Tips for a smaller, older guy, that is a new going into flatbed?

@Cdemars316 @Michael-CO ... Have you guys looked at Red Wing King Toe Met Guard boots? ... I have been wearing them since 2004 ... Takes couple days to break em in and comfortable ... I am not a trucker, but work in the Oil and Natural Gas Industry and you guys haul a lot of my Pipe on your Flatbeds ... Some with Headache Rack and a lot without.

 

I got into Sketchers, unbelievably comfortable shoes. Have a slop on set I use most days in and out of the truck, then a set of the lightest work boots I've had, really comfortable.

 

Take your time and don't panic over anything and if in doubt always ask.The only foolish questions are those you don't ask.85% of drivers are willing to give valuable advice.

 

Not as bad now as it used to be, but really if you’re over 5’11” trucks don’t really fit well. The integral cabs made a big difference. In the older trucks I could never get far enough away from the firewall for my legs to fit. Cousin is 6’5”, I’m 6’3” and we ran double in single bunk 359 with a 4+4 in it. If we were both in the cab it just looked like a tangle of blowdown in there.

 

Tell me about it! I drive a 2017 daycab International now. I make it work but it's not great. I had to get an aftermarket seat for it, and that has to be all the way down and all the way back for me to squeeze in there.

Only truck I ever drove that I could actually stretch out and be comfortable in was a pete 377 with a sleeper (i think it was a 2003 model?).

 

Worst thing I ever had to wedge myself into was a loader. When I was a kid the one up in the pit was a Michigan 75. By the time I was 14 or so it was a torture device. Loading a truck with it was a few minutes of smashing knees on #### and digging myself in the ribs with my own elbows. More room in a phone booth than one of those cabs.

 

Take your time and if in doubt always ask.I went from dryvan and reefer in 1992 to flatbedding. Best choice I ever made.