ryder logistics

When I started there in 2004 it was 2 years experience required,then they changed it to 1 year while I was working there.In todays job market it may be 2 years again,You can apply online at Ryder dot (you know what).

Their website shows all open positions worldwide,and you can import a resume.

I don't think Ryder hauls finished cars,but anything is possible.I used to think hauling cars would be a good job,as I heard they made good money,until one day I was watching a guy unload his carhauler in freezing rain and he managed to get the car on the top ramp halfway off the side of his trailer and leaning against a telephone pole.

I don't know how he got out of that situation,I left before the wrecker got there.It seems there is a good chance of losing your job over something like that,or having to pay the damages,not to mention the risk of injury climbing around on those trailers.Also,working in all weather conditions would not be fun.

I hauled steel tubing for 4 years on an open flatbed,tarping a lot of it,but at least I got to tarp inside.I don't think carhaulers have the luxury of loading or unloading inside,but many cars are moved inside special van trailers nowadays.

The runs I had at Ryder were J.I.T.(Just In Time)auto PARTS runs.For many years auto assembly plants have been doing this to save on warehouse space and costs.This means the parts I was hauling would basically be going right onto the assembly line shortly after they arrived at the assembly plant.

A lot of these runs are relay type runs.For example the first driver would do the"milk run"from South Bend,IN to Sheboygan,WI(about 250 miles each way).On his return to South Bend I would take his load to Cleveland,OH(about 250 miles each way)in the same tractor trailer he drove.

In Cleveland I would do a trailer switch with a driver from Rochester,NY,picking up a trailer with empty racks on it.This way all 3 drivers get to be home every day or night.

Ryder had some good perks,they kicked in about a grand a year into my 401K,I never had to fuel my truck(this is done at their terminals,the attendant washes your windows and checks your fluids and tires with an air gauge).Any tire under 90 PSI goes into the shop to be checked.

They also had employee discount programs with many auto makers,cell phone plan providers,Staples,and others I can't recall.One driver got $3,000 off a Ford pickup.A technician won a new GMC pickup in a national competition.

They used to have a company paid pension plan after 5 years employment,but I heard they were doing away with that before I got laid off.I guess times are tough everywhere,but you could do a lot worse than working at Ryder.

 

Yeah I used to work for a car hauler before I got my CDL. A few other thigs these guys have to deal with:

1.) Your PTI includes checking ALL the hydralic cylinders for 'issues' I used to help guys with this all the time and on 2 ocassions had to get a roadside assist to swap out a piston.

2.) All the decks have "brakes" which should be double checked before and after loading. One guy rushed it, didn't see he still had a peg in and bent his deck.

3.) Decks need to be level. I forgot what a PITA it was to count holes on both sides of the truck 5 times before realizing the deck was bent. thanks for bringing back that memory.

Still weather isn't so bad, drivers usually don't have to dig the cars out (that was MY job at the time) and at my yard I usually had the loads staged and ready to go. I even would put them in the proper load order (ceratain vehicles could only go in certain locations on the truck) for the driver.

As for a slip seat milk run, boy that sounds good. But seeing as southern NY has lost so much of it's mfg base, I doubt there's much work here. But maybe I'll give them a jingle.

thanks.

 

Unfortunately the South Bend,IN terminal is slow also.I still keep in touch with the regional recruiter for my area and update my application online monthly.The only account they are running out of there is an AT&T mostly flatbed operation with about 15 trucks.

The Ryder terminal is about 2 miles from the AT&T distribution center and they run about a 250 mile radius to other AT&T DC's.All out and back daily,5 days a week.I had a chance to get on that,but I declined due to the facts all runs leave at midnight and it's mostly flatbed hauling those big spools of cable on edge.

After 4 years running flatbed,not my cup of tea anymore,and I prefer sleeping at night.I'll stick with my LTL P&D job,which I love.

A couple of things I noticed about carhaulers is they are top heavy and a handful in windy conditions and how in the heck does a big guy like me 6', 220# get in and out of the cars to load and unload without dinging the doors?I've seen one do it NASCAR style through the window,but that could damage interiors.

I delivered RV's a long time ago and some of those dealers would go over them with a fine tooth comb,looking for rock chips,tree branch scrapes,etc.It seems car hauling has a potential for the driver paying a lot of damages,or losing his job.

 

Ryder has AT&T now? Werner had that for a lot of years.
I had a chance to drive for a guy who had some trucks with Werner signed on there. Like you said, the runs leave around midnite, and they were timed, you only had a leeway of a half hour or so to complete them. Not for me!

 

Yeah,Ryder has had that account for 2 or 3 years now,they got all new flatbeds for that account.A driver I used to slip-seat with went over to that account when we got laid off our automotive run.We still keep in touch and he loves it,but he's single,and I need to work days to keep the old lady happy

As for that guy leased to Werner(Dave)at Diversified Transport on Ireland Road,I'm sure that's who your talking about.What a dump of a place he had.

I applied there in 2004 after my flatbed job went out of business and before I got hired at Ryder.The minute I walked into his office I noticed the carpet my feet were on in front of his desk was totally covered in grease.I just about walked out right there,but I was getting desperate and decided to fill out an app anyway.

After talking with him and meeting his greasball mechanic who looked like he wore the same clothes for a week,my doubts were ever increasing.The kicker was when he showed me the POS Freightshaker I would be driving,complete with duct tape attempting to hold a fender together,all mismatched retreads on the drives,and looked like it had never been washed.

He was all set to send me to the Werner orientation in Indy the next Monday,and I told him I would call him to set it up just to get out of that dump.Guess what?I never called,and I'm glad I didn't as he lost that account a year or two later and closed up shop,as I think that was the only business he had.

I think he went over to Midwest Logistics after that(another dump).

Lonesome,I read on this site where you deliver to RV companies in Elkhart,you probably never heard of them,but I drove flatbed for Johnson Tube and Steel in Elkhart from 1999 to 2003 until he went out of business because of health problems.

Keith J. was the founder and operator of this company and he was the best man I have ever worked for.I was his only driver and he really appreciated the fact that I showed up on time every day on time and stayed until the work was done for the day.

When I started I had a 1995 Freightliner that was on a full service lease,and about a year later he got me a brand new International.Our main accounts were steel tubing for Monaco and Coachmen,but I delivered to many other RV companies.

We may have crossed paths somewhere,small world isn't it?

 

One trick (on the top racks) is to set the racks to the highest position when loading/unloading. So that there's nothing to get in the way. Highrail (trailers) have very large gaps between the verticals, so usually it's not a problem. The two "belly" spots are probably the hardest. Usually the belly itself has wide gaps for doors, it's the number 8 spot (the one spot on a multi car carrier that has the most possible positions) that usualy messes people up. #8 is also a ramp for the "behind the bunk" positions, and if you really screw around you can use it to get cars off the top of the tractor without 'cleaning off' the top decks on the trailer. (more trouble than it's worth but theoreticly possible)

It's been a while, let's see if I can remember all the spots.
1.) Headrack.
2.) 2nd top
3.) 1st trailer
4.) nasa rack (pointed at the sky)
5.) top tail
6.) behind the cab
7.) Belly rack
8.) bridge rack
9.) axles
10.) tail rack.

 

Yes a very small world! I vaguely remember the Johnson name, at that time I was working out of South Bend for a small box shop called Container Service. Before that, I drove for Patrick Industries, in Mishawaka, but they had plants all over Elkhart. I've been to most of the RV shops in Elkhart county.
Yes, it was Diversified that had the FLiners with Werner. I talked to him on the phone one time, sounded OK, but didn't like the overnite aspect of it, especially in the winter, and with the runs being timed. Glad I didn't go with 'em!

 

I remember delivering steel to the maintenance shops at the Patrick Mishawaka and Lusher Street plants when I was with Johnson.In addition to RV plants and RV suppliers,I had many Amish customers,all of whom were some of the nicest and most gentle people I have ever met.

It started with just one customer,but soon after that word got around and I found myself wandering many dirt roads in Elkhart and Lagrange Counties with my 48' flatbed and daycab.Fun memories of negotiating very tight corners.

Many people think the Amish don't use electricity,but there are different kinds of Amish,and my customers used electric in their welding and cabinet shops.

Most of them worked out of their barns and I had one customer who had to move his horse out,and I would back my trailer inside and he would take his order off with a chain hoist.

One time in the winter I got stuck in the snow leaving his barn,and we used ashes from his wood stove under my tires,worked like a charm!

As for Container Service,I responded to their ad for a driver after Johnson went out of business,but never heard from them.I still see their trucks on the road,nice looking equipment.

 

Most of the Amish are decent to work with. Most of them pay CASH for their orders, too!
Lots of the Amish can use modern things where they work, but they adhere to the old ways at home. I know of Amish with generators in their shops for welders, cranes, etc. And some have phones, but their located in a small "booth" at the end of the driveway, for emergency use.
Yeah, Container Service has some nice trucks, I was there about 5 years,they had lost a few runs at that time, and the paycheck was getting smaller. I also decided to get off the road for a while, took a job maintaining rental equipment at a heavy equipment dealer. But after 9/11, they got extremely slow, and I was going to lose my job, so I went back on the road.
Now I'm back at Patrick! But it's not the same place of years ago. A lot of management changes, buyouts, etc. But it pays the bills and then some.
Years ago, Patrick plywood, Metals, Custom Vinyls, etc, was one of the better driving jobs in the area.

 

On the other side of the house with Ryder my first driving job back in 78 was with a company that leased its trucks from Ryder. We drove all through the south and if we had a problem or needed fuel all we had to do was look in the Ryder book and find a shop. It was great because we had priority over their rental trucks and I never had to wait to get anything fixed. Of course that was years ago but I thought they were way ahead of the game with service.