Swift should be so proud!!

smith trans and england have got to have the worst drivers.

 

i won't do one on a interstate eitherr but i have done a few on 2/4 lane back roads. always do it at a light though soo i can at least get some control of the traffic situation around me. i don't suggest it to anyone. it is very unsafe and way to many blind spots while doing it.

 

i would have turned him in. a matter of a few miles of shorter driving distance and a little extra diesel is not enough to equal the life of a fellow motorist(s). these kind of dangerous stunts caused the death of my friends little sister kelly martinez. kelly martinez rip 1996-2007. you'll be remembered.

 

All drivers have made bonehead mistakes if they have been driving for any length of time. Not just swift drivers. If they say they haven't I tend to think their not being totally honest. I know I have made my share in the 30+ years I have been driving. I'm just thankful that there wasn't someone watching that was eager to rat on me. I don't mean this as being disrespectful. It's just my opinion.

 

There's a difference between bonehead and dangerous. It has never occured to me to try a u-turn on any highway. YMMV.

 

I have just learned years ago that if I focus on others driving habits that it's easy to lose sight of my own.

 

After being off the road for medical reasons for 8 months I ALMOST made the mistake of going Swifty. I only made it through a day of their so-called orientation in Dallas.

Here's the story for all who may be thinking about this company.

I originally was going to go back to J.B. Hunt. Vice what others have to say about ole' J.B. I never had any problems with them. Yet, when I applied I didn't have 3 months first seat in the last 6 months (insurance thing). I was told I needed to find 3 months somewhere. Swift was real close to where I was at and I thought "It's only 3 months."

Well, the hotel swift put me up at was being picketed by the ####roaches.

The orientation itself was disorganized and instructors were not prepared to give the classes. A lot of people missed information because they were running around trying to take care of other items needed for the hiring process. These were not things they forgot, these were things the company should have taken care of BEFORE the person got to orientation.

We had smoke breaks down by the yard. While sitting there I saw drivers come in and try to back into a slot and hit another truck, or maybe a trailer or two, or three. Nothing was said and the driver didn't much care.

Then came the cap to my day at swifty. A couple drivers got their trucks. First driver up was a woman who had experience hauling flatbeds. Decent looking FL Century (only 1 cracked fairing). She popped the hood and took it over to the shop. "If it could leak, it was." Was her statement.
Next was a guy fresh from "Swift Academy" and training. He hopped up in his Volvo and closed the door. Immediately his face went pale and got this pained look in his eyes. He opened the door and threw up down the side of the truck. "Smells like a piss factory" was his complaint.

I called another company from their terminal and saved two other drivers from a huge mistake.

Q: "What do you get when a Swift truck leaves a truck stop?"----


A: "Three parking spaces"

 

I concur with that, and if you haven't made a dumb move yet your either sitting or your not being as we say "forthcoming" in all the details of your mistakes. I've made a few boneheaded mistakes in my 30 years also..

 

I have never driven at SWIFTY but I confess I have been forced to make some poor or poorer decisions while driving. I always tried to be safe but Chicago has its way of making me do stupid things. When I saw one of those low clearance overpasses I just parked it until all the traffic went by and the red light behind me stopped traffic. I picked a spot where the side road met the road I was on and U turned it. It was raining, I went up over the curb at least a few feet with my tractor and safely got out of the way to go back and blind side back into the ketchup factory for McDonalds little ketchup packets.

Later I wondered why in all my training I had never been coached about how many lanes it takes to turn that rig around. I had four lanes plus a side road for over run and it couldn't be done. 53 foot reefer.

I have never even thought about doing a U turn through the median though. After you pay for your first tow out of mud you'll think twice about ever going off road.

BRI