My new adventure with Gordon Trucking

Since I received an email from Ms. Green earlier this week telling me I am "100% confirmed" for the Jan 20 orientation class, I thought I would share this with you.

In the past month or so, I hoped to get a more well-rounded picture of "life on the inside," so I asked 8 random GTI drivers in various locations what they thought of the merger and if it would change their 3-5 year plans. They were all male and pulling dry vans and without fail, every single one of them said the same thing...they were looking for a new job because "they don't have APU's and they won't let us idle."

I didn't get get into the fact that the transition had just begun and that there is a lot to do and they had no idea what changes would happen to either set of drivers - they all clearly had their minds made up by something they read or heard on the CB or in the drivers lounge; it was almost as if they had been given some kind of script by one very unhappy GTI driver...

Pity. They will miss out, I think. And I will happily take one of those trucks. I just hope they'll let me into the TC fleet.

 

I bought a mattress topper from a company that builds them to fit a truck bunk, like yours. I love it! It was much less expensive and just as effective, so there's no need for a new mattress; I sleep like a baby very night. NICE!

 

My prediction as an outsider but as someone who's observed Heartland for a long time is that GTi drivers are going to be astounded at how fast your blue trucks go away. They have refined a strategy of recapturing as much equity in them as possible and that's in the 300,000 mile range apparently.

 

Denalidad.... as you know i was one who was very upset at the beginning of all the news. Like many others i began exploring my options. But,sadly to say, i find nothing that i am truly excited about. While there are companies that i could see myself working for they really are not all too appealing. More of a move down , not even sideways.

So, i begin to gather info on heartland. While i do take into consideration the comments of disgruntled former employees , i am more interested in current , satisfied heartland drivers. For better or worse , we are now employees of heartland and i must now determine if i can succeed as a heartland driver.

There are heartland drivers who succeed and i plan on being one of them.

I have an advantage since my seniority is carried over. I have 5 years with gti... 3 weeks paid vacation..that is a big deal to me. I am actually considering the regional opportunities as well.

While the quality of equipment is very important to me there are far greater things to consider.
Income and time off are more important. As long as i am making what i am now and can get home when i want to and for more than just a reset i will be happy.

I believe you would be well advised to begin to question heartland drivers instead of gordon drivers since you have as much insight on the future as we do. Truth is , you will be an employee of heartland like the rest of us. I am not one that believes the refer board is the best move but it is your choice. While joseph has done well there it is going to be a challenge for heartland to determine their place in that world and they may find in the end that it is not worth the headache. Profit margins are not as high in tc for some reason and there are many dry van shippers who will not load their product in refers.

 

And I might not even be given the choice. Another new hire wasn't. We'll see; I just prefer reefers for the hum and the occasional live load/unload. I am not one who will grub for miles, so drop/hook really doesn't mean that much to me. I will let you know in less than a month.

As for talking to other drivers, I'm done with that. I will start with GTI and deal with whatever happens in the next couple of years. The industry is changing as the economy changes; my guess is the new "red, white, and blue" will not look like either existing company.

 

The one significant difference is Heartland now has something they aren't used to: a $250 million debt. That can change perspective and outlook from what was to what will be.

 

A little insight on the 300,000 mark: Most factory warranties expire @ 400,000 miles.

That 6 to 8 months of factory warranty is a major value to some one looking to buy a used truck.

 

85k miles for 7 to 8 months run time is not bad at all Joseph. That's about 12k per month.

Sounds like they did get it together on refer dispatch since I left.

 

Not to be patting the boy on the back but, a lot of that has to do with joseph himself. He is one hell of a worker.
I just hope he doesn't burn out. One thing I have learned over the years is to pace myself.. but I am no spring chicken any more...