The adventures of 'Team Klingon'

Down here in FL I have actually seen some drivers at the Longwood rest stop on I-4 laying out in lounge chairs in their bathing suits soaking up some rays!

 

I am Texas right now.... Last night was the first time I have spent a night in the turck, and didn't have the heater on all night.
When I went to bed, it was 60 degrees out side and the lot lizards were out in force.... lol (and yes, I am pretty sure they were lot lizards, one was waring short shorts and the other kept walking by my truck and kept saying "Hi there". Now I know their friendly down here in Texas, but.... )

 

Well, I come real, real close to telling CRS's Terminial Manager where I'm parking the truck so he can have someone pick it up!
But I didn't, I am now setting or I should say still setting in Ft Worth Tx waiting for correct load information. It is either the DM is playing games and or ying to me or the Planner is. They lied about the delivery time to me for the load I brough down here from Iowa and then they lied to me about times for the pick up today. Now if it would have been just one of the places, I would/could have brushed it off as the dock people screwing up, but on two loads in a row.... tow different companies, naaaa.... I have a feeling that it is on this side where the STINK is coming from!

It started, when I picked up a load in IA heading for Tx.
I picked it up (while there, a CRS driver was trying to sell load locks to me and other truckers) and about 6 hours later I get another load order over the QC. It is for the same load but going to a different location. Same date but no time. So I verify with the DM and he tells me that there is going to be an early delivery time and asks me for my ETA.
So when I stop for the evening, I refigure my time, and see that if I drive 10+ hours that day and 10:00 and 11:00 on 30/16.
So the next morning (the 15th) I send in a mac3 and have my ETA on it.
I get a message from on of the other want-a-be DM's asking why I am going to be 5 hours late. I told him, when I did my mac11 it was not to deliver till 2300 on the 16th. I had not been told that there was another appointment time set. Well Needless to say, I was able to push my hours reall close but I got into Ft Worth last night with about 15 to 20 minutes to spear.
So then I get preset with 3 loads. Now keep in mind, LadyK is upgraded and waiting for me to get in West Valley.
The first load, loads this morning at 0900 with the #2 appt time 200 miles away at 1600.
(these are all on today the 16th. )
#3 is at a walmart in harrisonville Mo. at 1505 on the 17th, and the #99 about 40 miles away.
(the other loads was #1 from my last #99 on the 18th going to Irving Tx and then a pick up Ft Worth going to Portland Or. at which time they were going to route me through WVC to pick up LadyK somewhere around the 21st, mean time she just sets there waiting).
Anyway, the load I came to Texas with, was to unload a 0600 per what they have now told me. So at 10 hours and 2 minutes, I am up running and ready to go.
I get to my #99 (right at 0600) and they tell me that the appointment time is for 1700, not 0600.
So I put a call in the the DM, and I wait and wait.... Then the Dock Boss comes out at about 0640 and say for me to back into the door because the 0630 truck was a no show. I think ok... I am still on track then.
I get unloaded and get to my #1 for the next load about an hour early(they only took about 30 min to unload me... YAAAAAA).
They tell me that the load is not scheduled till 1400 today and that they can't unload me because it is a JIT product and it will not even be here till noon.
But as one of the pompas #####'s said, "you mac11'd the loads..."
I replied I mac11'd the miss information you gave me.
Well, it goes on... but mean time I'm taking with Paula, (she is in WVC) and she talks to the Top Dog for the DM's. He inturns call the terminial manager for Fontana, who calls Paula, and then calls me.
Now.... I am still setting, I don't know what is happening next.
But at this point in time I can tell you, before I mac11 another load, I'll call all parties and confirm delivery times and appointments my self.

Right now, I do not feel I can trust any information that I get fromt the DM's or Planners.

I just want to empty out my truck and tell them where it is, but LadyK had promised me that if I did, she would inflick very large amounts of pain, brusing and even possibly some broken bone upon my body if I did... Even as intriging as that might sound, I desided to wait and see what happens.

So, I am setting here at a Love's TS in somewhere near Ft Worth....

(just a side note.... I now can understand why the Dick Simon driver drove his truck through/into the Capital..... He was aining at the CRS office but following the directions that he got over the QC.)lol......

 

Hey Klingon, not trying to defend Central in anyway but a lot of their loads are from other brokers too. Sometimes load info can be passed through a lot of different parties so it would be hard to find out who's exactly responsible. There maybe a newbie in training somewhere along the line who is messing it all up or some type of mis-communication. Whatever it is document it on the qualcomm that this is happening and then proceed to talk to your dm and the dm manager. If it is not resolved then you need to go higher. The most important thing is that you remain calm and commend everyone for the job they are doing and thank them. You can bet that no one is doing it on purpose to you personally. Central really values their husband/wife teams and they are highly important to them and are a big asset. (at least they used to be) I know its tough not to get frustrated out there. Keep in mind though it can be slow going until you and ladyk and your dispatcher and even their planner all mesh together with a good flow. This is one really big reason you don't want to buy a truck right off the bat! Hope this helps, keep us updated.

 

Thanks for the info... and I can understand that if it was just one... But, on the one of the loads, the time was changed from 2300 to 0600 but the dock boss told me that it was set up to be a 1700 appointment time. I can even understand the change from 2300 to 1700. The 2300 was the time at first when the load was going to the Sara Lee warehouse. The 1700 was set up as the appointment time for State Fair Foods which is a marketing branch of Sara Lee and their warehouses is in the same building, just on different ends.
But I would still ask why the 0600?

Well I'll tell you I will NEVER trust Danield again. I told him I wanted to know from the planner why the 0600 time was entered. He would not ask, he would not tell me who the planner was, nothing. So as far as I'm concerned his ##### is expendable too.... I will NOT go out of my way for him again, just as today will be the last day I ever put my self in a position that I am in right now.
I am setting in my truck, in a dirt field, across the street from walmart. While waiting for them to unload my truck, I ran my 14 hour clock down to 3 minutes. I would move the truck 200 to 300 feet do a mac 45 put myself on line 1 and shut the engine off. Wait for it to send then do it again... I had to to that for about 800 yards till I got to the dirt field that I am in now.

There are now two DM's there in Fontana that I don't want anything to do with.

 

I am so glad I have a DM who is aslo a planner..

As for following the QC directions - they can be most annoying..

 

You can move .7 miles before it changes you status.. I actually move my truck to a ts across the road from a d/c the other day and never left line 2. That was the day I met injun.

 

most of the time, the ones to a shipper not make any sense at all. and the routing stuff is even worst..... If you can even find them on the map...

 

I was told by safety that, that is not always true. In some cases yes, but every 5 minutes the qc will update. If it detects a movement while it is in that update mode it will put you into line 3. But yes... if you can time it so that your .7 mile is within the alotted 5 minute window your ok...
That is per Wolf... if you want to believe him....

 

I got one set of directions (mac 27) that just said. ' small place behind .... and just after ....' good thing my gps got me to their doors.

(The. .... were business names)