Taking the leap...

Sorry "Allow Me", but I fueled at the Pilot in Mebane NC yesterday, just got the statement by email. $1.00 transaction fee.

The price was $2.729 per gallon with no rebate and a $1.00 fee. Flying J at Haw River was $2.70 cash price.

Fleet ONE allows you to fuel at the big box truck stops but NONE of them are in their net.

I don't have time to screw with their Mom and Pops. I need to go on line, check the prices along my route and plan accordingly. I'll be looking into a fuel card with Flying J, TA etc etc etc. A penny saved is a penny earnt.

 

Flying J did not take my Fleet One card when I was at their Joplin MO location last week. They have their own card, TSC or something like that. I was at a few Love's and received their cash price on fuel. Haven't seen a transaction fee. Maybe where you sign up for your card makes a difference. I got mine through OOIDA.

 

I used truckingstartupservices.com for my authority and they handled everything for a couple hundred bucks. The also have programs for drug testing (which I still use) and log verification as well as they keep me up to date onnew filings etc. Great company to use IMHO. There are a lot of avenues you can take, just shop tem and not just for price but what services they can offer you now or in the future. That is what sold me on them.

 

Got mine thru OOIDA also. They bait you with that big sign that says "Truckers Edge members never pay a transaction fee".
So they got me for sure.

I looked right thru the in network list. There is no Loves, but a handfull of Flying J way out in the west that will accept FLEET ONE, and there is a few Petro Stops "in the network" way out west. Check you statements, I bet you are getting hit for the fee.

I know its only a buck but then they get you on the cash advance also. Like all the banks, they BS to get you in because they know not many of us read the rheems of small print they hide behind. I actually read mine but the penny did not drop regards the "In network" escape clause they have. I believed in the "Truckers Edge members never pay a transaction fee" come on sucker line on their web site.

I'm gonna make my feelings known to OOIDA. They claim to have thousands of members so why can't they negoiate a 4 to 8 Cent discount at the Pilots, Loves etc like is given to all the big carriers. Us small operators are feeling the hurt to.

I'm not in love with the big truck stops but I do like the national driver rewards card they give and the ability to grab a shower down the road if time is short when you fuel and the ability to go on line and check prices.

I think the Flying J card might be the way to go, their cash price is hands down always better than the guy across the street but lets see what "gotch ya's" they have up there sleeve. Have a great Christmas ya'll.

 

oh so very true,want and disire,makes the dream a reality,along with hard work,motovation,,,,its been said if yyou want it bad enough,one will work hard enough to get what they want ! the trick is keping it going

 

Although I'm not making any money the bills are getting paid. I drove a company truck for 25yrs before becoming a o/o and wouldn't go back to it.

 

I love being an O/O. I do not love the headaches that come with it but rather cherish them, they are mine and no others. That goes the same for my dreams and ambitions, I take 100% of the risk, I reap 100% of the outcome, wether good or bad, a valuable lesson none the less. To me, it is some of the best education money can buy. I have 3 trucks, thus 3 times the headaches etc. I am a passionate and proud man when it comes to business, I like the freedom to experiment with my fleet, tires, oil, truck style, driving techniques etc. These are things that can't be done on the scale I do them if I were a company driver. My trucks are not neutered, my drivers are aware it is their license, their foot on the pedal and it will be their ticket along with any other linked incidentals. (i.e. if they get a ticket and my insurance goes up, they know not to ask for a raise or bonus..) I am trying 3 different brands of tires, tire sizes and gear ratios, I am trying an ultrashift vs a comparably specd manual. I have learned that certain combinations give better economy than others yet dont have the power to pull hard, I have also learned that the best possible mpg may not be the best economy over a period of time. I have found giving my company drivers a little freedom in their choice of freight and destinations has become more productive and profitable for my fleet. I have not learned it all, I have a long way to go, but I know I am on the right track for me and my family, specially in these times. I m not looking to get rich, just take care of my personal and work families and become successful. Sure I dream to one day be bigger than the Primes, Swifts, Werners etc. I refuse to count driver attrition as my primary means of business, rather than driver retention. These are all the things that comes to my mind when I think about what I do and why I do it. I do not need a college educated idiot telling me what the theory is on my decisions, wether it is neutering trucks, decreasing driver comfort to increase payload.... to me that is not why I am in this, I am not in this to maximize my return on investment at the cost of being decent to others that I rely on.... This to me is the essence of the entrepeneurial spirit that overcomes us all at some point in life knowing we can do it better than our predecessor....

 

I have seen the same thing at a TA, company wanted a picture emailed to them and when the tire was replaced another long phone call to get paid.

What ticks me off is I am paying cash for my work and I have to wait for the T/S employee to get off the phone with the company drivers company which they are on hold with.

I only use truck stop shops in an emergency. It is always a long wait and they want to know everything and your mothers maiden name to get checked in.

 

O/O's have been complaining since the wagon and mule team days.