Flatbed trucking-Possible?

You don't have to drive dirty sweaty I always take ten or fifteen minutes to clean myself up and change clothes before I hit the road it is not as good as a shower but all I need is some handi wipes some bottled water and I can be squeaky clean in minutes and ready to roll.Later

 

Flatbedding is the last job I would ever want to do. Lets see there is chaining, binding, tarping, putting up side kits, taking them down, doing any and all of these functions in the elements; rain, wind, sleet, snow, and blazing sun. Now lets consider all the ratchet binders and pipes a driver will use for leverage (aka cheater bars) to tighten down the load. Think you can do this without getting dirty? HAHA in your dreams. Think you will do this is 15 minutes? HAHA again in your dreams! You can and will spend hours getting some of these loads properly secured and covered. Now you get to drive the truck and you are hot, sweaty, and sore. Sounds like fun to me! Still want to do flatbedding??? Ok lets consider the other aspect of pay. Many companies expect you to tarp 2 to 3 loads a week for free. All other securement is done at your cost not the companies. Any more than 4 tarps per week you should get paid for. Now compare that to the ease of pulling a dry van or reefer. Open the doors. The shipper loads the truck the receiver unloads the truck. You wear gloves to protect your hands from the filthy door handles. You will put in a load lock if the customer didnt put an air pack bag in the back to secure the freight. Or you may have straps to put in instead of load locks. At least when the freight is loaded you wont be hot, sweaty, or sore. You will be able to drive without having to change your clothes or find a shower right away. Many drivers claim; "at least with flatbedding I dont have to unload the truck at a grocery warehouse." This is an antiquated notion. The fact is the majority of grocery warehouses have an onsite lumper service to unload (for a fee) the truck for you. Your employer will be more receptive to paying a lumper service 200 bucks to unload than they will be to pay you the same amount. If you "elect" to unload a truck yourself rest assured the company will pay you a mere pittance for your hard work usually less than 75.00 to do it.
Now lets look at the injuries sustained by flatbedders. I have heard and seen drivers slip off a stack and break their bones. Had a friend get whipped across the face with a strap that he tightened too much (and broke) with his cheater bar. Have seen others with broken arms from slipped cheater bars and read about many drivers with back injuries resulting from falls off the trailer due to the "magic carpet ride" (when a tarp gets blown off a high stack with you on it).
Do you really want to do all this work for little to no pay? Take chances with your very life and livelihood? If you do congrats your a bigger person than me!
Signed....15 year dry van driver and loveing it!

 

You haul cars? That's supposed to be good money. I saw a beautiful truck and car trailer the other day parked at the toyota car lot (he was unloading toyotas). I stopped to see if he had time to chat but he was too busy for me to be comfortable enough to ask.

Everything was all black and new. The truck said freighliner on the front but lexus on the side. The van had black vinyl-looking curtains. All the steel was shiny. It looked so nice.... brand spanking new.
The driver was older, very clean, and had a black company shirt on. Everything looked very clean, (even the inside of the truck). All I saw was MONEY when I looked at him and his truck. Thought, wow, wish I could drive teams with him!

What about a curtain van?

 

P.S. I would love to work for W/S. They were my first real choice! I could have gone and got my training there and they'd let me have my dog. Plus, they were really nice the couple times I talked to them. Along with everything else I read here. They originate from Montana. I like that.
But I can't take the truck home. I don't live within 150 miles of a terminal. So they can't hire me. I may change that some day but not just yet.

 

Brickman congrats on finding your niche. I too found my niche in how did you put it? Pulling A WUSS WAGON. Thats cool your entitled to your opinion but I drive to make MONEY not to get dirty. I will keep grinning with my 70 + grand a year wuss wagon company job that gets me home every weekend and will enjoy my off time as I wont be sore from doing all that manual labor you (and your flatbedder brethren) seem to love so much.
As for getting paid for "every tarp" you throw??? Aww cmon pull the other 1! I have spoken with other drivers that have left flatbedding for that very reason.
For the lady that desires to be a flatbedder just go into it with your eyes open and make sure you get it in writing that they will in fact pay you for EVERY tarp you throw.

 

Hey they pay me for every tarp I throw and we throw allot almost 90 percent.Is it hard work and you have to deal with the elements you bet it is.I cant imagine driving a sealed trailer and not know how it was loaded and what it was doing inside there yet alone the whole lumper thing what a pain that must be.Another advantage is those scale fellows don't want to do the math to figure out how to weigh a split axle trailer so they green light you or wave you through So to each his own be safe Later

 

There actually was a driver that came on here not long ago lookin for help as his load had shifted off so that his weight was all funky and he was having a heck of a time trying to move it back.

Another one of the attractions of flatbedding, I thought. You could unload yourself instead of being at the mercy of someone else. I'm a do it yourself kinda girl. Rather do it myself then sit and wait and probably end up irritated at some point. I saw that as a real advantage.