Stevens Transport A year in review

I said it about a month ago while I passed by home, wonderful WYoming. Saw some white stuff on the peaks of the mountains as I rolled across Nevada yesterday.

Now I have heard Supersingles are NOT that bad in Snow. Guess all you new trucks will find out this winter.

Sitting in salinas CA, waiting for my last pick with a hard appointment time. Last Pick too. My 14 will be up while I get loaded, so now I have too see if I can even make the delivery on Time. My log book is all short of hours for the next 2 days.

 

Oct 4 to Oct 10

Miles ran 3305

Miles paid 2415

Miles transflowed yet to be paid 0

Started monday out and headed to the Stockmans Truck stop in South St Paul Mn. Good food at a reasonable price. Tuesday morning roll over to my reciever at 7am and am unloaded by 8am. Get a load right around the corner, at Dart. A load of chicken broth, headed to sacramento. Delivery scheduled for Friday Night. shoot the breeze with other drivers, Swift, USA, Stevens. Head out, load assignment says 45000, but the load is only 41000. Scales out fine, and down the road I go To Bosselmans, Grand Island Ne. next stop, Little America WY, means I am running ahead of schedule, and I ask for a repower. No luck, get told I can drop the load anytime I get there. Shoot, means I have to go into California.

Roll in Friday morning, drop my load, but Campbells will not release any of the empty trailers setting there. claim they need them all. Call dispatch, as I have a produce load to pick up. 2 hours later, a yard jockey tells me I can have the trailer I am hooked to, go get my gate pass out, and down to Castroville and Salinas for my picks. Castroville goes quickly, arrive, check in, back in and get my 9 pallets. Now it is over to Mann Packing, for an 1800 appointment. Check in at 1400, Walk around the corner to the little truck stop and get a plate of lasagna, corn, and a roll for $8.50. Good food too. Finally get called at 1900 to put it in a door. It is midnight before they even start loading me.

This load delivers on Monday in Denver, it is now Saturday morning, and I have to manage my log book carefully to be able to make the deliver. I will be bumping my 70 Saturday and Sunday, and will have to Start at 0001 on monday to make my delivery at 10am in Denver. I am up for the challenge, and can do it safely.. Head out early Saturday, and as I am passing thru Sacramento, Produce calls, saying I can not make the delivery on time, they have a truck waiting for me in Reno. My question, is he empty? Yes he is! no thanks I don't need the help, I can make this delivery on time legally and safely. Repower to an empty in Reno, means one thing, back to Salinas to pick up more produce, no thanks.

I am told to do a produce check point in Salt lake city at Thermo King. I question produce, as it will be Sunday, will TK be open. Sure they will be. Again I question, this is Salt Lake City, and Sunday, get told to call TK when I get there. Will do. For those new to Utah, Mormons do not work on Sundays.

Roll into Carlin NV for the night, not much there, but I did enjoy a few games of horseshoes across the street.

Roll into Tooele Utah, on Sunday, have a trailer tire with a nail, that needs repaired. This is as far as I can get for the day anyway. Call TK get a recording, not open on Sundays. For emergency service only call... To cover my behind I call, and the service tech on call does not consider a produce check an emergency. Neither do I. I inform Stevens, via QC, and get no reply. I tried to tell them, but what do I know.

A good week in all. I sure would have liked to be a fly on the wall, or a worm in the computer to see what Cat had to say about my low miles for the last month. I am back where I should be.

 

Tuesday evening spent in Dodge City Kansas. Waiting until Wednesday for my load, but it works as again I am up against my 70. Closed the "restaurant" here at the "j", and still have not replaced it with subway. Get a 3 dropper, Tennessee and North Carolina...

 

Oct 11 to 17

Miles ran, 2919

Miles Paid, 3279

Miles transflowed, yet to be paid, 0

Started this week off in Lake Point UT, and had to start driving at 0000 to make my delivery in Denver at 10:00am local time. I ran to Laramie WY, and stopped for breakfast, and a quick power nap as the sun came up. Get a QC asking me if I am rolling to final...my answer, "nope, thought I would hang out here for the day lol."

Dm answers, "lmao, your a trip."

Pull into Safeway at 0900, check in back in, and wait. Talk with a grad fleet driver, while we wait. Finally at 12:30, paper work is ready, and I am short 1 cases of snap peas. Notify OS&D, as I head over to Sapp Bros to park...my 14 is up in 30 minutes. Park at sapp, and OS&D tells me I am good to go.

Take a nap...get up eat dinner, see I have a QC to head to Dodge city KS...I answer, "I will in the am, when I legally am able to." Then I get sent a preplan for a load to New Jersey, 1800 miles delivers Friday Morning. I only have 6.5 hours for Tuesday, just enough time to get to dodge. So I plan to arrive in dodge about noon, so that come midnight I can grab the load and run to make the delivery Friday morning.

Tuesday morning I head for Dodge. I get a phone call from meat asking me how come I am not in Dodge..My answer, "I had no hours to move yesterday, and I have just enough to get to dodge today." "what? you did nothing yesterday," was meats reply..."wrong, I drove 540 miles yesterday from midnight until 10 am, my 14 was up at 2pm. You should know that if you would look at the driver screen before you dispatch," I answered. "I will have to find you a different load then," click and the phone was dead.

I rolled on to dodge, and recieved a load assignment just before I pulled into the gate...DLD Wed 12:49...got to love those exact DLD times now. Drop my trailer, and head over to the deserted J...Pilot has really screwed up on this one. Remoldel is suppose to start in November, till then they have Nothing, not even coffee.

My load was ready 6 hours early, 3 drops, Tennessee, and North Carolina, final on saturday morning, for 1248 loaded miles...

Had a good BBQ dinner at Ted and Nicks across from the pilot in Knoxville TN. The waitresses were a hoot to watch too.

Drops go off with out a hitch, get a trailer tire replace, the cap was starting to separate. Get a preplan on saturday morning, Down to TarHeel NC, for a monday delivery in Brundidge AL...201 empty, 528 loaded. But I am on safety hold for not having been back to the yard in over 90 days....takes many phone calls to finally get dispatched, and safety was not too happy about the load I had, as it did not get me to the yard.

Now I had started asking to be routed to the yard, while I was in Cally the week before.

Spent the night at the so fresh smelling plant, and rolled out Sunday. Now there is limited parking in and around Brundidge...so I plan at stopping at a shell Truck stop along 231, leaving me 40 miles away for my monday delivery. The place is open, no food, closes at midnight, and charges $8.00 for parking. Live and learn...At least I got a good nights sleep, with an alarm clock set for 0230.

Good miles again this week, even with the screwed up log book hours wise, and dispatch not always paying attention to the details.

 

Stevens pays HouseHold Mover guide miles. They plan on each truck having a 6 to 10% unpaid mileage variance.

Know this before working for any trucking company, how many of the actual miles one drivers, compared to the miles paid.

Once a person accepts employment with the company, one has agreed to do the job required for the stated pay.