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Starve Now, or Starve Later?

Discussion in 'Questions From New Drivers' started by crazyhermit, Dec 23, 2008.

Page 1 of 3
  1. Dec 23, 2008 #1
    crazyhermit

    crazyhermit Bobtail Member

    6
    1
    Dec 18, 2008
    SW Mississippi
    0
    Hey all!
    Got a bit of a dilemma here:
    Graduated school in late November, and got several pre-hires from the normal 'new driver' companies. I decided to go with a tanker company in south Louisiana. Had all my endorsements, and was all set to start training in early January. I figured learning to drive on a tanker would help me be a safer driver. However, got a call from them today - business is so slow that they can't guarantee any miles after my training. About 30% of their drivers are sitting now, and they don't know when business will pick up again, but they didn't sound too confident that it would be anytime soon. Basically they would let me 'off the hook' if I wanted to go with someone else.
    So I call my second choice (KLLM) - not hiring until the end of January. I know that the reefer seems to be a bit more stable as far as freight consistency, but now I'm wondering about that too.
    So, should I wait and go with the box/reefer (provided I can pay the bills til then), or should I stay with the tanker and hope business picks up?
    Have any KLLM drivers seen a significant drop in miles lately (beyond the normal seasonal drop)?
    Do I need to start panhandling?
     
    crazyhermit, Dec 23, 2008
    crazyhermit, Dec 23, 2008
    #1
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  3. Dec 23, 2008 #2
    Waterloo

    Waterloo Medium Load Member

    533
    158
    Nov 16, 2008
    Grass Lake, MI
    0
    Start panhandling. There is good money there. Get a flat top and prowl the truck stops, tell them you just got back from Iraq and was robbed. You will do better with that line than driving a truck. Just kidding, but maybe not?

    I had one of my old drivers call me the other day. She was all set up with the biggest natural gas hauler in CA. She did three weeks of training, and was headed to corporate in Houston, and they canned her in the most miserable way this passed weekend. It ain't good out here right now. I have nothing positive to say that may help you, other than if you have a passion in life, do it now. As you have nothing to lose.

    Mike
     
    Waterloo, Dec 23, 2008
    Waterloo, Dec 23, 2008
    #2
  4. Dec 23, 2008 #3
    Baack

    Baack Road Train Member

    15,294
    10,172
    May 24, 2007
    Wisconsin
    0
    That was you??????
    Thought it was Acorn looking for a vote LOL
     
    Baack, Dec 23, 2008
    Baack, Dec 23, 2008
    #3
    Working Class Patriot Thanks this.
  5. Dec 23, 2008 #4
    Waterloo

    Waterloo Medium Load Member

    533
    158
    Nov 16, 2008
    Grass Lake, MI
    0
    No, it wasn't me. But I do sport a flat top and am a Vet.

    Mike
     
    Waterloo, Dec 23, 2008
    Waterloo, Dec 23, 2008
    #4
  7. Dec 23, 2008 #5
    GasHauler

    GasHauler Master FMCSA Interpreter

    6,257
    4,358
    Oct 23, 2005
    Vegas/Jersey
    0
    I don't know what you'll be hauling in the tanker job or what kind of commitment you have to give them but I don't think I'd pass up any tanker training. The thing about tankers once you get trained and a little experience behind you then you have a skill that alot of other drivers don'y have.

    I drove locally but you can do either one with tankers. I just was lucky and landed the best job I've ever ran across and would never want to drive anything but tankers.
     
    GasHauler, Dec 23, 2008
    GasHauler, Dec 23, 2008
    #5
  8. Dec 24, 2008 #6
    kevinm

    kevinm Light Load Member

    98
    8
    Apr 28, 2008
    0
    Go for the tanker and if it REALLY sucks then at least you got tanker training and if that is what you really want to do then it will look good on you if you go somewhere else even if its 4 or 5 years from now because they know you can handle it.

    I'm thinking about driving tanker once I get a couple years in.
     
    kevinm, Dec 24, 2008
    kevinm, Dec 24, 2008
    #6
  9. Dec 25, 2008 #7
    RickG

    RickG Road Train Member

    12,812
    6,135
    Jul 22, 2008
    Owensboro , KY
    0
    Tanker carriers don't give previous experience much consideration , just OTR experience . Training alone without OTR experience won't help in most cases .
     
    RickG, Dec 25, 2008
    RickG, Dec 25, 2008
    #7
  10. Dec 25, 2008 #8
    jash369

    jash369 Medium Load Member

    536
    120
    Dec 4, 2007
    roslyn,pa
    0
    IMO...........if they will hire you and you can afford to bet by on the scraps I say take it...........the time you loose by looking around and not getting anywhere you have lost time and then can't get in the door again without taking a refresher because of the time lapse.........

    This is of course as said, if you can afford to live on the scraps........til things get better and by then look at it you will have that time in as a trained/experienced tanker driver. So many paces have freezes right now and things will in some time get better, so why waste that time without the experience.

    OTR exp. matters for OTR jobs.........tanker exp. matters for tanker jobs...
    put the 2 together..........experience with good histories gets you a job.

    Last consideration..........whether you do 5k miles each month or 14k miles over the next 12 months to get 1 year exp. it is still 1 year exp.to help get you a job somewhere better..............
     
    jash369, Dec 25, 2008
    jash369, Dec 25, 2008
    #8
  11. Dec 25, 2008 #9
    crazyhermit

    crazyhermit Bobtail Member

    6
    1
    Dec 18, 2008
    SW Mississippi
    0
    This company hauls petrochemicals and waste (mostly hazmat) in the 48 and some Canada. So far just an oral commitment, supposed to go to orientation in January. And yes, I'd really like to learn on tankers. Just seems a lot better than the dock bump or tarp pulling, and I figure if I learn to drive on tankers most everything else will seem easy.

    And that's the big question - when will the freight (economy) pick back up again. If I could figure out how to keep the bills paid 'til it does, it wouldn't be a problem. If it picks up this summer, that's fine, but if it's not 'til 2010, then that's another thing altogether. Which is why a consistent reefer load job looks so tempting now.
    And that panhandling may wind up being an option.
    Retraining isn't a big deal - it's free at the school I went to, and I shouldn't need more than a day or two to knock the rust off, hopefully.
    That's a good point, a year is a year for experience, but I really want the miles too - not just for the money, but for the practical experience as well.
    Now if I can just find that darn crystal ball to see what the economy is gonna do...:biggrin_2554:
     
    crazyhermit, Dec 25, 2008
    crazyhermit, Dec 25, 2008
    #9
  12. Dec 25, 2008 #10
    Peepaw

    Peepaw Light Load Member

    64
    15
    Oct 9, 2008
    Warner Robins, Ga
    0

    Yep, if you could just find that ball you wouldn't need a driving job.
     
    Peepaw, Dec 25, 2008
    Peepaw, Dec 25, 2008
    #10
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