Intermodel or OTR for Newbie

Land Air Express :: Home Page
Las Vegas, NV (LAS)
1660 Helm #300-400
Las Vegas, NV 89119

 

GLS Freight

 

GLS Freight

 

Transport - FoxFreightInc
foxfreightinc.com
4625 Wynn Rd. Ste 206 Las Vegas, NV 89103

 

Barney Trucking | Specializing in dry bulk hauling

 

I paid $3,500 for my CDL school in the mid-1990s. $3k now is a great price.

 

Others here in this thread have echoed my earlier suggestion, made elsewhere--because (among still other reasons) of the incredible levels of logistical "constipation" at both rail and shipyards, intermodal (aka, "port & rail") will very likely prove to be a miserable disappointment for you.

I ran intermodal at a railyard just outside of Atlanta, for over a year--so I kinda know just a little bit of what I'm talkin' about.

For your first 6-9 months anyway, you will be FAR BETTER OFF if you go otr, or regional--first.

"The east is nice--but the west is best."

Also--if you go otr--you will see A LOT of amazing scenery out there, that you may not ever see, otherwise.

It's one of the better perks of being a truck driver--the view out the window is constantly changing, and is sometimes TOTALLY AWESOME.


--Lual

 

I really appreciate your input and tend to agree. Ports just don't seem like a good idea right now. Especially on the west coast. I also agree on the OTR, as I believe this is best for gaining experience.

 

Something else to think about....

Others here on the Forum are of the opinion that we are at the start of an economic recession.

While it is early in the game to predict such with total certainty...based on what I'm seeing (thus far), I would tend to agree with that.

If that is indeed true, I would submit to you, @jgtrucking,...that running with a so-called "mega-carrier" (like Knight/Swift) at the start of a recession--is a GREAT place to be.

Why?

It's very hard to comprehend just how vast their freight volumes really are--at a mega-carrier.

With that said--a mega-carrier is much more likely to keep you running (than a smaller carrier), as freight volumes dry up in a recession.

This happened to me a while back, when I was with Schneider.

During the last economic contraction--I watched a lot of others sit, and wait for loads.

But Schneider (because of their incredible freight volumes) kept us running.

During that time, I don't ever remember having to wait for the next load.

So......that opportunity with Knight may well be a better gig than you first thought.

Especially if the recession turns out to be very long, and/or deep.

--Lual

 

Much appreciated. Thank you.