Do you really enjoy trucking?

I, like alot of previous posters, was born into trucking and was pretty much raised in and around trucks. I turned 18 on a Monday, had a CDL that Thursday and was Hauling sand and gravel Friday. I've never looked back since. I love what I do. PERIOD. I can't point out one part of the job that I like more than anything else. I love the job. My grandfather, father, and uncle all drove trucks. My father and uncle still drive. I'm the last one in our family to drive. All the other kids went on to do other things but I followed in their footsteps and I guess you can say I'm keeping the tradition alive for one more generation.

 

Interesting. I'm a driver who loves photography, especially photojournalism. When I was a local driver, I "moonlighted" as a stringer for our local newspaper shooting about 80% sports and 20% news and "fluff". I love both driving and taking photos. So much so that I take my big Nikon D300 with a grip out with me on most trips. That being said, I think the only thing that could take me out of the driver's seat right now would be if I were offered a full-time staff position at a newspaper.

 

I grew up around trucks ...my dad worked in a factory and always had at least 2 old worn out unsafe un-roadworthy trucks usually dump trucks...my brother had descent road worthy tractors for many years ...so all I knew about was trucks and all I wanted to do since I was little was be a truckdriver..I took autobody in school and did fairly well at it but my heart wasnt in it ..I worked in a couple of local body shops and a very short stint in a muffler shop( screwing innocent people daily)...If your hearts not in it ,its not going to work for you...first 5 years I drove made way less than I did in the body shop but the money didnt matter ( as long as I could survive)..money is not everything if you dont enjoy what your doing its not worth any amount of money...thats a major hangup with many drivers...the newbies as well as some of the old seasoned veterans alike...if you enjoy it and take it serious , keep your record clean you will eventually find the home you been looking for...took me 11 years till I found what I was looking for...but I never gave up looking and always gave 100% even if I didnt like the job,equipment or my boss....give it all you got and dont give up you will find a happy home someday if you are truly looking..

 

You will never make a go of this business unless you really have a passion for trucks and the lifestyle.

 

Check out "Truck Stop" by Bryan Di Salvatore and Marc F. Wise. I think you'll appreciate Wise's photographs. I think you can find the book on Amazon. Three-four dollars, something like that. And any time you want to post photos here, I'll bet I'm not the only one who'd like to see them.

 

Been doing this for 30 years,could have retired 5 years ago ,but haven't, because I love the job too much.I'm home every night with weekends off so I have time for my family and relaxing,On Mondays,I hit it hard again.When I max out my time here and retire,I'll probably drive part time for a small Mom and Pop company.

 

I couldn't imagine doing anything else........

 

There are alot of pitfalls in this racket, many abuses, and many headaches. But I wouldn't trade it for the world. When I think back to 1976 and all the whining, grumpy, unappreciative jackarses that I had to face each morning when I went to work in the steel mill, I thank the Lord every morning for giving me the ability to do this deal. It ain't for everybody, but it's for me. The sunrises, the sunsets, the freedom to sleep when I want, eat when I want, screw around when I want, talk to who I want, work when I want, all make this job worthwhile.

Wouldn't trade places with anyone in this world.

 

speaking of loving trucks.....i even got 1/32 diecast trucks under the bed

when i was little i used 2 draw trucks and i could make'em out of paper...

 

I do really enjoy it.

Maybe I'm weird, but I enjoy the oddball schedules and working in the middle of the night. I also get to see places I never would have seen otherwise, and it's something different every day. I listen to music and Howard Stern every day, as well as just starting to get into this whole audiobook thing. I eat somewhere new every night, and while I lie down in the bunk I get to watch a ridiculious amount of movies. It's also great to be able to stop every once in a while and realize just how cool of a job I have.

I have always tried to live my life as if I had the same person ask me every single day, "what did you do yesterday", and want to have a different answer every time. Trucking suits that very well.

I am lucky that I do work for one of the better companies out there, although I do have a lot of things I could complain about working for them. However, I rarely deal with company stuff, and deal mostly with my boss and my dispatcher. They are both great to work for, and really make my job what it is. I also find that avoiding other drivers from my company as much as possible, so I don't have to hear everything they feel the need to complain about (which is usually just that they feel they shouldn't have to do their job), really helps keep a positive attitude.

Only real downside for me is in leaving my wife. We talk several times a day, so the being apart doesn't really become an issue. We live 1,000 miles away from our families, so I spend too much time worrying about what will happen if she every has a problem and who will be able to help her with it. My boss will do everything he can to get me home quickly if there ever is a need, but we all know that there is only so much that can be done with that, no matter how hard the boss tries. We are taking steps to move closer to family, which will put both of us at ease.

That will trade one downside for another. Short version is that I am not happy with what my employment options will be once we move. Not willing to put up with the BS from a crappy company, and I have too much experience to where I feel they deserve what I have to offer or could give me what I feel I want/deserve. Most likely going to have to buy my own truck to do things like I want, which will be both a blessing and a curse.