no logs

Yeah, as has been already posted, if you are over 100 air miles from your terminal, or in some states crossing a state line.

Working here in Southern Utah, I used to run "local" which included parts of Utah, Arizona, and Nevada. In the three years I've done this, I've never had to fill out a log.

 

OK, making thirty grand a year OTR should be no problem, but taking that home could be a bit of one. There are expenses while out on the road, and it takes time and experience to learn how to cut those back to an acceptabile level. Also, if you are married, it means not being with your spouse all that much, unless she goes with you. And of course then that might be a problem for those who need a bit of "me" time. There isn't much chance for that when you live in a tractor.

Whatever you decide to do, I wish you the best of luck.

 

With no OTR experience and freight being very low right now you could do tremendous financial harm by trying OTR. Unless you get a written contract guaranteeing you a certain amount of pay (you won't) you will be at the mercy of freight volume and your dispatcher.

There are too many truckers out there right now for the freight volume. The only reason companies keep hiring newbies right now is they have trucks that need filling for short haul wait a lot for loading and unloading trips that need driven. Their truck makes them more money moving 100 miles a week than it does sitting. You, however, don't make more money moving 100 miles a week than sitting because you will have otr expenses that are greater than you would have experienced at home. You will also have the opportunity cost of your beer driving income forgone. You will likely become mad and bored to death as you edge towards bankruptcy if you go otr.

Add to this a bad DAC when you finally get pissed and walk off the job with no notice and you would have been better off to keep hauling beer and go on a crash reduction of your expenses. Debt is bad. You can't earn your way out of dept otr because you have no say in your miles driven. I fell for the idea that I could drive 70 hours a week every week when I was recruited by MCT (Midwest Coast). It just isn't true. Ask your recruiter to show you the logs of every new hire for the last 6 months. They won't. They'll tell you they can't. They surely would not be able to hire more drivers if they did or they would. Banking has the fair lending act to protect borrowers who can do math and take the time to read. Trucking has "The Truckers Report." Trust us. We are not the government. We have all been screwed.

BRI

 

I thought there was a shortage of drivers.
Anyhow I was driving a schoolbus which is basically a split shift seasonal job. If I make $500 a week OTR that's still QUADRUPLE of what I made on the bus. I plan on keeping my road expenses down especially when I get assigned my truck. My research on here has been very valuable on how to approach life on the road. I don't have car payments or a huge debt. Just the house mortgage. I have learned to live within my means which is what one needs to do to keep expenses down on the road. I have a friend who constantly eats out and everytime he steps into a convenience store he spends about ten bucks which is quite often. Right now he is in fear of losing his house.
I'll agree driving a beer truck you have a steady income that you can count on every week. That alone is a luxury. But I guess the grass is always greener on the other side. If you want to go OTR because you want to go for it. But if you are doing it for money make sure you go with a company that will get you the miles.

 

In my opinion I think you're making a huge mistake. First off you're making the same if not more than any new OTR driver right now. If you count the hours being away from home then you're way ahead. Have you looked into what kind of advancement chances there are are with the beer company?

You can go ahead and get your class A and all the endorsements you can and that would start you on your way. But never quit a job unless you have one to go to. I would run into the beer guys when I was unloading and the way they talked they made pretty good money. They had to hussle alot but I guess that's way they made the bucks.

As far as OTR experience I think you'll only find that with the large OTR companies. Most companies will look at the job and the type of the equipment and how well your record is. I know my company would not even consider OTR as experience and wanted tanker experience above all. I've got all my log books that date all the way back to 1978 and no employer has ever asked to see them. But, the last 10 years I too ran the 100 air mile and didn't run a log unless I had to. BTW, we never ran a log because we left the state, only if it was a 100 air miles or more.

You can find many jobs that will take your experience because they do the same type of work. There's alot of food and drink distributors that will look at your experience so you don't need to get trapped into swift or any other job like that. You just have to go out and look but don't throw away what you already have.

 

fedex freight does not require that you log if you are a city driver and don't go over 12 hrs. but if you do go over, you have to log. but the fedex road linehaul drivers do have to log. i use to roll beer too and hated it considering there are driving jobs out there that pay more doing wayyyyy less labor. i don't miss the beer business

 

If I read the FMCSR (395.1(e) ) correctly, If you are driving a vehicle for which a CDL is required, the air-mile limit for no logs is 100 miles OR, if you return to original location and are released from work within 12 hours.

So, conceivably, I could drive for 6 hours in one direction, turn around and drive back, and not need a log.

If you are driving a vehicle for which a CDL is NOT required, you have 150 mile or 12 hour limit.

In neither case do state lines come into play. It's strictly distance or time.

(note: They make special provisions if you are driving in Alaska)

 

On the application for the job you put down the name of the company you drove for, they will call or fax to verify. That's all you need to do. I've driven for thirty years and never showed another company logs for another job. You have five years experience driving, whether you kept logs or not, isn't going to be an issue.