My Experiance with Watkins Shepard!

American-Trucker · Oct 24, 2010

Wedge said: ↑

Good read, AT. Stick with it. It's going to get easier as you go, I promise you. You have a lot of things on your plate right now.

New Jersey has a lot of traffic, but if you allow for enough time so you're not rushed, you'll be fine. Make sure you pay attention and don't be in too much of a hurry.

We're proud of ya, AT.
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Thank you, and don't you worry I'm not going anywhere! It was allot of work and I got pretty frustrated a few times but I got all 12 stops off in the two todays I had to do it, lol So I'm gonna call that load a win haha

American Trucker

American-Trucker · Oct 24, 2010

sammycat said: ↑

Wow AT what a trip and a HALF that was!! Please don't not post cuz that is part of what is interesting to those driving, getting ready to drive or just along for the ride!!!

you will be able to start to make some food for yourself soon but also remember: this I asked from a seasoned 16 yr driver- some nights no matter what you don't want to eat what you cooked, you don't want to cook you are PLAIN tired and just want to EAT!!! It's no different for me at home. Some nights I have all the plans in the works for a nice dinner and then LIFE gets in the way and I say bite me I am going out to eat!!!! We all need a break and YES i know how much it can cost but sometimes a cigar is just a cigar or a burger is just a burger!!!!

Keep up your POSTS they are GREAT READS!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Thanks, and I know what you mean I don't know how often I'll feel like cooking but a sandwhich or something poped in the microwave is still better then fast food lol

American Trucker

American-Trucker · Oct 24, 2010

So yup last night was cold and I still don't like to idle.........so I figured being a graduate from BTC as an Aircraft Tech and with my years of being an auto tech I thought I would see if I could get the Wabasto Bunk heater working.......So seeing how theres just a wireing harness going to it and NOTHING else I looked at the wires and they looked good so I did what they teach ya in school, I hit it and told it to get the F**** to work!!!!!! and I turned it on and wala It worked all night long and even now as I sit hear nice and warm posting this before I head off to NJ.......#### I'm good haha

American Trucker

AF461 · Oct 24, 2010

American-Trucker said: ↑

So yup last night was cold and I still don't like to idle.........so I figured being a graduate from BTC as an Aircraft Tech and with my years of being an auto tech I thought I would see if I could get the Wabasto Bunk heater working.......So seeing how theres just a wireing harness going to it and NOTHING else I looked at the wires and they looked good so I did what they teach ya in school, I hit it and told it to get the F**** to work!!!!!! and I turned it on and wala It worked all night long and even now as I sit hear nice and warm posting this before I head off to NJ.......#### I'm good haha

American Trucker
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Nice to see a little persuasion by gently kicking the crap out of equipment works.

Just keep your head up. You seem to have that "hard working spirit" so I'm sure you'll go a long way in this industry. It is great to read your post because it makes us newbies aware of the different things to look forward to when we get out there and start driving. I only hope that all of us can have that great attitude during the rough times.

Till next time, keep it between the ditches and have fun.

AF461 · Oct 24, 2010

Also, if you get down by Dover, DE, let me know and I'll buy you some lunch/dinner!

wulfman75 · Oct 24, 2010

American-Trucker said: ↑

Ok so last you guys/girls heard I went home for a few hours.........

Well I was told to come back at 06:00 Thursday morning, BUT me being me I came back at 04:15 lol so I wouldn't be rushed.

Well I get there put all my nice clean clothes in the truck and some other stuff I got at the store as well as the fridge. Then I drove up to the mailbox to get my load paperwork from the mail box and...........I was like sheeeeeit! It was a 12 stop Furniture run.........NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO lol Worst part was I had NO idea what I was doing because all of the appointment times were for 11:50am Thursday........WTF I was I going to be at 12 places at once? I'd need 12 log books to pull that off haha.

So I called night dispatch and she said be at the First stop by 7am and just start getting them done asap, so I said "OK"....and off I went

It was 12 stops ALL in the state of NC! Well I get to the first stop at 7:30am after doing a few laps around this little town lol and the store hours sign in the window says they don't open until 9:30am......GREAT! and I'm stopped on the side of main street with the four ways on taking up 20 or so parallel parking spots in a NO PARKING zone so I had to move......."just keeps on getting better" so I figure ok I'll keep going up main street until I find a place I can park like a BIG parking lot. Well 30 minutes later I find BILLS TRUCK STOP and park there for an hour .

Then I head back over to the store after doing a few more laps around town (Have I ever told you guys how much I HATE "NO TRUCKS" signs lol) and come to find out theres a parking lot behind them where there loading dock is FML so I just wasted TONS of time .

Then I go to send in my arrive and depart stop marcos, and the QC sends me back a message saying I messed something up, and the same thing happened on the load before but I was SO frustrated that night I didn't care. But this time I wanted to no what I was doing wrong....SO I called dispatch in Conover and he said to use #18 because I was on a LTL load, I was like "Oh my bad" stupid me lol

Anyway so I started knocking off all my delivery's one by one and between the morning setback and many laps around lots of different towns I wasn't going to be able to make my last stop of the day until 2.5 hours after they closed and she offered to come back that night but the 14 rule wouldn't even allow me to get there . So I had to deliver the next morning.

Well I drove as far the the 14 hour rule would let me get and I ended up at some so called truck stop (Fuel stop with 7 parking spots) NO showers anythinging out in the ghetto with a bunch or guys standing out front smoking weed lol. And to make it even better I was the ONLY truck there all night. A few did pull in and fuel then leave though.

I made it through the night and headed to that delivery I couldn't make. When I got there there was a truck in the door she said was almost done. So I wait like 15 min and then go to set up to back in, I had it so all I had to do was back up 300 feet nice and straight. Well it WAS going good until I stopped moving for some reason......my wheels were spinning "arg" so I pull up lock the differential and continue backing in and I some how couldn't go straight back haha. The problem was the building wasn't straight it was at and angle so it looked like I was straight but I wasn't and 20 min later I was at the dock lol

And after that I just kept knocking them out until my 4th to last stop I had 2 HUGE sofas to unload to the ground (no dock) all by myself haha That was fun 2 woman from inside came out and helped a little.

Then the next stop I had to unload 14 HUGE and very heavy boxes again to the ground for this older (65 or so yr old man). Now for some reason the guys that loaded my trailer decided to load it to the ceiling with VERY heavy boxes all in the first 15 feet or so and NOTHING on the rest of the trailer instead of just loading the whole trailer on the floor to make it easy to get in/ out / and balance the weight throughout the trailer, but no that would be to easy haha.

Then the next stop was ON the water like the Atlantic ocean I had to cross a bridge to get there haha and pull in next to the store to unload 3 boxes, but not wait back into the dock. The street was lined with cars and only 1.5 cars wide anyway. So again I slid the tandems to the back (out of 12 stop I slid the tandems 4 times lol) and anyway after 8 minutes I finally got it into the hole literally a HOLE the dock was between 2 buildings and sunk into the ground.

Then while they were unloading me (they where nice as they wanted to go home so they took the 3 boxes off them selves real quick) I called the last customer who I had called earlier to let them know I wouldn't be able to get there until 4:45pm and the kid sounded like a high school punk said "I'm not staying late" and hung up. So this was like 3 hours earlier so I just said to myself "fine, they'll get it when they get it" and tried to get there as fast as possible.

Anyway so when I called them again at 3:30pm I said I'm 45 minutes away and can be there by 4:45-5:00pm will/can someone be there, and this other High School sounding kid says sure no problem, I said "are you sure" and he said "ya don't worry about it I'll make sure we're here". So I headed up there and got there at 5:00pm on the dot.

Well I was at the store NOT the warehouse......(deepbreath) called them and he says just pull around back so I do and find out he thinks I'm there not where I am even though I did tell him EXACTLY where I was. So now I have to jack knife back wards out from behind the retail store out into the tiny parking lot without going into the busy road or hitting anything.

So I do and the kid tells me on the phone "take a right out of there go to the Mc Donalds and take a right we're in the green warehouse right behind it........OH ya and the guy with the COD check already left and wont be back until tomorrow" So I'm like ok I'll call my dispatch and head over.

So I call Conover dispatch again and he tells me "you can just stay there until the morning" and I said you already sent me another load lol" and he says "well thats here at the terminal you can come get it tomorrow its no big deal" so I said "Do I have to stay here, is there no other way I can do this" so he says "hold on I'll transfer you to (i can't remember who) but I told her what was going on and she says "whats there number?" "ok I'll call you right back".

So meanwhile I head over there because determined to get this stuff OFF my trailer. I get there and its off a very narrow and busy road with a tiny parking lot........so I pull in do a very tight u turn and back it into ansunkensunkin dock and just as I hit the dock she calls back and says "ok go over there and deliver an someone there will cut you a check"
so I say "ok, thank you"

And deliver the load!

Then I haul butt to the Flying J, because I was not, not going to take a shower, and this is where it gets really sad.....I had spent the last two days hitting all kinds of crazy tight docks and I get to the Flying J (Exit 106 off I-95) and I figure it would be PACKED at 7:30pm.....well nope it was half empty so I drive around and see out of the 35 spots on the back row theres only 3 trucks and on the row in front of that only 1 truck So i'm like sweet a quite parking spot......HERE'S WHERE IT GETS SAD: I had 15 YES 15 open spots in a row so I pull across them and turn out, I'm set up perfectly and put it in reverse and start back and I got it parked perfectly straight BUT centered on the line #### IT! lol So I'm like no big deal the row in front of me in empty so pull up straight and back it in....................Well 10 min later I'm in a spot Luckily there we 5 guys in the front row having a serious conversation on the CB so I didn't have to here any crap about how I couldn't park in an empty truck stop to save my life haha.

Then I went In took another $10 shower Seriously I need to buy more fuel Because I'm always having to pay for a stupid shower lol. Then I ate the the Flying J Restaurant there, good food but $13 for a Burger WTF!

Then When I went back out to the truck it was really cold and I was tired of waking up numb in the morning, so I figured I would try out the Wabasto Bunk heater in my truck I turn it on and in starts blowing air cold air but I figure it'll warm up and it does a little then it shuts off and comes back on.....so I'm like cool it didn't burn the truck down I'm going to bed. Well I wake up at 5:45am FROZEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Stupid truck haha. (Yes I know I can Idle the truck, but I don't like wasting fuel/or all the noise/ or the shaking while im trying to sleep). BUT after freezing EVERY SINGLE NIGHT since I've been out here so I'm idleing this stupid thing haha, that is until I can get this wabasto thing fixed.

Then I drove half numb to Conover a total of 3** miles Empty from my last stop to pick up a trailer in conover. I get there talk to of of the guys from the new orientation class who was practicing in the yard, then I grab my paper work and find my trailer. Well the paper work has a big piece of paper attached that says "YOU HAVE A FIRM APPOINTMENT ON THIS LOAD!
If for any reason your going to be delayed you must call the terminal! Report to the CSR" and it has directions on paper that say DO NOT follow the QC route or a GPS route. so then I pre trip the trailer and find that it needs 2 tires, so after all I've read on here about companies refuseing to fix stuff, so I figure 11am Saturday great this will be fun.....BUT again this company has impressed me, I call Montana, they transfer me to the shop and he says "No problem go right around the corner to Snider Tire, there closed but I'll have one of there guys meet you there and replace the tires" that was it no questions asked, they just fixed it!!!!!! That made my day so 1 hour later I was on the road and now I'm at a Loves T/S in Virginia. I have to be at our NJ terminal by 8 AM mon and a customer a 1/2 hour away at 10AM FIRM!!!!!!!!!! lol and I'm only 5 hours from the terminal now......So I think I'm good I have 18.5 hours for tomorrow.

Sorry that was so long but I didn't want you to miss out on any excitement! I did leave allot of stuff out because I don't feel like writing a book tonight haha.

But after all that I'm still enjoying what I'm doing and thats all that matters!

Now I hope the NJ terminal Shop can hook up this inverter so I can use this fridge!

American Trucker
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just remember that's 12 drops which is extra pay. Not bad for a days work eh.

sammycat · Oct 24, 2010

Hey AT!
Glad you stayed warm....sorry to have to go to NJ
You really do, as the previous posters have said, have a great attitude! Try to remember that on those days when you just want to throw it all away and said screw it all!! Sometimes or MOST times your day will have hitches and not go the way you planned but just roll with it!! Maybe with drivers like you with a good attitude can make a difference for newbies AND seasoned drivers!!!

Stay safe!!!

Shiftin · Oct 25, 2010

Jersey is a piece of cake. The Jersey terminal is right in the middle of the morning rush hour (6:30am - 9:00am). Garden State Parkway on one side and Rt 35 on the other. Be on your toes and CHECK your mirrors every few seconds. One second your cleared and the next there right there. Here in NJ if you give them an inch they will try and take it. Following distance doesn't happen much in NJ.

wulfman75 · Oct 25, 2010

Shiftin said: ↑

Jersey is a piece of cake. The Jersey terminal is right in the middle of the morning rush hour (6:30am - 9:00am). Garden State Parkway on one side and Rt 35 on the other. Be on your toes and CHECK your mirrors every few seconds. One second your cleared and the next there right there. Here in NJ if you give them an inch they will try and take it. Following distance doesn't happen much in NJ.
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Sounds like Atlanta.

Warpdrvr · Oct 25, 2010

And ANYWHERE in So California.....

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