Still having problems with backing

and one more thing. Dont forget how it feels to be a noob. When you graduate to supertrucker, dont be a jerk. Stay humble and be patient with the noob thats sweating bullets and rocking the cab all over the lot, running his air down to nothing while you wait.

 

You were backing into a dock at a DC, or backing into a dock at a store with a load from a DC?

Store docks can be **really** bad.

 

What you learned today was critical, and you didn't hit anything when you learned it. Good job!

 

After 24 years in the industry, I still am I proud steering wheel holder.

If you figure out how not to back up your trailer without holding the steering wheel, be sure to let the rest of us know.

 

This is a common issue. When you get too close to a truck, pull forward, re-set, and try again. I still do exactly what you describe every now and then, after 4 years.

 

This is extremely common in new drivers -- it's reassuring to bring the trailer in close to the boundary on the side you can see (which is a good habit, it means you're maximizing space on the side on which you're blind), but bringing the trailer over too early creates a situation wherein you have to straighten the tractor relative to the trailer to avoid the object, but then do not have enough angle between the tractor and trailer to complete the turn without having the trailer hit the object on the far (blind) side. The more trailer overhang behind the tandems, the bigger this problem is. I try to sight on something that's about 10' in front of the box, and maybe 2' to the side I'm on, and back the trailer so the near tires go to about that spot. If I can pivot around that spot, I'm well on my way to putting the trailer into the box at a relatively straight angle, and don't have to worry as much about the blind side swing. Fwiw.

Also, if you're having trouble knowing how much angle to create between tractor and trailer, or when to start taking angle out, when you GOAL I suggest you pretend that you can't see any portion of the tractor but the drive tires. The reason for this is that the drive tires of the tractor ARE the steer tires of the trailer, and looking at the trailer as one long straight vehicle, with the steer tires (drive tires of the tractor) set where they are should help you to see whether the trailer is going to turn as much as you want it to or not. Basically, when you look at the back of the trailer you're seeing where it's going in the present. When you look at the angle of the tractor to the trailer, by looking at the drive tires of the tractor, you're seeing the future -- where the trailer will go in the next few seconds.

Hope this made sense / helps.

 

I got a lot of benefit from spending a whole day in our truck yard practicing backing a trailer in between two parked trailers. I did regular 45 degree, I did 90 degree, I did blindside. I seriously sucked at it when I started that morning, and I was fairly competent by the time I parked the truck at the end of the day.