Indian River

I’ve been staying busy. I like us having that terminal next door in Cordele. It’s a guaranteed parking spot late at night when I pass through.

 

I think it’s 8.75 per day, but someone else can correct me if I’m wrong. Meaning, if you don’t go above that, you’ll basically never run out on your 70.

Personally, I don’t monitor it. When I’m on a multi-day, long haul trip, I usually run full days (600-700 miles) until I get close to the destination. Those days consist of more than 8.75 hours. I basically just work without thinking about the 70 until it starts closing in. Some weeks I burn it up fast, such as a 3,000 mile load from Washington to Florida where everyday is 600+ miles, back-to-back. Other weeks are different. There is usually a slow day at some point throughout the week, whether it’s due to a live unload or pickup, where the gain back at midnight begins to replinish the available hours. I hope I’m articulating that in a way that makes sense, but that’s how I do it.

Your style of operating will be determined by the loads, appointment times, and scheduling from your dispatchers. The way you operate might have to fluctuate when or if you change employers throughout your career. My advice would be to prioritize the appointment times on your load assignment and let the chips fall where they may on your hours. In other words, don’t shut down early or cause the load to be late, then try to justify it to a dispatcher by explaining that you’re wanting to avoid going over 8.75 hours per day. That will most likely get you black marked. There are some days where I’m only able to work 5-6 hours because I’m waiting to gain time back at midnight. It doesn’t happen very often, though. It’s really personal preference on how to manage your time. Redtwin has a good point when he mentioned using the 34 to replenish groceries, clean the truck, etc. Don’t run yourself ragged and get burned out.