Newbie Flatbedder needs advice!

The days of tarping in wind, rain, snow, cold and hot happen. Goes with the job.
There are good things too though. Just depends who the client is.
Most places I went with loads they were happy to see you. There were some larger places that were the exception though.
If I had an appointment it was usually no issue if I got there early. Unless it was a home depot load and they were rather picky.
I hauled almost all steel though. The bad loads were back hauls.
Hauling steel was not a bad gig at all. Yes you got wet. Yes you got tired, and yes it was more dangerous than many of the other things you could haul. But you got a heck of allot more respect from the shippers and receiver's than I got in a reefer.
Was normally loaded quickly, and unloaded quickly.
The only thing that ever got to me was that I spent allot of nights in shippers and receivers lots. Meaning no shower that night. And I was normally not too clean at those times, so I was not happy.
My wife was not happy trying to get all the rust, salt ect out of my clothing lol.
Flat paid better than dry or reefer though, and oversize loads paid even better.
I have no real complaints about it.
Just know it is a different brand of trucking. The added respect is there, and it is earned. You work your rear end off, and have to log it that way.
No LEO will believe that you can get loaded secured and tarped in 30 min.
Don't know what else to say lol. I am sure plenty of others will chime in.
You can make more money in flat, but you will earn it. It is allot more work than other types of driving.

 

Back when I did flatbed the only time I really waited to get loaded/MT was large steel mills. Everything else was "eagerly" anticipated. Most of the time I was still removing chains and straps with the forklift or crane operator basically pushing me out of the way.

Not fun when you have to tarp a load that is sitting in the rain when you pick it up. Never did understand that.

Wonder if it is still like that???

 

I'm originally from Bradford. Just got back a week ago. Didn't look like there were any driving jobs up that way so I came back to FL. Seems that the few that were there when I was driving are all out of business now. Sad.

 

Wait till you have to pull a tarp off after it has had snow and slush melting and refreezing on it. Or trying to fold that tarp when it is frozen stiff.
If you are in this area he will see it.
On finding flatbed around here it is not easy. Best in the area would be Gypsum Express. But they are not hireing in my location at the moment, maybe they are in your area. Only other one I know that does not need hazmat is Maveric, and that is only there glass guys.
My company was in PA near Warren, about a 30 min drive from here. Great guys. Allot of work though. But they are down to 10 out of 25 trucks. Others all are in the shed with insurance dropped waiting for things to come back.

The truck in the picture is an old Path Trucking truck. It was picked up cheap at an auction by my last company. Got 3 of them. All 2007s with less than 200k miles. I dont think they paid more than 35k for each.

 

Are there still Georgia Pacific trucks running all over up there?

 

I'm not tough, and I did it for 3 years. I couldn't stand pulling a box around - I'd be bored to tears. and most of the time, it's well above -20 degrees, and the wind isn't blowing.

 

so do a lot of places that have particle board, plywood, oriented strand board, copper tubing, drywall, mud buckets....