LOG BOOKS

These drivers are only telling partial truths. They're trying not to say anything that will discourage you from becoming a trucker. I personally believe a person should be told the whole truth, both good and bad, when he/she is investigating the facts. When Cerburus said "100% commitment," what he means is you're expected to make personal sacrifices on both, your personal life, and take-home earnings. A newbie starting out of trucking school will earn wages thats about equal to, or less than minimum wage.

I've made postings in the past on how to calculate your earnings, as how it equates to when you factor time-and-a-half pay over 40 hours of duty work. The law says OTR drivers are not entitled to overtime pay (yet, illegal aliens loading/unloading our trucks are entitled to this). I've posted and explained in detail how to use algebraic formula 40x plus 1.5xy = gross pay; which I've intended as a decision tool for drivers to determine wether they're better off working as an hourly-paid local driver.

The trucking industry is crying "Driver shortage!" which is not entirely true. Its really a driver turnover problem; drivers quit and settle down to an hourly paying local job, or job-hop from one trucking company to another, hoping the grass is greener. If you research "driver shortage" over the internet, you'll find sites describing trucking companies experience a lot of driver "churning," which really means job-hopping. If you enter this profession, I advice you do like the majority of newbie drivers do; just get your one-year of driving experience, then start submitting applications with local companies in your area that offer hourly-paying driving jobs.

Avoid job-hopping from one OTR company to another, trying to see if the grass is greener; usually, you'll find that the next OTR company is just as bad, or worse, than the last OTR company you left. A lot of local hourly-paying employers don't hire drivers with job-hopping history. A lot of these veteran drivers have job-hopped from one company to another, which precludes them from ever getting an hourly paying local job. Thus, they're stuck as OTR drivers for the rest of their trucking career. Don't make the same mistake they have. Stay with one company at least one year, before you quit and move on.

Get out of OTR trucking as soon as you've established your one-year of driving experience. OTR trucking is only good for people who are single with no family obligations; or those whose children are already grown up, and you only have your spouse to take care of.

On your logbook query, we truckers use the slang term "comic book" to describe logbooks. Falsification of logbooks is widespread and very common. IF you don't falsify logbooks, you either find yourself calling dispatch to report "I'm out of hours," and failing to meet delivery deadlines, or just running out of hours fast, and having to sit for a day and a half to reset your logbook. So long as you don't verbally admit or confess to falsifying logbooks, theres little chance of getting caught. The logbook doesn't necessarily have to be accurate, it only needs to look legal, and up to date.

For example, we make take 2 to 5 hours loading/unloading at the shipper/receiver, and having to be at the dock to count/verify the freight; or helping to tag the freight as it unloads from the trailer. DOT expects us to log line-4, on-duty, not driving. We actually mark it as line-2, sleeper berth time; and only show 45 minutes to 1 hour of line-4, on duty, not driving.

Another example is traffic congestion; we may average 20 mph on city traffic, and take 3 hours or more to progress 50 miles. When we later update our logbook, we'll show we averaged 50 mph of travel, and stopped at a rest area for a long period, when we actually had only stopped about 15 or 30 minutes of rest.

There are numerous reasons why OTR trucking companies can't retain their drivers. Its mostly pay issues that are not commensurate to what hourly-paid drivers are making, excessively long hours, tight deadline delivery schedules, periiods of sleep-deprivation, and broken promises of what newbies are told when they're hired, versus what they later learn, the hard way.

 

notice the plural in the title.if you are not using looseleaf you will need 3 per day-one for the morning,one for the day,one for at night. DON'T KEEP THEM IN THE SAME PLACE AND KEEP THEM OUT OF SIGHT! and remember which one you are handing to the DOT officer! this will allow you to operate like the freight is scheduled.you cannot earn enough money to be succesfull in trucking if you are logging six hours on duty to load and 5 hours at the reciever on the other end.especially when you are making drops and pickups on a daily basis.you can only extend your 14 hour clock with an 8 hour sleeper entry-then it must be followed by a 2 hour minimum entry once you hit the 11 drive/14 onduty mark.unless your BOL's are time stamped or coded you can log them at 30 minutes to 1 hour depending on size of load without raising too many eyebrows by the DOT. they know you have to do this as part of the business and as long as it LOOKS LEGAL and MATCHES THE BOL, you'll be ok. i do not advise a rookie to do this untill he has an understanding of what i'm saying,in time you'll know what i mean

 

oops, i forgot the 4th logbook you need to have when you run out of your 70 hours in 8 days and you need to show you took a 3 day layover prior to picking up the load you are under-and of course you already turned in your previous BOL's and fuel reciepts!!!!

 

I have done this before though loose leaf. I said when it was over I would never do it again. I picked up a load in MN going to S. CA. I ran my usual 700 miles the first day then on day 2 I got a little carried away. I drove from just west of Rawlins, WY to Ontario, CA made a delivery then D&H and then went to the rest area on the 5 up on top of the grapevine. In all I drove 999 miles that day. I haven't done it since(this was in September). I love to drive, I just don't want to die doing it.

 

or pay a toll, get a scale receipt, a truck wash, or if you breakdown and need road service, or..etc, etc.... the date is on the receipts and in many cases, such as fuel purchases and tolls, the time is printed on them also. If you falsify your logbook and your company goes through a D.O.T audit,,,and they happen to figure out that a driver is doing that.. GOOD LUCK !! Or... if you're involved in an accident...there is a good chance they will want to see your log book. Or they might decide to search your truck for whatever reason. If you get caught falsifying your logs....I wouldn't want to be you !! Is it worth it? Look for a company that emphasizes safety, usually the bigger companies. Make sure they run legal. Cover you're own ____!!!!!! Do not run illegal. You're taking a very big risk.

 

OMG! I DID NOT EVEN READ BUT ALL THE QUICK BAD STUFF!

OK I don't have time to go on a tangit! Wow! Guys/ladies


LOG LEGAL AND DON'T END UP IN PRISON BECAUSE YOU KILLED SOMEONE OVER RUNNING 2,3,4 OR 5 LOG BOOKS

Would you want your child to be killed by a tired truck driver that was running 2,3,4 or 5 log books, NO! Don't intentionally run illegally. We know you do it un intentionally but please # LEAST TRY to do the right thing as I have seen to many drivers end their career and family over accidents because they pushed their bodies to make money or to make their dispatcher happy. FORGET EVERYONE ELSE! REMEMBER it's you that can go to prison for running illegal (really if someone gets killed, you can be in prison even if the "accident wasn't your fault" but proven you was running illegal).

Guys/ladies I say this for your OWN good! I understand your pressure and tempation but remember my kids are on the road driving and I hope you are not to tired to drive and run into them and kill them. I respect you please respect me and my family and the million out there that want to respect you and give you credit .
Now for a lighter note: I do care about you guys! I do! I understand how you feel (I really do). But you don't want to be a prison friend do you?
If you are not scared of prison then you should not be a driver! That's my feelings.

I just skimmed very little of what was said and it really upset me. I have heard to many children get killed over the fact a driver was trying to please their dispatcher or trying to make $100.00 extra on their check, in reality is what $50.00 on their check after expenses.

Please go legal and protect yourselft. If the accident happens at the most you know you was legal and you did what you could to prevent it if it was the other persons fault. If you are running illegal and it's the other persons fault you still have the worries to wonder if you will serve prison time for that accident. It's sad but VERY TRUE!

I love you all regardless of what you say and I am always here for you, even if you mess up, I just hope I can help one driver not mess up or to admit he messed up to help the one's who are still out there NOT believing me

Remember I am on your side and the safety side! I say what I say to help you, I don't have to say what I say

 

All I can say is you are so right! You must be in safety also!

My goal is to get drivers to understand what can happen to them, not the company! I have a goal in life and that's to train drivers on what their log laws are and what they shouldn't do. Do I understand all the financial crap, OH YEAH! I am begging for money now to get by,but I sure am not doing anything to harm anyone else to get it, I guess the lord will somehow save me or I will suffer like I do daily and get it done one way or another.
Point being I am here for my kids and I feel good about me in trying to do the best I can and I am happy I # least try to convince one trucker to do the right thing.

I would love to hear one happy story that I have personally made him/her do the right thing and I would love to hear one story that someone is in jail doing time because of running illegal on their logs that caused a death.
It does not mean shame it just means reaching out and helping other drivers do the right thing which is my goal

 

I'm such a super trucker now I don't even bother to log. I just run and run and run! lol how ya like me now logs?

 

TO specify what could happen! If you are in an accident and regardless if your fault or not they find out you was running illegal you can go to prison.

Trust me accidents happen out of the blue, they are not planned and sometimes non avoidable, so please keep in mind of the family waiting for you to come home to see, to hold, to talk to & yes the paycheck that feeds them cause if you are put in prison they won't have any of the above and worst of all you won't have a driving career again.

To me if you are going to run illegal you are taking almost the same risk as doing other illegal crimes (I won't mention them to give someone ideas)

Good luck in those who decide to run illegal I hope nothing happens (honestly) but do remember the attorneys will be subpenia (sp??) the qualcom records for up to the previous 6 months (for sure the last 30 days).
That's a GUARANTEE in any law suit! I can go on and on how it is done, I have on the regulations somewhere

 

Ol'Blue, USA.dot......something like that...find ol blue it has an example of 11 and 14 hr rule...My understanding is midnight to 10:30 am with a 30 min pretrip would give you your 11 ...and then 10 hours off....makes it 9 pm....then 30 min pretrip makes it 9:30 pm and you could drive till midnight...that's 3 hours on another 11 so starting at midnight i would think you could still use 8 hours then you would have to be off another 10.....I think.....NOW THERE IS SUCH A THING AS A SPLIT LOG,,,,BUT.....THAT'S MORE TROUBLE....