Landstar O/O Statement

Canuk,you said two very key words,,,,PLAN AHEAD!!! it aint easy,but if you know where your heading,and it's gona take you a day to get there, set up your load for pick up,comfirm the load befor you get there!!! ,,while your getting loaded there start looking for your next one,,,,,,,,,,,,,i learned the hard way,when you hurry up and wait! that's exsacly what you will do, sit and wait ,,,,,,it's dog eat dog,get it while you can get it, if you dont somebody else will,,,all anyone can do is there best,and the choices are yours

 

i was kind of thinking it was more like feeding chickens---the brokers throw a few seeds out there and you have to scramble to get some------
i find the landstar bco forum is also a good place to get an idea how it works
i dont work there--but i believe it is a good place--you get to choose wether you want to run regional--otr or international--just got to find what works for you---they do take a good chunk of the earnings--but you know that before you go in
best of luck to you big neck--hope it works out--and i am just waiting till i can apply

 

you are so right about getting out of the east, but MOST loads go from here to the north east, if you could see the load board you would be amazed, with some of these redicolus rates..you are preffer carrier you can see the same load bors as us, but not the rate. if you eve get a chance to look at the board and rates go for it!!! or load board is the same as there broker board!!!!most of the time you will never see the freight that goes to the good lanes.. they are held for there special drivers, not hating on them, just jelouse......hehehe
goodluck

 

exactely right --some of those loads leave a lot to be desired---barely pay the fuel--i just have the info packet with the printout of the loads----some good--some barely ok---and a lot that are bad---but still the rate is higher than if you had your truck on with somebody like schnieder or jb hunt isnt it ??

 

im not sure on that, i have friends with Schneider and they are very happy with them, but with my truck being a 310wb i have to be careful where i go....i do know this the grass isn't always greener on the other side, i just got tired of hauling heavy steel.!!!

 

hmm ok--thanx for the info on orange--was thinking there maybe to---just cause they have the frieght---
but arnt they paying just under a dollar plus fsc?

 

" if you could see the load board you would be amazed, with some of these redicolus rates..you are preffer carrier you can see the same load bors as us, but not the rate. if you eve get a chance to look at the board and rates go for it!!! or load board is the same as there broker board!!!!most of the time you will never see the freight that goes to the good lanes.. they are held for there special drivers, not hating on them, just jelouse......hehehe"

Most don't fully understand load boards(not just LS's)

The first mistake I have seen is trying to book 2 or 3 loads ahead, you can do it but you will never see the good freight. most of the time freight that is on the board for any length of time is no good, you can always book it. Forget thinking in miles and try to gross a set amount per week, some weeks you will have to run a few miles more then next week maybe less. You need to do X amount of dollars a week to survive. Do what is needed to make it work, and stay ahead, when a good load comes along you are not using all the profit off it to play catch up.

How to find good freight is not hard, you just have to be flexible and open minded where you go. instead of watching the board constantly try setting a load alert with a high rate and a wide area, set it high enough that you don't have to many calls, when you get a call you have to act fast and make quick decisions. The good freight is only on the board for a few minutes so taking a snapshot of the board at any one time is not accurate.

When you book good freight keep notes, and call next time you are going to the same area.

There is a lot of freight that is posted that is not expected to be moved by a LS truck. Agents post it so that it goes out to the broker boards(LS, DAT and others)
If you see something posted that seems to good to be true, call, you may be surprised.

Freight sucks on Monday and gets better thru the week, being away from home and running on the weekends won't kill you. The idea you can go where you want, when you want is good, but you need to go where you can make the most, when you need to go.

One other thing for now, treat the shipper and receiver with respect, have a problem call the agent,don't be a ###, you may be surprised how well some agents know their customers. I know someone this week that said something disrespectful to a receiver and will not get to haul some very good freight for that customer again.

 

I think I'm going to keep leaving my household separate from my truck. I have my own insurance and save money from what LS would charge. If you live in a state where it is cheaper to get your own plates I would do that as well. There are a lot of little charges here on your settlement but I haven't found any that I wasn't paying when I had my own authority. Make sure you are taking full advantage of all of the discounts LS offers as well, you can cut your truck cost substantially. I would be glad to help you as I'm sure many other BCOs would as well. PM me if you have any questions. Good luck, the first year is the hardest.

 

Looks like you have not made wise trip decisions. Wife is leased on to LS Ranger and has pulled much better than that. I think you need to seriously need to attend the CABS class ASAP

 

I'm curious to know what is the average pay for pulling a dry van for LS? Right now im average 1.40 on all miles, pulling a dry van.