mistakes that let everyone know youre a rookie

Man that sucks. I like to roll both windows down when I back and I've had a couple times where it nearly sucked my bills out the window. One time I made a spectacular grab as they went out the window which was more luck than anything. At least you were able to find them.

I felt like a rookie recently. I had never driven a Volvo before. I'm starting my pre trip and go to open the hood and there are no latches. So I start reaching in the sides of the hood thinking maybe they're just hidden by the hood, no luck. So I walk up to the grab handle and think to myself maybe it's just a hydraulic hood that holds itself down somehow. No luck after a couple tugs. Look around the inside of the cab and can't find anything that would release it.

Finally I called a friend who I knew had driven one before and asked him and he tells me where the release handle is on the bottom of the steering wheel. The funny thing was the whole time I was doing all of these things I'm looking around to make sure no one's watching me trying to figure out how to open the hood. Felt like an idiot lol.

 

I was pulling up to a gaurd shack at one of the truck plant (don't remember it was 6 years ago). In front of me was a full trailer racks of transmissions. The guy pulled forward after coming out of the shack, I pulled up to the shack, stopped at the white line and ran in, he stopped about 15 feet in front of me. The guard said he already cleared me and I got back into the truck, watching the guy in front of me opening his doors. I waited and the he takes off fast with back two rows of racks flying out of the trailer with metal flying all over the place. The flying metal took out my right headlight and windshield and I was stuck there for two hours until their security people cleared me and a clean up crew cleaned the mess. The thing is the dock he needed to go to is on the other side of the complex, not where near the entrance, I only had 150 feet to go to unload.

Later at another plant (I think it was the Volvo plant), there is a long road with a hill to get to the docks, I again got behind some guy at the guard shack who opened his doors at the shack. I waited about 3 minutes for him to dump his load and asked the guard if there is another way to the docks, the guard was puzzled but I said he will lose his load out the back of his trailer so be prepared and I need a way around. He didn't want to give me an alternative route but the driver lost two or three full racks of painted hoods as he went up the hill and the call went over the radio and I got my route.

 

That sucks Ridgeline.... have you ever seen the video on Youtube when the truck driver pulls away from the dock and all the grocery carts come rolling out of his trailer? What a mess that was!

As far as newbie mistakes, there's probably too many to list. However a few of the dead giveaways are flashing your high beams, driving around the parking lot with your headlights on, leaving your headlights on when parking, riding in the center lane on a three lane highway, not being courteous to your fellow drivers. Backing is usually a dead give away! No cb or turning off your cb/not responding etc...

 

I had to back into a "in the building dock" in a building that was only 10 feet off the curb and they had their trucks lined up on the opposite side of the street giving me even less room.

But I did it with only two corrections/slight pullups.

Then when I was mostly in I realized I had not opened the doors!!!! I had to pull out and start all over and it took me 6 or 8 tries to get it in that hole the second time.

Mikeeee

 

Believing in the info Dispatch sent!

Two out of three mondays I was sent on an early morning delivery appt. Both times to find out it was actually a Tuesday appt!

Rookie dispatch mistake issue more than anything that had to do with me...

Mikeeee

 

I can't turn my headlights off unless the tractor brakes are set. I also have my cb turned off most of the time. Usually have to hear 2 guys rattling off in Spanish, one 1 guy preaching about the savior or 2 guys making plans to fight at some imaginary rest area that's coming up in "just a little bit".

Then again I am a noob so....

 

Don't sound like a noob. Hell I drive around w/ my headlights on 24/7. Just cause a guy's been driven for awhile doesn't mean he's good at it. I've rode w/ rookies that had more going for them than so called drivers that had decades behind the wheel. It's what you make of it.

 

Just so you know, daytime running lights are less bright than having your headlights on. Try it one night and you'll see.

 

There are Canadian built trucks that run headlights on when brakes released. Just so you know.

 

The daytime running lights are not as bright as my headlights, but I still have people flashing headlights at me at night in truck stops.