? You yourself are not a trucker so you're just giving your opinion which is a dime a dozen by your own admission.

Diesel, leasing a truck is a big decision. There's a lot of headaches that go with leasing a truck. From reading your posts I think you're a talented driver who should explore all his options. I'm just saying this as a friend, explore your options with other companies that might pay you more as a company driver and give you more miles rather than take on the responsibility of owning a truck.