Hanging out at truck stops for a better insight. Good idea?

#### right about the freight. I had a talk about hijacking attempts with the safety guy at work and I told him straight. A girl Scout with a toothpick could steal my truck if she knows how to shift it.

 

Couldn't help but notice you are an EX truckdriver. Were you not suited to be a truckdriver or was it beneath you to associate with us lowlifes?
Why three years? Did you feel the change coming on, like a werewolf, and you got out while you were still a normal human?
Do you still long to be a trucker? Is that why you hang out on this board?
Or could it be you want to rescue others, such as elusive 1, from such a terrible fate.

 

I might go back to driving, if I can find something that pays more than $4/hour. but I've been happily unemployed for over a year now and have enjoyed having a life.

 

It;s 3am.. your tired.. your out of hours.. you need sleep. but you have not had a good meal in a couples days. you need a shower.. you need to de-trash your truck.. you want to call home.. an hear a friendly voice.. but you need sleep.. screw it.. crawl back in you bunk.. lay your head down.. lay there looking at the ceiling.. can't sleep.. get up.. go grab some food..an a shower.. flirt with the semi cute waitress.. go back out to the truck.. set down.. talk on the radio.. next thing you know.. you have used up 5 hours of sleep you should have got.. an its 8am... figure you better check in with dispatch.. they ask you why you are not farther then you are... this goes on day after day after day.. wow.. they have a load going by the house cool... you make it to the house.. its 2 am saturday morning.. you get a lil sleep. try to spend the day with family.. but have to get rolling by midnight sunday... so you pack your clean clothes that you spent most of saturday washing an drying.. dread getting back out on the road.. but the load has to be there at 7am monday morning.. drive all night.. get there on time.. just to set an wait 4 hours to get unloaded.. ok.. empty now.. tell dispatch.. they say.. give me an hour an call me back.. hour goes by.. still no load.. dispatch says.. head torwards.. PA.. an give him a call in another hour.. #### still nothing..

 

My only advice is only ask one driver sitting on his own otherwise if you ask two drivers you'll probably get conflicting answers. That and not all drivers want to be hassled after a tough day.

 

Alright everyone... well, I just got back from a two-day trip of 1,300 miles up, down, and across California. The goal of the trip was A) to tour the truck stops and get a feel for the lifestyle and B) to see if I liked driving as much as I thought.

Here's my experience:

I was initially excited to get on the road (and to escape my girlfriend for a bit, hehe), and even when I stopped at the travel centers - sure, they weren't the most thrilling places - but the bathrooms were clean, the coffee was decent, and there were some cool things to buy. Not that I had money for any of it. I did some walking around the trucks in the parking area too. They're pretty big, but about what I expected. A lot of the drivers had dogs with them and I thought that was neat...maybe something I'd do.

A few hundred miles down the freeway and I was still pretty happy. Even when the landscape was flat and boring I liked to watch the road pass by...just to be moving was a good feeling.

At the end of the night I stopped at a diner at one of the TA centers. There were a lot of truckers there. I grabbed a stool nearby and just kind of observed things. Most of you guys are right - the drivers seemed tired from the day and I didn't want to bother them - but I definitely got a good sense of their attitude just by watching. For the most part they kept to themselves and had a "just another day's work" look on their face. But not disgruntled or anything. There was one table where a couple of guys were sitting together, talking. Couldn't make out the conversation though.

The first night I stayed in a small Motel 6 room. I thought that was the closest I'd get to the cab of a truck (although I did realize I had the luxury of a shower in my "cab"). Anyway, I did some thinking while I was there and then went to sleep. The road had worn me out.

The next morning I was ready to go but not nearly as excited as the day before. On impulse, I decided to take a scenic route across the state - something I wouldn't be able to do as a truck driver, I know, and I kept that in mind - but I did it for a reason. I wanted to see if I really liked driving to drive or driving to see and experience. Day one was all about driving like it was my job and day two became about driving for my own pleasure.

One of the good points that came out of this excursion was that it added hours onto my trip, and I truly got to feel what a LONG day on the road was like. Heading down the 101 (which is where I crossed over to), after about 8 hours of driving, I had to stop. I sat down for dinner and came up with a plan for the rest of the night. Didn't have any money for another motel so I decided to stick it out. 500 more miles to travel.

100 miles after dinner, the food was starting to slow me down. I parked at a Wal Mart and slept in my car for 2 1/2 hours. Got an energy boost from that and drove another 300 miles...then got sleepy yet again. At this point my face was greasy, my legs were sore, all I wanted was a hot shower and my bed. I remember thinking "This is how you might feel most of the time as a truck driver." It was eye-opening to say the least.

Only an hour away from home and I was starting to nod. I rolled down the window for fresh air, which helped, and stuck it out the rest of the way. Probably should've pulled over for another nap but my stubbornness gets the best of me sometimes. I finally got to my apartment and clonked out as soon as my head hit the pillow. 800 miles in one day. Not sure you guys ever run that long, but I was glad to have felt the extreme of what could possibly happen.

Anyway, I've done some thinking since then and have come to the conclusion that maybe this isn't the lifestyle for me afterall. I've created a fantasy for what it would be like in my mind - just me and the open road. But, truth is, driving and traveling is a hobby of mine, and I'm not sure I'd feel the same if it became my work. The pay would help, that's for sure, but otherwise I don't think I'm cut out for it.

I will say this: I reccomend anyone looking to enter the trucking industry, who is unsure, to take a trip like this. Just try your best to pretend that you're in a truck and not a four wheeler (I even made a CD of truck sound effects and shifted my car along to it - yeah, call me a dork). And make your destination a place you don't want to go, as if it's a job. That's what I did. It's not trucking, but it's better than sitting around simply thinking about what it might be like.

If anything, this journey has definitely given me a better respect for you guys/gals who are out there doing this every day. Not easy work. And this is coming from someone who was just pretending. So, thank you for doing what you do!!

 

You seemed to think it through and try to get a proper feel for what it could be like, the concentration levels are slightly different but you were on the right track. Big respect for doing what you did and Im really pleased you pulled over when you got tired.



The best thing you did was making the decision you did before youd forked out $1000's. Its a shame you wont get the real feeling of what we do but like you say its not for everyone.

I wish you well in the future

 

But ya still never actually got inside the cab of a big truck? Too bad...you sound pretty cool and it seems you thought it all out. But I'm gonna be honest here...climbing up into a cab and looking out over the hood of a big rig is an awesome experience in itself. Sitting at the controls and handling that beast is just sooo exhilerating..at least it is for me. Some times I try to explain it this way to the people who ask me if I get tired because they get so tired driving anywhere. I tell them for most people driving is that really boring stuff ya gotta do in between the important stuff. For us truck drivers...driving is everything! We are constantly watching gauges,watching traffic,keeping it straight,watching the clock. But like we've all said a hunnert times before..it ain't fer everybody! But its great that you took the time and effort to try to get a taste of it!

 

I think its neat that you did this, but i have to say a few things about it:

1) You can seriously drive 800 miles in one day without being a trucker? You can totally handle it. It took me a while to get used to that aspect of trucking. Most of us run fairly legal, which is 11 hours of driving in a 14 hour window...on most days thats 11 hours a day at the most, sometimes 14 if you're running at night and sleeping in the day.

2) You'll get used to the long hours when you start driving.

3) I think that 700 miles in a car is equal to driving a stick-shift semi 500 miles.

4) Did you observe truck speed limits? That really slows things down. I dont go to california anymore but i think its 55 statewide?

5) You could've gotten into the cab of a truck. I mean, sleeping in it would be out of the question, but you could've found a driver willing to let you climb in his. Just act like you're another driver, find someone working on a kenworth with a "studio sleeper" emblem on the side of the truck, and go up to him..."Hey, you got a studio sleeper? I heard those got a couch in them! Can i see it?!"...i did that one time to some mexicans because i was genuinely curious about the studio sleeper, they let me climb in and check it out. it was a NICE truck too...even had a sunroof. Just be real careful, some of them will try to talk you into sexing them.....

6) My truck has swivel seats that turn around backwards, when theyre turend around it feels a lot bigger in here, kind of like a very small motel room without a shower.

7) Clean bathrooms? Don't count on that on the road. Most places have ###### toilet paper thrown all over the floor, piss on the toilet seats, #### in the urinals, and often dont have toilet paper. One time i had to wipe my ### with toilet seat covers! Used 5 or 6 of them. They dont work very well. After i was clean i went to another stall and used toilet paper to finish the job.

8) You'll only stop 2 to 4 times a day usually on the road.

9) That scenic highway trip, get used to that. You'll take roads like that to avoid tolls because the company wont pay em, and more commonly, just plain because you're going somewhere that the interstate system doesnt go. Also, most canadian highways are not of the same level as the interstate system.

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot!?! I hang out at the counter at truckstop restaurants all the time and almost all of the drivers are very cool. I started doing this after one time i found the guy that taught me to drive a truck sitting at the counter at the TA in Gary, IN. WTF? That guy lives in florida. As if i'd ever just randomly find him on the road, living in michigan and all?

 

I dont think going to a truck stop will give you much of a glimpse into a trucker's every day life. We spend more time in our trucks than anything. My advise is to make friends with a trucker well enough to spend a week out on the road with him/her. You will see more than you care to. Or you can be like most of us and just dive in.....
There is a huge difference between seeing it and living it. It is VERY lonely at times. I get cabin fever if I am not moving or doing. It's so easy to find something that makes you angry and out there in your truck there is no escaping it. You just have to deal with it. Every day is a challenge, especially if you want to be the best at your job. There is so much you have to watch out for in order to protect yourself, your truck, and your load. This continues even when you are sleeping. At times the truck you drive will feel more like your company's mini portable sweat shop that you are forever bound to. There will be weeks where it seems as though you have only worked for crumbs. Equipment failure is a right of passage. You cant just clock out and expect your stuff to be working the next day. You are responsible for seeing that things get done when it comes to your truck and trailer. You will miss everything that happens at home, yet you will see some things never change. Children grow up faster than you realize too.
And then you will experience the things that keep us out there. All the beautiful scenery of our country. Ive been through areas where I had to stop and get out of my truck because the sunset was just too breath taking to pass up. Once driving on US 30 across Wyoming I saw a moose, black tailed deer, elk, caribou, foxes, a black bear, 2 eagles, and a small pack of wolves on one small stretch of road. Who else other than a truck driver can say that? I have met some of the most decent, caring, and honest individuals this country has to offer. I may never see them again, and that to me makes it even more special. You can learn something new every day if you pay attention. I love learning new things! Those who leave it feel the call to go back every day as myself. I love it and hate it both the same. It's kind of like my service in the Marines. Love the Corps, hate the war.