Indian River

I had another solid week. Last Tuesday, on June 9th after dropping and hooking in Random Lake, WI. I went to Saint Paul, MN. and picked up a clean tank. From there, I drove up to Alexandria, MN. and got loaded. I delivered that in Beloit, WI. Thursday morning. Afterward, I went to Cedar Rapids, IA. and loaded yeast that evening. I closed out the pay period with 2,959 miles after delivering it in Centralia, WA. this morning.

I’m in Prosser, WA. at the moment getting loaded for Fontana, CA. I think I’m going to need a new blend door actuator when I get back to Florida. The knob that controls my climate temperature setting doesn’t seem to work anymore. In the evenings when the weather cools off, I usually turn it up a few notches to back the AC down. It’s not having any effect, though. The air from the vents is staying ice cold, even with the knob cranked all the way to the warmest setting. I Googled the symptoms, and it said that it’s most likely a blend door actuator not allowing the door to move. The AC staying cold is definitely a much better problem than an AC not working at all this time of year, so it’s not a big deal. In the evenings, I’ve been turning the bunk AC off and allowing the warmer air coming from the rear to counteract the cold air in the front while I’m driving. If anyone has any knowledge about it being a fuse or something I can do, I’m all ears. Like I said, it’s not a big deal, just more of a nuisance when the sun goes down and the temperature cools off.

 

We fuel exclusively at Loves now with the exception of a few places for the driver’s who go into Canada. It can be any Loves. They don’t dictate individual store numbers along your route. Redtwin can probably elaborate on the fuel exceptions since he is a passport driver.

I can’t speak on income here vs income at your current employer, because there are too many variables besides mileage pay that go into the math. In general, one company might pay more per mile but lack the customer base to keep a driver rolling 2,500-3,000 miles per week the way Indian River does. One company might pay more for detention time than another, but their drivers might only average 2,000 miles per week due to it being a smaller outfit and not having the nationwide freight base that another company has. I deliver at a lot of places and see smaller tanker companies sitting in line for a live unload while I’m dropping and hooking due to the fact that Indian River has the resources to buy the extra tanks and stage them on customer properties, whereas the smaller outfit can’t. In turn, I’m able to keep moving and be more financially productive. Those are just examples on where I’m coming from.

I can tell you that I average 2,500 to 3,000 miles per week at IRT as an OTR driver. It’s been closer to 3,000 miles in recent months. I would find out from recruiting what your CPM rate will be and multiply it by that, then compare it to where you currently work and factor in the benefits and vacation pay as well for a good yearly comparison. As a passport driver, you will have the border crossing pay to factor in as well.
Hope it helps.
Larry