SO .. Where is the money - most OO going UNDER

It is simple, there are people who jump into this without thinking and make just enough money to survive during good times but because they mismanage their company or have no real understanding how the industry works the first sign of a possible industry cycles heading down, there is a natural bleeding of marginal operators because they are on the edge. There is always a group of these marginal operators, all different sizes and length in business.

This is and has been built in since deregulation, every time there is a complete cycle the industry can count on capacity going down through attrition of these marginal operators.

 

We used it when we need to. In the old time, when winter storms made 68 too bad or risky it's easier to hop onto the pike long enough to get around the winter storm in the rain (has done this many times) and drop into WVa for Kentucky in a timely manner.

We no longer had the trucks like the early 89's that I used to go through 68 to Wva in piles of snow. No more of that steel and so forth. Everything went to plastic and unable to pull anything in 3 inches of snow today. We lost something along the way.

However we would use the 30 alot in the midwest, US 20 and so on US Highways rather than the tolls. Hardly any traffic than other trucks most of the time small towns. A couple filled with very predatory Lawman if you did not watch it.

If we had to we used to tolls to make Indianapolis from Baltimore overnight in a 10 hour period. Today that's a bit much. Especially as the tolls has risen beyond reason and the speeds were cut down. You cannot roll along at 70ish. If you really had a good run and hardly any weather or traffic, Effingham or stateline petro at IN-IL becomes possible.

I made a timely migration to the south and western states to get clear of the East Coast as much as possible. They were essentially choking on their own efforts to cut speeding, regulate time, count tolls wasted etc. And the increasing gridlock has to be seen to believe.

For example I cross the GWB into NYC several times a day all week for 12 or so dollars then. Now it's a grotesque 106 something odd dollars to get across. And with the Zee blown up. (The Zee was always somewhat cheaper than the GWB if you could stand certain exits to wriggle into CT.

Not much of that out here.

 

I was without APU and idling from early February to early July of this year. Yes, you can actually sleep through it. We are descendants of ancient humans. They pulled it off throughout their entire lives. We are too spoiled. Now, summer is the only season where it can get challenging, and I don’t advise it, especially in places like AZ. Winter is tolerable as long as you have a zero-degree sleeping bag and sleep on the top bunk. You can do paperwork inside the truck stop or fast food restaurant to avoid your freezing truck.

The reason I didn’t want to take it to Thermo King is because I always end up spending hundreds. I will roast and freeze in my truck first before ever idling my truck.

 

When did 3% growth ever become an economic boom time? That was 2018 growth. 2019 is a little lower than 3%. That's terrible growth. In the 80's and 90's no-one would have called that kind of growth boom times. Last year's boom was fake, there was no boom due to real growth, it was all due to perceptions about government mandated EOBR. Has there been a time of real growth in this country in the past 20 years that was over 5%? I don't remember it. Some of you people seem to be riding high and laughing at anyone who isn't. This country has mountains of debt. Other countries are slowly abandoning the dollar. Best get it while you can if you're still booming.

 

OP,

You are not doing your best. Would you really perform the way you are doing right now if the mafia had your family and told you if you don’t produce then say bye-bye to your family? You still have 75% more untapped strength and stamina that you aren’t aware of. You are seeing an exit right now, and are not willing to try harder.

 

All I know right now it’s a hustlers market.

First time O/O and first time driver no company experience at anything in this Field. Yet I’m surviving and my monthly expenses top 14k just to keep roof over family and bills for the truck not including fuel, and yes I’m the only one that works while the wife finishes up her higher learning so I can retire. Been working since I was 8.

Yet here I am example of “its possible with a dry van”.

All I know is this, you need to actually do work to make it work. If I can hold out till next year then I made it.


I’m finally in the black and started pulling ahead.

I thank God Everyday when I wake up and before I go to sleep to be a part of this great industry.

 

The trucking industry is always aside from the general economy.

I sure ain’t riding high, nor laughing at others. In fact, I’m more than willing to help others improve their situation.

Hence the conversation.

 

You and 3 others I know - can and Van Freight and maintaining their position.

Sectors mean little, business model - everything.

@zmster2033 @Ringo1 @Liquidforce for a start.

 

I wasn't talking about you Blair I've never seen you act like that before.

 

It's a form of warfare.

I have gotten rid of debt in any way legally possible. If not paid off. I never spend a dollar without thinking months ahead. You can say that the next 4 to 6 months money is already considered and spent, just waiting for the payrolls to cash me so I can go get the list complete first week. After that week, nothing left to do rest of the month provided all the goals are met.

For example we are upgrading to enhanced licensing for 2020 id act next month. It wont take much.

Retailers have aggressively tried to get people to come in and buy. Even if they are issued credit cards like it's 1970 all over again. (Remember 19% interest on houses? and 15% on cars? three aint nothing.)

Banks have been zero interest for nearly a decade now. Nothing there. Making a move into Silver finally. Small time stuff. But I think I hear the sound of a creaking financial system that must fail and go back to the Gold Standard in our life time. Every other nation capable of recalling their gold deposits over here in the USA is doing it. One sign is Congress has finally understood the interest on the debt run up in the last generation is now causing a budget increase this past week of 350 some odd billions. At some point it will surpass US Military spending as a number two or three top budget need annually. Just for interest. If it is not taken care of this Nation will suffer a failure of the money system until it's made to move again.

China is extremely doing what we did 20 years ago. But they think they are bigger than we are in terms of population and have plans to pay that off in a timely manner once the people are brought to heel and keep their money in China.

This is not a political post. This is strictly a observation of about 50+ years of living in a situation where we had good and bad times as evidenced by the Congress ways of imaginary money. If a trucking company could not come up with dollars to pay the bills they are bankrupt. They cannot create imaginary dollars and consider these bills paid this month on air. It's not going to happen. That is what we are getting into.

Barring war and something else possibly a ELE or what have you we will set things right in time. But we may have to cut loose the dead weight that has been rotting on your wallet for a very long time.