scared to go places

I was/am the same way about some of the places we are expected to get these things in to. It helps me to get out and look EVERY STEP of the way.

Now, I'm not talking "g.o.a.l." Kind of looking. Where you check if your not sure... I'm talking getting out everytime you change the position or lines of sight. I do this for three reasons:

1. to reinforce my "picture" in my head of what is going on back there, and make sure i am visualizing it correctly. This also helps me to "learn" my dimensions better, for next time.
2. To make sure I'm not about to hit something
3. To make sure whatever I plan to do next will not be counterproductive or cause me to hit something.

This method takes a little longer but I can promise you two things....you WILL get it in there and you WILL NOT have to call Saftey and report a preventable accident.


gradually as you go on, you will get more confident. I don't know how long you have been out, but try to remember the very first time you backed up in a simple maneuver....nervous right? I bet you aren't anymore....

 

you are right to be scared- I am always aware that if I am not careful I can end up in a very bad situation. I try to minimize risk by google earth looking at the layout of a facility - which helps a lot- even streetview just to recognize the client when I get there. but I found too that with practice I gained the confidence that regardless I will be able to deal with it. when I had to pick up/drop or layover in a yard I would practice, mostly blindsiding, with bad set up and minimal space- thing is I would get out and check frequently and I got better. don't be afraid to ask a fellow driver to spot you at a client or ts- I always apologized and told them I was a rookie driver and wanted to avoid any mistakes. everyone was 100% decent to me. made me proud to be a trucker

 

Being scared of the situation is better than not caring. On Tuesday I witnessed a new driver (obviously new cause he was totally clueless about everything I observed him doing) pull into the lot we both were delivering to. It was a tight lot and I knew the proceedure and how to back into a spot right away where you wait for your turn to get into a dock. He went the wrong way to a dead end lot area with employee parking as well as empty trailers. He decided he would swing around and do a 180 turn around. Well, there isn't enough room to do that (the smart move would have been to just straight back out of the area to a point where he could swing the trailer around and back into a spot next to me). Needless to say, he jacked the tractor past the 90 degree point. After you pass 90 degrees the trailer begins to go in reverse basically.

I was about to get out and help him, but he swung it around pretty fast and scraped up against one of the trailers. I then paused and waited to see what he'd do. He didn't even bother stopping, and kept jacking the tractor further. Well, by this point his trailer was going backwards, scraped past the first trailer, and then basically backed straight into the second trailer right next to the first one. He then proceeded to push that trailer, landing gear screetching in a super load grinding sound, pushed that trailer backward on the landing gear 10 feet through the back fence and demolished the fence. Needless to say, he made such a load ruckous that 4 or 5 employees were all running out into the yard checked out the damage and talking to the guy.

From my observation, that guy just didn't give a ####. There is no way he didn't feel the contact. And even more so, there is no way he didn't hear the grinding screetching sounds that even people inside the plant could hear. He knew he was doing damage, he just didn't want to figure out how to back out of the situation to minimize the damage. He just kept going full steam ahead and then worried about the carnage once he was fully turned around.

What I'm saying is being scared about these sort of things means you're going to be extra careful, getting out and looking, taking your time, etc. In time when you get more experience you'll lose the fear when you start to know what you are doing. But caring like you obviously do is way better than not giving a #### all, doing a bunch of damage first then asking questions later.

 

we understand. But you can't build a career running from half the money. Take this for what it's worth: face it and just deal with as calmly as you can, and you'll find yourself looking forward to new places just for the challenge. You may even find yourself a little disappointed at the easy ones.

But keep running from it and you'll always regret letting something like that beat you. Plus, you'll lose out on a lot of money and get a rep as unreputable with DMs and even brokers.

Understand, though, that beating the fear does not at all mean that you won't be cautious and even feel a little apprehensive. It only means that you control the fear rather than letting it control you and make your decisions for you.

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2

 

I was in Providence RI and had to deliver some mining equipment. Once I got into the lot, the only way out was to back at an angle and out into traffic. Yea...that's even worse than trying to hit a dock correctly.

The equipment receiver said they have off-duty cops that help with this as they have deliveries all the time.
So?

I got to back up in a tight area out of a fence and into the roadway, while cops stopped traffic.
I had quite the audience, so I understand how this can make you feel nervous.

But, no one typically beeps when cops have stopped traffic - they just have to wait. Too bad for them.
Know that and just do your best. I had to do one pull out to re-angle myself out but I did it and moved on.

Each time, it gets a bit easier. I agree with Google earth, but in my case, this was too new to be up to date on GE so
while it showed a partial city block - it didnt show correctly.

No one expects perfection.

Pickup the freight - get it there safe and sound and on-time and that's what matters.

One time I had to do this crazy backup to hit a dock to deliver a skid loader off.
I looked at it and figured it would take quite a while to do.

So, I told the guys "this might take me a few attempts...it is what it is"

Took me 2 shots and I got it. - The one dock worker started laughing and I asked why.
He told me they took bets that I wouldn't be able to hit it.

Funny thing though, when the guy was trying to backup the skid loader off my trailer - he had it in drive
instead of reverse...moved forward as he had turned around looking back.

Naturally I had a field day with that..

 

there are STILL places that make me ,ah well, nervous?

been doing this a long time and some places I hate.

I've stopped when not getting it right and pull out to the street and take ten.

they ask "what are you doing"!!

I say, "trying to relax so I don't go postal and run your cars and crap over that are in my way. ok?" lol

we all still have our moments and places that make us nervous.

 

The time to be scared is when you're no longer scared of those places. The day you no longer respect the ability of the truck to do some real damage if you get careless, is the day you need to consider a different career. It may seem scary now, but as you do these maneuvers more and more you will get more comfortable. In the meantime whenever you're at a company yard, or any place where you can give yourself lots of room; mark off spaces like the ones you talk about and then practice the hell out of backing. It will get easier.

 

This has gotten me thinking of my own situation when I first started driving. Baking was a huge hang up for me also. But in my own case, I realized something after a while.

If I had to make the hardest backing I'd faced up to that point, it wouldn't bother me a bit - as long as it was in a place that no one was around to watch. I wasn't all that concerned (more than what's normal) about hitting anything because I knew I could take as long as I wanted, get out and look as many times as needed, do however many pull ups I felt was necessary - and none of it mattered.

But let just one other driver be sitting in his truck and my heart would go to my throat. And a truck stop was the worst because I knew that all these professional drivers would be watching me and laughing.

After I finally quit caring what other people thought, I was able to just focus on what I should have been focusing on all along - my trailer. Baking got easier little by little, my heart stayed in its rightful place and I started to realize that while there may have been some folks who watched and laughed at me, there were also some who were pulling for me and uttering words of encouragement from their trucks.

And I appreciate those drivers.

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2

 

Even shorter trailers (28' pups) have their issues. You have to keep on top of it while backing, or else it will get away from you before you know it. The nice thing about 48s and 53s is it's easier to back when you set yourself up right because you can correct the trailer and it takes time for it to respond.

And I agree, it's more difficult to back when you have an audience (especially when the audience is watching as you block the road backing into a dock facing the street)