SWIFT Solo Drivers What's Your Typical Day?

I don't worry about it ... I drive my hours out and get as close to final, as soon as I can and set myself up to have hours to pick up my next load. Other than home time, I rarely take a reset. YTD I average 2426 miles per week. I start my fiscal year on Christmas, so that's over the 21 week since then and includes 28 days of home time.

 

yeah I agree....except I can't drive between about 11pm to about 3 am...hehe daddy gets too tired,hehe but I always get early start and like the early am for the same reason.....plus I'm always partly on Philippines time.....so it's conducive to that too....

 

typical day is I'm open to most things....most loads and if I have to night drive I always build in time for a nappy,lol....I know myself to well....but I would have to say...?I get lots of weeks easy 3000 plus....but frustrating weeks are 2200-2500....I'm not sure what I average.As a l/op I can do pretty well on 2200 to 2500 as I do on bunches of miles....but things are so variable from week to week....and I'm not trying to get rich...just do well enough to do the things I want like and need to do...

 

If I really tried and didn't get tired after a few weeks....I could with only a little luck do 3000 to 3200--- but that doesn't mean it would make me happiest to do that....but I get into weeks like that....other weeks I try really hard at the less is more concept...pick really good loads,slow down...drive as fuel efficiently as possible...but I'm not consistent enough to do either way for too long,so I mix it up...plus god,each week is so variable too....

 

The Philippines are half way around the world! No wonder you have become a part-timer!

 

haha part timer,lol right.....

 

Actually for two and a half years I killed myself working my axx off....work 8 months go there three months the other month was mine.....but it hasn't worked out so good.so the last year I just worked less hard and didn't go to the Phils....maybe soon again.....

 

If you are running solo OTR, then Swift would rather than you run steady instead of maximum hours. When I was OTR I typically ran about 8-9 hours on a given day. In this manner I was able to run continuously without a reset for weeks at a time, making myself available to take loads. I was averaging a little less than 2500 miles per week, with my highest week at around 3000 and my lowest week at around 2200.

Solo OTR drivers are rarely given long multi-day runs. I think in the six months I was OTR solo I had a handful of loads that were more than 1200 miles, like the LA to Laredo run. Longer runs are typically given to teams.

Currently I'm on a dedicated account, running team coast to coast. We average a little less than 6000 miles per week, running max out and getting a reset each week back in Jurupa Valley, Phoenix, or Las Vegas. We strive to get over 600 miles on each 12 hour shift. My best shift so far was 655 miles, running right up to the 11.

I'm with you on night driving. Much more relaxing, and it's nice to run through major metropolitan areas like Houston without having to disengage cruise control. I run the 6 pm to 6 am shift on the team, so I'm the "vampire". Since we don't stop we don't need to deal with trying to sleep in the heat (but I'll say that my partner is "temperature challenged" and insists on running air conditioner on full blast 24/7 if we are parked).

At this time of year my shift now incorporates both the "golden hours", at dawn and dusk, when sunlight has that golden quality and gives drama to any landscape.

 

My typical day at SWIFT? I run about 450 miles a day home every night. 12 hrs a day because majority of my runs is all Drop & Hooks. Sometimes you lose valuable time at the rail yard. Maybe the box your picking up is still on the train. Or maybe dealing with those s***tty chassis ect. But 450 on a good day...