OTR vs Oil Field Work

i like OTR, i've gone local and back to OTR 3x now. Since you are new, you would be corraled into starting with OTR. And really you should, that's the best place to learn the ropes. One oil spill and you're out of a job and difficult to hire, one backing accident you're a newbie that keeps a job or has easy time getting a new one.

 

Tricky question.. There is no definite answer to this one. (again) For me;I have NO interest of being in Williston,ND as I have hauled oilfield equipment there on a flat and step,and although I have talked with many workers there and am convinced the money is indeed great,being a native of MN I understand how brutal the Winters can be in that area.

TX now I am interested in..And have pursued and considered..But here is where it gets tricky.(for me) If I leave OTR it will be for good. Not sure if I have had enough yet.

Put it like this..One has a wife/G.F. and ya want to leave cause ya fight a lot..Still..A lot of time has been invested..She is your Best Friend and sometimes your enemy from hell....Still you both get along well enough to make the "fun" worthwhile enough to stay..

 

Just speaking from my personal experience, oilfield is a lot different than OTR.

Oilfield drivers have a boss who's actively scheduling their day. I'll start my morning on a frac fill job, but at some point in the day, my dispatcher will pull me off to service a rig. There are days when I get bounced between three or four different jobs, depending on the needs of oil companies/rigs. I always have one ear tuned to the radio in case my dispatcher calls with a new job.

The driving is local. I spend 90 percent of my time in one county in North Dakota. I've learned the network of unpaved roads crisscrossing my area, and know several routes that don't appear on maps. But I don't get out much. It's been months since I've seen an interstate.

The driving is challenging. The rigs and frac crews don't stop for weather, and we can't either. Throwing iron is part of the job. Getting stuck/sliding off the road is very bad. If you need to be rescued, dispatch will shame you over the radio and you will have to fill out paperwork. Your quarterly safety bonus will probably be affected.

The pay is good. Most company drivers here will out-net most OTR owner-ops. My first year, I made 65K. I expect to make closer to 80K this year. That's considered mediocre by a lot of folks up here. However, I get full benefits, steady work and quality housing, which is more than most can say.

 

I've been here in Williston for little over a year. I would suggest OTR first, this a dangerous place to learn, a lot of places want 2years exp. for ins. To cover you,unless out work for some O/O that don't care, then you'll end up hating it cuz they'll run you into the ground and threaten your job if you don't like it, and oh ya... The water pump on your truck needs to be changed, you'll have to do it cuz owner is to busy playing golf in Cabo

 

I guess it depends on what you want..... long days short money long haul.Or long days short miles good money, ran 129 miles today12hrs $418.00 not too shabby.

 

For me it was an easy choice. I like my wife and family. I don't mind getting dirty. I could not handle the hours upon hours of road humming. Give me the muddy roads any day. I would say it comes down to what you handle best.

 

or maybe which stress you handle the best.Ive been in the oilpatch may go back somday who know's but i love the open road.

 

I've been driving OTR for almost a year now and I hate it! I'm only doing it just long enough to say "Yeah, I have a year OTR experience." I've been applying at different energy companies throughout Texas, but most are telling me I have to live in Texas and have a Texas CDL before they will set up an interview.

The impression I'm getting is that guys aren't showing up for interviews? I would jump at the chance to get a good day/day cab job and get myself out of this sleeper truck. I'm a single guy, divorced and no kids, so relocating is no problem for me. Just tell me where to be and I'll be there!

I've talked to a few of the local truck drivers here in my home town and I tell them about making deliveries into downtown Chicago or driving through the Bronx in New York and I'm told I'm crazy! But that's all I've done in my OTR adventures, I would think a day cab trucking company would love to hire me.

 

I make about $700 a week driving OTR, I'd love to make that kind of money! FYI, I'm working 14 hours a day too.